I remember quite clearly in elementary school (60+ years ago) reading a story in which someone said something like, “the garage was back of the house.” I was outraged and appalled as only a small kid can be, because I knew that the correct expression was “in back of,” not “back of.” That was just wrong.
Now, at age 70, most of that furor has subsided, and I realize that different people have different ways of putting things.
I was most recently reminded of this because in the Nero Wolfe books, Archie often talks about things being “back of” other things.
But I’m wondering if there is any pattern to each of the expressions. It somehow feels to me that “back of” is not only a more old-fashioned form, but also perhaps more rural or mid-western, and that “in back of” is more urban and/or more East Coast. But maybe that’s just my prejudice from having been brought up in suburban Maryland.
Another former suburban Marylander here! The garage is in back of the house definitely sounds less slangy to me than the garage is back of the house—that seems like something I’d hear in West Virginia when I visited relatives there as a kid.
(But honestly, in back of sounds kind of slangy to me too. My parents raised us–for good or ill–to avoid regionalisms and slang, insofar as possible, so I personally would say the garage is behind the house.)
I can’t figure out how to link to it, but the Google n-gram results for “is in back of”, “is in the back of” and “is back of” show that the last of these was by far the most popular from the late 19th century to the mid-20th century, peaking about 1920.
Also saves words, as you don’t need to say “in behind of” (and probably shouldn’t anyway).
Reminds me of a Goon Show gag, I think it’s in “Forog" where Neddy is trying to get home to Brixton in the fog, and says “Do I feel a hot engine ahint of me (aside to audience: we’re not allowed to say “behind”). I say, it’s a bus! Ahoy, driver, why are you following me so closely?” “You’ve got your braces around the radiator.” Thanks, I’ll be here all week. Don’t forget to tip your moderators.
To my ear, both sound weird. I didn’t even realize it meant “behind.” I was thinking it meant “in the back of the house,” that is, inside the house but towards the back end.
I would also just use “behind” for something outside the house.