appropriate preposition

appropriate preposition / appropriate preposition list

[Note: Certain words take particular prepositions after them. This is a matter of Idiom]

Abide by (obey): Students should abide by the rules of the school.

Abide in (live): His uncle abides in London

Abstain from (refrain): We should abstain from smoking.

Accused of (convicted): The man was accused of theft.

Abound with (full of): Our rivers abound with fishes.

Abound in (exist plentifully): Fishes abound in our river.

Admit to (take in / enroll): He was admitted to Motijheel Govt. Boys' High school.

Agree with, on (consent): I agree with you on this point.

Agree to consent): He did not agree to this proposal.

Aim at (shoot at): He aimed at the bird.

Appear before (present publicly): The man appeared before the court.

Appear in (set for an exam): We shall appear in the S. S. C Exam.

Apply to, for (ask for): I applied to the Headmaster for leave.

Appear to (seem): It appears to me that he is innocent.

Attend to (give care and attention): You should attend to your lesson.

Attend on/upon (look after): The nurse is attending on/upon the patient.

Absent from (not present): He was absent from school.

Addicted to (habituated to evil things): Don't be addicted to smoking.

Accompanied by (with): He went to Dhaka accompanied by his father.

Afraid of (frightened): Everybody is afraid of snakes.

Attentive to (mindful): You should be attentive to studies.

Affectionate to (fond of): Teachers are affectionate to students.

Access to (entrance): We have access to the office.

Adjacent to (near): My office is adjacent to my residence.

Appetite for (hunger): Physical exercise increases appetite for food.

Ambition for strong desire): Almost everybody has ambition for fame.

Aware of conscious): We should be aware of our duties.

Angry with/at: He is angry with you.

Anxious about (worried): Father is anxious about my result.

Ashamed of (feeling shame): I am ashamed of your conduct.

Adequate to (sufficient): Water supply is not adequate to our needs.

According to (in harmony with): He worked according to my advice.

Beware of having caution): Beware of pickpockets.

Bask in (enjoy warmth and light): They were basking in the sun.

Believe in (to have faith): We believe in Allah.

Blind of (having no power to see): He is blind of one eye.

Blind to (indifferent): The man is blind to his son's fault.

Boast of (feel proud): He boasts of his riches.

Born of (come of): He is born of a middle class family.

Bound for (ready to start): The train is bound for Sylhet.

Burst into (suddenly begin to cry): Hearing the news, she burst into tears.

Burst out (suddenly begin to laugh): The whole class burst out laughing.

Beneficial to (good for): Walking is beneficial to health.

Care for: I do not care for anybody.

Close to (near): My house is very close to our school.

Compare with (to make comparison with a similar thing): Rabindranath is compared with Shelly.

Compare to (to make comparison with a dissimilar thing): Anger is often compared to fire.

Commit to memory (memorize): Can you commit this long poem to memory?

Charge against complaint): What is the charge against him?

Complain against (bring charge): They complained against the teacher.

Complain to (bring charge to somebody): They complained to the Headmaster.

Comply with (keep): Please comply with my request.

Competent for (fit for): You are competent for the post.

Consist of contain): Our family consists of five members.

Consist in (lie in): Happiness consists in contentment.

Compensate for (make up the loss): Who will compensate for the loss?

Congratulate on (express pleasure for one's success): I congratulate you on your brilliant success.

Condemn to (sentence to): The murderer was condemned to death.

Conducive to (good for): Early rising is conducive to health.

Congenial to (conducive): Polluted air is not congenial to health.

Convict of (declare guilty): He was convicted of theft.

Cure of (get rid of a disease): He was cured of malaria.

Cure for (remedy): There is no cure for AIDS.

Credit to (deposit): Credit the amount to my account.

Deal in (do business): His uncle deals in rice.

Deal with (behave): He deals well with all.

Deficient in (weak): He is deficient in English Deliver to (hand over): The postman delivered the letter to me.

Deprived of (not allowed to enjoy rights): The poor are deprived of their rights.

Die of (die of a disease): The man died of malaria.

Die from (die because of harmful effect): The boy died from over-eating.

Die for (sacrifice): Soldiers die for their country.

Die by (die by Own hand): The man died by suicide/hanging.

Devoid of (empty of): He is devoid of commonsense.

Cause of reason): What is the cause of your failure?

Cause for (reason for a future event): There is no cause for anxiety.

Depend on (rely): We should not depend on foreign aids.

Different from (not the same): This book is different from yours.

Differ with (disagree): I differ with you on this point.

Dull at (not bright): He is dull at Mathematics.

Difference between the state of being not the same) Do you know the difference between a poet and a scientist?

Disqualified for (not qualified): Only a B.A. is disqualified for the post of Headmaster.

Expert in (skilled) He is an expert in English.

Expect from (hope): We expect a good result from you.

Fond of (favorite): The cat is fond of milk.

Faith in (belief): We have faith in Allah.

Faithful to (loyal): The dog is faithful to its master.

Famous for (reputed): Rajshahi is famous for mangoes.

Feed on (live on): The cow feeds on grass.

Fit for (suitable): He is fit for this post.

Fine for (penalise): He was fined for misconduct.

Fire at (shoot at): The hunter fired at the bird.

Free from (exempt! without): We are not free from diseases.

Free of (without cost): We had the books free of cost.

Full of (filled with): Every fruit is not full of juice.

Fondness for (love): He has fondness for games.

Good at (efficient): He is good at driving.

Grateful to/for (thankful): We are grateful to you for your help.

Guilty of (having guilt): He is guilty of theft.

Hanker after (have a strong desire): Don't hanker after evil-money.

Hopeful of (having hope): I am hopeful of your success.

Inform of (give information): Who informed you of the matter?

Interested in (having an interest): He is interested in painting.

Introduce to (acquaint with): He introduced me to the class.

Jealous of (having ill feeling): He is jealous of my prosperity.

Key to (mainly helpful): Industry is the key to success.

Laugh at (ridicule): Don't laugh at the poor.

Lame of (having lameness): He is lame of one leg.

Marry to (to be in marriage): Mamtaz was maried to Shahjahan.

Mindful of (attentive to): Good students are mindful of their studies.

Noted for (famous): Mohsin was noted for charity.

Open to allowing all): A school is open to all for education.

Play at (cards/with fire): He was playing at cards. Don't play with fire.

Popular with (loved by people): He is popular with his work mates.

Preside over (be the head of): He presided over the meeting.

Prepare for (get ready): He is preparing for the exam.

Play on (perform on a musical instrument): The boy was playing on a violin.

Prevent from (forbid): Father prevented me from going to the cinema.

Prohibit from (forbid): Father prohibited me from going to the cinema.

Qualified for (fit for): He is qualified for the post of Principal.

Recover from (come round): He has recovered from illness.

Regard for (honour): We must have regard for our elders.

Smile at (laugh at): Don't smile at the poor.

Smile on (favour): Fortune smiles on the brave.

Sure of (having confidence): I am sure of my success

Trust in (believe in): We should trust in God.

Taste for interest): He has taste for music.

Thirst for (strong desire): He had thirst for knowledge.

Worthy of (deserving): Your action is worthy of praise.

Wait upon (attend on): A nurse waits upon the patient.

Exercise :

A Fill in the gaps of the passage with prepositions/ prepositional phrases from below: Use the right form grammatically.

against, jealous, convict of, sentence to, afraid of, believe in, agree on, to, for, in.

Socrates was …….. blasphemy. The charge …….. him was quite false. The judges declared him guilty. He was ………… death. Later, the Athenians could realize their mistake. The truth was that the persons ……………. power had grown him. They were also his popularity and his great love ………….. people. In fact, Socrates was a victim …………… jealousy. He ………………. oneness of God. He did not believe in Greek gods and goddesses. He was regular in prayers. He did not ………………..this point that all men are equal.

Fill in the gaps with prepositions from below: There are more prepositions than necessary.

Attentive to / duty to, blind to / appoint to, grateful to / confident of,

since / remedy for, deal in / dief for, agree to / commit to memory

(i) The man is …………… his own fault.

(ii) We have…………. Our motherland.

(iii) Students should be ………….. studies.

(iv) We must be ……………….. those who help us.

(v) His father ……………………..in rice.

(vi) I am my ………………….. success.

(vii) Patriots ………….. their motherland.

(viii) I cannot agree with you ………………… this proposal.

appropriate preposition