To Me, For Me or As For Me?

To Me, For Me or As For Me?

“To me, it’s OK.” “For me, it’s OK.” “As for me, it’s OK.”

If you are not sure what the difference between “to me,” “for me” and “as for me” is in the sentences above, read on…

TO ME

This phrase is used to express an opinion. In other words, it means “in my opinion.”

To me, this is a great opportunity. (≈ In my opinion, this is a great opportunity.)

This, to me, is a tragic but a solvable problem. (≈ To my mind, this is a tragic but a solvable problem.)

Note that more often than not “to me” ends a sentence. It can start one to mark contrast with someone else’s opinion:

That looks like evidence of a struggler to me. (= To me, that looks like evidence of a struggle.)

That doesn’t sound like the truth to me. (= To me, that doesn’t sound like the truth.)

FOR ME

To express the effect or benefit of something, use “for me.”

For me, this is not a problem. (≈ I don’t see it as a problem.)

For me, this is a relief. (≈ This makes me relieved.)

Note that “To me, this is a relief” makes sense too, but the meaning is slightly different. The sentence means “In my opinion/I think, this is a relief.”

Consider the following sentences:

To me, he’s a fool.

For me, he’s a fool.

Which makes more sense? The answer is the first sentence. That’s because using “for me,” you talk about the effect something has on you. To express your opinion, use “to me.” However, to be a fool for someone or something is to like someone or something: 1) I’m a fool for cake. (≈ I love cake.) 2) I’m a fool for you. (≈ I like/love you.)

AS FOR ME

Using “as for me” at the beginning of a sentence would only make sense if it is a follow-up, alternative, or response to something someone else has said (usually, to mark contrast with another person’s opinion).

I know you’re a fool for red meat. As for me, I like chicken better than beef.

She’s such a ray of sunshine. As for me, I’m grumpy, especially in the morning.

They are giving so much thought to the renovation of the house. As for me, I couldn’t care less.

If you want to know more phrases used for expressing an opinion, check out our article “How to Talk about Opinions,” and don’t forget to subscribe to our blog for more content like this. Thank you for reading! 😉

5 thoughts on “To Me, For Me or As For Me?”

  1. It was interesting to learn about the use of “as for me”, as well as about the unheard-before phrase “to be a fool for someone/something”.
    I appreciate the efforts you’ve made as to kindly and visually easy shed a light on things. Thus such a material as this is clearly a delight for both my eyes and mind.

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  4. Hi, thank you for the good question.
    When we use “as for me”, we usually mark contrast with another person’s opinion. “As far as I’m concerned” just means “according to what I feel or think.” So, it doesn’t sound like it’s introducing a follow-up, alternative, or response to something someone else has said. It’s pretty much like “I think/believe.”

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