Common Expressions With Prepositions

It is not easy to figure out which preposition to use after a particular noun, verb or adjective.

Accuse somebody of something

She accused me of reading her letters.

Afraid of

I am afraid of the dark.

Agree with a person, opinion or policy

I don’t agree with your opinion.

Do you agree with the argument that education should be free for all?

Agree about a subject of discussion

My husband and I agree about most things.

Agree on a matter for discussion

Let’s agree on a price.

Angry with

Why are you angry with me?

Anxious about

I am anxious about his health. (= I am worried about his health.)

Anxious for

We are all anxious for an end to this misunderstanding. (= We are eager to have an end to this misunderstanding.)

Anxious to

I am anxious to find a good job. (= I am eager to find a good job.)

Apologize to somebody for something

I think you should apologize to him.

I must apologize for disturbing you.

Arrive at / in

We will arrive at / in Madrid in the morning.

Bad at

I am not particularly bad at tennis.

Believe in

Do you believe in life after death?

Belong in / on

Those glasses belong on the top shelf.

Belong to

He belongs to a local football club.

Blue with

She was blue with cold.

Clever at

She is quite clever at solving puzzles.

Congratulate on

I must congratulate you on your promotion.

I must congratulate you for / on winning the first prize.

Depend / dependent on

He is still dependent on his parents.

Die of / from

A lot of people died of flu last year.

He died from his injuries a few days after the accident.

Different from / to / than

This is different from/ to / than this.

Difficulty with

I am having difficulty with my travel arrangements.

Disappointed with/at/about something

I am quite disappointed with/about my results.

Disappointed with somebody

My mother said that she was disappointed with me.

Discussion about

We had a discussion about his plans.

Divide into

The book is divided into 12 chapters.

Dream of

I often dreamt of becoming a famous writer when I was younger.

Dressed in

She was dressed in white.

Enter into

We have entered into an agreement with them.

Explain something to somebody

Can you explain this to me?

Fight with, struggle with

He spent his whole life fighting with the government.

Frightened of

The children were frightened of the noise.

Get into a car / get out of a car

When I got into my car I found that my camera had been stolen.

Good at

She is quite good at writing.

Ill with

He has been ill with flu for many days.

Impressed with / by

I am very impressed with your work.

We were impressed by her performance.

Increase in

We want to see a big increase in productivity.

Independent of

She wants to be independent of her parents.

Independence from

India got independence from Britain in 1947.

Insist on

She insisted on paying for the drinks.

Interested in

Are you interested in social work?

Kind to

She was very kind to me.

Lack of

Lack of time prevented me from finishing the job.

Laugh at

Please do not laugh at the beggar.

Listen to

Please listen to me.

Look at

Why are you looking at me like that?

Look after

There was no one to look after the old woman.

Look for

I am looking for my keys.

Marriage to

Her marriage to Samuel did not last long.

She has been married to him for over two decades.

Nice to

She is nice to everyone.

Operate on

The surgeons operated on him yesterday.

Pay for

Who will pay for the drinks?

Pleased with / at / about something

I am quite pleased with/at / about my results.

Pleased with somebody

I am quite pleased with myself.

Polite to

Try to be polite to strangers.

Prevent from + ing

She prevented me from entering her home.

Proof of

I want proof of your love.

Reason for

What is the reason for the accident?

Remind of

She reminds me of my mother.

Responsible for

Who is responsible for cooking dinner?

Rude to

He was rude to everyone.

Run into

I ran into your mother yesterday. (= I met your mother yesterday.)

Search for

The police are searching for a bald man in his thirties.

Shocked at / by

I was shocked at / by the news of his death.

Shout at

Why are you shouting at me?

Smile at

She didn’t even smile at me when I met her yesterday.

Sorry about

I feel sorry about her.

Sorry for / about something that you have done.

I am sorry for / about disturbing you.

Speak to /speak with

Can I speak with / to you for a moment?

Suffer from

My grandfather suffers from dementia.

Surprised at / by

I was surprised by / at his ignorance.

Think of / about

I am thinking of studying law.

I have also thought about studying philosophy.

The thought of

The thought of failing never entered his head.

Throw at

Don’t throw stones at the dog.

Trip over

She tripped over the bag and fell.

Wrong with

What is wrong with you?