Obedient To: Standard Pattern
Obedient To: Standard Pattern records the directly documented construction and keeps guidance bounded to the evidenced complement pattern rather than inventing a broader prohibition.
Use “obedient to” when naming the person or authority whose instructions are followed.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Meaning / situation | Form / construction | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| name the person, authority, rule, or command whose directions are followed | obedient to + noun phrase | Use the documented “to” complement. |
| describe someone simply as obedient without naming an authority | obedient | An expressed complement is optional when context supplies the meaning. |
Quick tests
Meaning / construction test
Are you naming the person or authority whose instructions are followed?
If yes: Use “obedient to” followed by that person or authority.
If no: If the authority is already understood, “obedient” can stand without an expressed complement.
Caveat: This guide records the “obedient to” complement; it does not claim that the adjective always requires a following “to” phrase.
Examples
The dog was obedient to its handler.
The “to” phrase identifies the authority whose instructions are followed.
The child remained obedient to the teacher’s instructions.
The complement names the directions being followed.
The trainer described the dog as calm and obedient.
The adjective can appear without an explicit complement.
Further guidance
Construction
Collins documents “obedient to” for a person who follows the authority or instructions of someone such as a parent.
Style Boundary
This page records the obedient-to complement pattern and does not imply that obedient always requires an expressed complement.
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- obedient — Collins English Dictionary (opens in a new tab)HarperCollins Publishers · Collins dictionary evidence for obedient to a person or authority.