ENGLISH
REFERENCE

in order of sth

prep. phr..
B1 Intermediate Oxford

prep. phr.. you use this to describe a list or group that follows a specific sequence, like from A to Z or oldest to youngest.

prep. phr.. a prepositional phrase used to specify the criterion for sequencing or categorizing a set of items.


SIMPLE

Please list the names in order of age.

CONTEXTUAL

The files are arranged in order of importance so you can find the most urgent tasks first.

COMPLEX

The historical documents were meticulously archived in order of their discovery rather than by the date they were originally written.

Usage

usually followed by a noun that describes the sorting criteria, such as 'size', 'priority', or 'arrival'.

Teaching tip

contrast with 'in order to' (purpose) to avoid confusion; emphasize that 'order' here refers to sequence or arrangement.

Pitfall

in order for agein order of agethe preposition 'of' is required to link the word 'order' to the specific sorting criterion.

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