Inspiration to or for?

[Sevil]

'He should be an inspiration to (or for) us all.' Does anyone know whether 'to' and 'for' are interchangeable in this example? If not, which one is correct and why? Thanks!

[geofbob]

I think only "to" is correct with inspiration. On the other hand, "for" would be correct with "example" - eg "he should set an example for us". I don't think there's any particular rule: different nouns just take different prepositions - yet another example of the inconsistency of the English language.

[geofbob]

Perhaps I should add that I think hardly anyone would notice if you did use "for" with "inspiration"!