To and for are both prepositions. They are used in different situations.

To is used to say many things:

• Why someone does something, i.e. My mother called to tell me about dinner. This means that it shows the reason for the action.

• Something’s purpose, or why it exists, i.e. We took our computer to the repairman because we want it to work properly.

• When doing something, i.e. to walk, to go, to think.

• When saying what must or can be done with something, i.e. I need to buy something to clean the floors with.

Use TO in these cases:

    Destination

    “We’re going to Paris.”

    What time it is

    “It’s a quarter to 2.”

    Distance

    “It’s about ten miles from my house to the university.”

    Comparing

    “I prefer sleeping to working.”

    Giving

    “I gave the book to my sister.”

    Motive/Reason – with verb

    “I came here to see you.”

For is used in two main ways:

• For + -ing verb to show the general purpose of something, i.e. This cup is used for measuring cooking ingredients.

• For somebody + to do something, i.e. I just called for him to come and fix the light in the kitchen.

Here are some more examples of how to use the word “to”:

• “Sharon decided to tell us about her pregnancy now instead of later so we could start planning our trip to visit her before the baby will be born.” - she told us about her pregnancy now so we would have time to plan our visit accordingly
• “The cleaning lady comes every day to clean our office kitchen and toilets.” - the purpose of the cleaning lady coming to our office is to clean the kitchen and toilets
• “I need to buy some hair dye to color my hair with before the party.” - the speaker needs to buy something to make their hair a different color before the party

Use FOR in these cases:

    Benefits

    “Yogurt is good for your digestion.”

    Period of time

    “We’ve lived here for 2 years.”

    Schedule

    “I made an appointment for May 3.”

    Agree with

    “Are you for or against the development of nuclear weapons?”

    Doing something to help someone

    “Could you carry these books for me?”

    Motive/Reason – with noun

    “Let’s go out for a drink.”

    Function – with verb (-ing form)

    “A ladle is a big spoon used for serving soup.”