Tcjessup's comments

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	Perhaps a logical reason why we say "on purpose" but "by accident" is this. "On" implies that things are going correctly (on course, on track, etc.), whereas "by" implies that they have gone astray (fell by the wayside, overcome by events). Thus, an intended outcome happens on purpose, an unintended one by accident (caused by an unanticipated event) or by mistake (caused by an error). more » 2 years ago	View

Perhaps a logical reason why we say "on purpose" but "by accident" is this. "On" implies that things are going correctly (on course, on track, etc.), whereas "by" implies that they have gone astray (fell by the wayside, overcome by events). Thus, an intended outcome happens on purpose, an unintended one by accident (caused by an unanticipated event) or by mistake (caused by an error). more »

2 years ago

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Timothy C Jessup

Joined: Nov 2021

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Identify the sentence with correct use of the past continuous tense:

A I was studying when the phone rang.

B They eat dinner at 7 PM every day.

C He speaks three languages fluently.

D She was playing the piano all evening.