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Prepositions after honour

Honour by, with, for, in, or as?

Honour combines with several prepositions to express recognition, awards, methods, and roles.

Quick answer

Common combinations with honour

Use honour for a reason or achievement, honour with for an award, honour by for the method of showing respect, and honour as for a role or identity. In usually belongs to a separate phrase such as in honour of.

She was honoured for her public service.
The university honoured him with an honorary degree.
They honoured her as a national figure.

Choose the pattern by meaning

These forms are not interchangeable. Choose the construction by meaning, not by which preposition appears most often.

1
honour for + achievement

Recognising someone because of something

Use for to state the achievement, service, or quality being recognised.

He was honoured for his medical work.
2
honour with + award

Presenting a distinction

Use with when someone receives a medal, title, or award.

The society honoured her with a gold medal.
3
honour by + action

Showing respect through an action

Use by to explain the action taken to show honour.

The town honoured the poet by restoring his house.
4
honour as + identity

Recognising a role or status

Use as when identifying the role in which someone is honoured.

The museum honoured her as an innovator.

See the difference in context

The same subject can take different constructions because each sentence answers a different question.

Construction
Example
Meaning
honour by
They honoured the volunteers by planting trees.
Shows the action used to express respect.
honour with
She was honoured with a national award.
Giving a distinction or prize.
honour for
He was honoured for his leadership.
Recognition because of an achievement or quality.
honour in
A concert was held in honour of the composer.
In usually appears in the phrase in honour of rather than directly after honour.
honour as
The club honoured him as a founder.
Recognising someone in a role or status.

Common mistakes

Some combinations appear in real text but do not mean what learners often assume.

Using honour in directly after the verb

English normally uses in honour of as a separate phrase.

✕ They honoured in his memory. ✓ They gathered in honour of his memory.

Mixing up honour with and honour for

With names the award; for names the reason.

✕ She was honoured with her research. ✓ She was honoured for her research.

Leaving out the object

Honour usually needs an object before by or with phrases.

✕ The school honoured with a ceremony. ✓ The school honoured the teacher with a ceremony.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. The doctor was honoured ___ years of service.
2. The king honoured her ___ a title.
3. They honoured the author ___ naming a library after him.

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Frequently asked questions

Is honour different from honor?

They have the same meaning. Honour is the usual British spelling, while honor is American.

Can I say honoured as?

Yes. Use honoured as to identify the role or status recognised.

What phrase uses in with honour?

The common expression is in honour of, meaning as a tribute to someone or something.

hack-into-by-at-to, in "haggle with" or "haggle for"? "hail from" or "hail as"? hamper by, due, in, for or throughout? "handle by" or "handle in"? hang in, from, over, around or onto? "happen to" or "happen in"? harass by, in, at, for or with? "harm by" or "harm to"? harvest from, in, for, at or by? hasten to, by, from, after or into? hate on, for, by, about or in?

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