It is said that an ancient king of Scotland once asked his nobles by what tenure they held their lands. The chiefs drew their swords, saying, “By these we acquired our lands, and with these we will defend them.”
By often relates to the person; with to the instrument.
“He lay on the ground half concealed with a clump of bushes.” “That speech was characterized with eloquence.” Use by in the last two sentences.
With, To
We correspond with a person when we exchange letters. In speaking of the adaptation of one object to another, the preposition to should be used after the verb correspond; as, “This picture corresponds to that.” With is often incorrectly used in such cases instead of to.
Position
The old grammarian gave a very good rule when he said, “A preposition is a very bad word to end a sentence with;” but it is sometimes easier to follow his example than his precept. In general, the strength of a sentence is improved by not placing small particles at the end.
“Which house do you live in?” Better, “In which house do you live?”
“Avarice is a vice which most men are guilty of.” Say, “of which most men are guilty.”
“He is a man that you should be acquainted with.” Say, “with whom you should be acquainted.”