Resources
'Big of a'
Of Idiom
By Evan Jenkins
Warren Corbett, a writer and editor in Bethesda, Md., e-mailed about an annoying trend:
"At some point the phrase 'not that big a deal' became 'not that big of a deal.' I see it frequently. It grates on me, but I cannot articulate the distinction between 'not that big of a deal,' wrong in my eyes, and 'not that much of a problem,' obviously correct. If I'm not making too big a deal of it, please help."
The answer seems to lie largely with idiom — the way things are expressed simply because they're expressed that way. But maybe there's logic involved, too. In "not that much of a problem" "much" is working as a noun. Using "of" with it seems natural, as it is, say, with "sort of a" and "kind of a" (when followed by singular nouns).
But with an adjective, in this case "big," the "of" seems unnatural and unidiomatic — certainly redundant, and for some of us illiterate.
Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of English Usage, in a lengthy essay under "of a," says that in phrases like "that big of a deal," the usage is relatively recent, oral American idiom, rare in print except in reported speech.
May it remain rare in print. And if people stop speaking that way, that will be fine, too. But Mr. Corbett remains concerned. "Idiom is defined by usage," he notes, "so 'not that big of a deal' is likely to become accepted."
If so, maybe not that big a deal. But annoying.
CJR
