Use of Prepositions with Adjectives and Verbs Example

In English Grammar correct use of Prepositions are very important. Certain adjectives are always used in combination with particular prepositions. Here are some common examples of these adjective + preposition combinations:

Of

1. Children are afraid of snakes.
2. We are proud of being Indians.
3. Cats are fond of milk.

Some more examples :

frightened of, jealous of, conscious of, tolerant of, scared of, envious of, capable of, full of, suspicious of, short of, ashamed of, aware of, critical of.

About/with

1. We are excited about our sister’s wedding tomorrow.
2. My younger sister was delighted with the present I gave her.

Some more examples :

Worried/upset/nervous/happy/annoyed/furious, etc + about
Pleased/satisfied/disappointed/bored/angry, etc. + with

At/by

1. My friend is very good at Mathematics.
2. Everybody was shocked at/by what they heard.

Some more examples :

bad at, brilliant at, clever at, surprised at/by, hopeless at, astonished at/by, excellent at, amazed at/by

Of/to

1. It is so nice/kind of you to visit us.
2. My mother is very nice/kind to the poor.

Some more examples :

silly/stupid/generous/good + of somebody (to do something)
cruel/friendly/polite/generous/good + to somebody

Prepositions used with certain Verbs: Certain verbs are followed by particular prepositions. Here are some common examples of these verb + preposition combinations.

At

1. a. Don’t point that knife at the child. It’s dangerous.
b. He spoke is such a manner that everyone laughed at him.

Some more verbs used with at :

aim at, jump at, stare at, glance at, look at, wonder at, hint at, peck at, jeer at, smile at,

For

2. a. The students are waiting for their teacher to come.
b. One should always hope for the best.

Some more verbs with for :

apologize for, cry for, send for, search for, beg for, feel for, strive for, care for, forgive for, sue for, charge for, long for, wish for, compensate for, mourn for.

From

3. a. The speaker digressed from the topic and spoke a lot of nonsense.
b. Students will benefit from the new book.

Some more verbs with from :

Alight from, derive from, escape from, save from, Abstain from, desist from, exclude from, separate from, borrow from, differ from, prevent from, subtract from, emerge from, digress from, recover from, refrain from.

In

4. a. Most people believe in astrology.
b. My friend did well in English, but failed in Mathematics.

Some more verbs with in :

abound in, involve in, delight in, persist in, excel in, succeed in, increase in, indulge in.

Of

5. a. The students are tired of doing the same task everyday.
b. Many smokers die of lungs cancer.

Some more verbs with of :

Accuse of, complain of, admit of, dispose of, approve of, dream of, beware of, heal of, boast of, suspect of, smell of, think of.

On

6. a. Success in life depends on hard work.
b. My brother spends a lot on books.

Some more verbs with on :

based on, impose on, reflect on, comment on, insist on, rely on, congratulate on, intrude on, resolve on, decide on, operate on, feast on.

To

7. a. None listened to the Chief Guest’s lecture.
b. Students contributed a lot to Indian Freedom Struggle.

Some more verbs with to :

add to, attend to, conform to, submit to, adhere to, belong to, consent to, surrender to, amount to, commit to, introduce to, yield to, aspire to, confine to, listen to, speak to, object to.

With

8. a. Our neighbour always quarrels with children.
b. Gandhi never compromised with falsehood.

Some more verbs with with :

coincide with, fill with, part with, unite with, comply with, grapple with, supply with, cope with, interfere with, sympathize with, disagree with, meddle with, threaten with.