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example
follow the example of
To do something that another person is doing. Growing up, I really tried not to follow the example of my older brother, as he was always getting into trouble. I try to follow the example of Mother Teresa and treat all people with kindness.
Example is better than precept.
Prov. You will teach people more effectively by being a good example than you will by telling them what to do. Mother never lectured us; she just tried her best to be a good person, and we tried hard to be like her. She was living proof that example is better than precept.
hold someone or something up as an example
Fig. to single out someone or something as a person or thing worthy of imitation. No one has ever held me up as an example. Jane held up Doris as an example. I hate to hold myself up as an example, but if you would do what I do, at least I wouldn't criticize you.
make an example of someone
to do something to someone that shows the bad results of bad behavior; to point to someone as a bad example. The judge said that he would make an example of Sally and would fine her the maximum amount. The teacher made an example of me to the class, with a detention on the first day of school.
make an example of somebody
to punish someone for doing something so that other people will not do the same thing They want to make an example of him by keeping him in prison under very difficult conditions.
for example
Also, for instance. As an illustration of something, as in Dress casually, in blue jeans, for example, or This program has problems-for instance, it's hard to retrieve lost data. The first expression, which dates from the late 1500s, is used throughout this book to illustrate how an idiom is used. The variant dates from the mid-1600s.
make an example of
Punish someone so as to be a warning to others, as in The teacher made an example of the boy she caught cheating, or The judge imposed a tough sentence to make an example of the car thieves. This usage is first recorded in John Wycliffe's followers' translation of the Bible (c. 1382).
set an example
Also, set a good or bad example . Behave in a way that should (or will) be imitated, as in Dad was always telling Bill to set a good example for his younger brother, or They were afraid of setting a bad example for the other nations. [Late 1700s]
for example
As an illustrative instance: Wear something simple; for example, a skirt and blouse.