PREPOSITIONS 2

Verb + preposition; noun + preposition; adjective + preposition

A Grammar
We use certain prepositions following specific nouns, adjectives, and verbs. Our choice of preposition is
based on the noun, verb, or adjective that precedes it. Usually, there is only one option, although some
words have two or three possible preposition options. The word + preposition selections in the
following tables are the most common.

1. Noun + prepositions

Noun Preposition
information, nothing, anything, something, truth about
demand, excuse, explanation, in return, in exchange, need, reason, for
reputation, responsibility
belief, change, increase / decrease, drop, rise / fall in
advantage / disadvantage, cause, idea, indication, kind, knowledge, of
understanding, opinion, awareness
effect, influence, impact on
agreement, contact, connection, contract, dealings, in association, with
involvement, meeting, negotiation

E.g. I knew nothing about the matter.

What was the reason for that interruption?
The change in our strategy has produced good results.
We appreciate your understanding of the situation.
The immediate effect on the market will be a slowdown.
We have an agreement with the landlord that covers parking.

2. Adjectives + prepositions

Adjective Preposition
anxious, concerned, confused, enthusiastic, excited, happy, knowledgeable, about
optimistic / pessimistic, sorry, worried
astonished, awful, surprised, terrible, useless at
amazed, annoyed, astonished, concerned, excited, impressed, inspired, by
shocked, surprised
appropriate, concerned, eligible, famous, ready, responsible, suitable for
disappointed, involved, interested, specialized in
aware, conscious, capable / incapable, certain, sure, frightened, full, short, of
proud, tired, sick, typical
based, dependent, insistent on
annoyed, bored, disappointed, impressed, meet, pleased, satisfied with

E.g. They are optimistic about the marketing strategy.

We were surprised at his response.
The boss was impressed by our new web page.
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 We are responsible {or locking the doors when we leave the office.
I was disappointed in the response to our ad.
He was aware of the time change.
The statistics are based on our research.
I was satisfied with our final product.

3. Verb + prepositions

Verb Preposition
care, complain, forget, hear, joke, know, learn, read, talk, think, warn, about
wonder, worry, write
aim, laugh, look, shout, smile at
choose, decide, differentiate between
apologize, apply, check, forgive, hope, prepare, search, wait, wish, use for
learn, prevent, stop, suffer, protect from
believe, specialize, succeed in
run, divide, cut, translate into
assure, convince, accuse, suspect, approve / disapprove, consist of
agree, concentrate, count, depend, insist, rely, congratulate, on
compliment, spend
apologize, describe, explain, listen, point, present, speak, talk, write, to
happen
play, fill, provide, supply with

E.g. I have been thinking about holding an auction.

Have you looked at the business section of the morning newspaper yet?
I haven't decided between flying or driving there.
I have been searching for a file that I'm sure I left on my desk.
I have learned from my mistakes.
His manager didn't succeed in getting the go-ahead on the project.
You'll never guess who I ran into at the mall.
I apologized to the customer. I apologized for the error on the invoice.

The following verbs and prepositions are usually used with an object: forgive, prevent, stop, protect,
assure, convince, accuse, suspect, compliment, congratulate, provide, spend, and supply.
E.g. He convinced me of the importance of the project.
I congratulated him on the fine job he had done.
Management provided us with everything we needed to put on a successful show.

B Grammar exercises
Task 1. In six of these sentences there is a noun followed by the wrong preposition. Find the
sentences with the mistake and correct them.

1. Demand with our products has increased recently.

2. I don't know anything with the outcome of yesterday's meeting.
3. There was a sudden drop in orders last month.
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4. The outbreak of the flu virus has had an impact of sales.
5. Could you get in contact on them this afternoon?
6. There has been no change for the demand for natural foods.
7. Caroline took responsibility for the mistakes in the catalog.
8. I'd like to ask your opinion over this proposal.

Task 2. Fill in the blanks in this conversation with the adjectives in the box.

anxious aware annoyed bored enthusiastic interested pleased

Allen: I'm so 1 __________ with going to meetings where people spend hours discussing things that do
n't affect me.
Yui: I know, me too! I'm really not 2 __________ in whose responsibility it is to organize a training cours
e when I'm only there to discuss the latest sales figures. I guess we should try to be more 3 __________
about them.
Allen: Do you think that the management is 4 ________ of this problem? Maybe we should talk to some
one about it.
Yui: Don't you think they will be 5 ________ by that?
Allen: Not necessarily. Management may be 6 ________ with the fact that someone is putting forward s
uggestions. If you are 7 __________ about talking to someone, I don't mind saying something.

Task 3. Read the statements and make sentences using the words in parentheses. Use a verb +
preposition.

1. I found a tear in the dress when I got home.

(She / complain / tear / dress)

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____
2. I am so sorry that your order was damaged.
(He / apologize / damaged order)

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____
3. I can't find the file anywhere.
(I / search / everywhere / missing file)

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____
4. I had difficulty in unlocking the door.
(I / finally / succeed / opening / door)

_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____

Task 4. Read this extract from the minutes of a meeting. Fill the blanks with the words in the boxes.

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Task 5. Read this short article from a website and underline the correct preposition.

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