Prepositions after verbs

GRAMMAR
V
PREPOSITIONS
AFTER VERBS
STUDENTS:
Erika Arguello
Mario Salazar
Shirley Vásquez
SEMESTER:5th

PREPOSITIONS AFTER VERBS
Is a combination of a verb and a preposition. It is just a verb followed by a preposition.
Some verbs need particular prepositions to be used after them in sentences having a
direct object. Such a verb with its required preposition is called a prepositional phrase.
For example:
He knocks at the door.
In above sentence “knock at” is prepositional phrase which contains a verb “knock”
and a preposition “at”. Without the use of correct preposition after a prepositional verb
in a sentence, the sentence is considered to be grammatically wrong. For example if we
say, “he knocks the door”, it is wrong because it lacks the required preposition “at”. So
the correct sentence is “he knocks at the door”.
Prepositional Verbs are transitive and they have a direct object in sentence. Some of the
frequently used preposition verbs are:
ABOUT
VERBS MEANING EXAMPLES
agree about to have the same opinion about
something as someone else.
We agreed about ending the matter.
argue about to disagree or quarrel about something. We argued about spending money.
care about 1. to like; 2. to be interested in
something.
We care about recycling things.
He cares about his little sister.
ask about to ask for information about someone or
something.
He asked me about my relatives.
He asked me about my future plans.
complain
about
to be dissatisfied with something He complains about getting old.
She is always complaining about her job.
She complained about her noisy neighbor.
disagree about to have different opinions They disagree about everything.
feel about to have an opinion about How do you feel about his new plan?
forget about someone / something Sorry, I forgot about your request.
She forgets about calling us.
hear about to learn about someone /something Have you heard about the accident?
Inform about
Talk about
Tell about
Speak about
Someone / something He informed the committee about his
decision to resign from his post.
He spoke about the necessity of reforms.
What are you talking about?
He talks about getting married.
He told me about your plans.
warn about to advise about (risk, danger, etc.) He warned me about the danger there.
He warned you about the boss's temper.
worry about to feel concerned about someone /
something
She worried about getting lost.
She worries about her son.
What are you worrying about? Don't worry
about money.
write about something or someone - to describe in
writing
He wrote an article about his trip to Spain.
In his letter, he writes about an old friend of

his who lives in our city.
WITH
TO
Belong to to be property of someone This house belongs to his son.
This bag belongs to me.
come to to reach (place, result, position, state,
etc.)
She came to Moscow yesterday.
The bill comes to $50.
The struggle came to an end in July.
The military came to power in 1978.
He fainted, but he came to himself quickly.
complain to to report a complaint to somebody Complain to the manager (about it).
Complain to the police about his actions.
Connect to to join two things together Are you connected to the Internet?
Can you connect me to Mr. Cole?
consent to to agree to something Her father consented to her marriage.
agree with to have the same opinion as someone
else
I don't agree with you about it.
I don't agree with your plan.
He agrees with exercising daily.
argue with to quarrel with someone Stop arguing with me!
begin with
start with
something Begin with Chapter 3.
Start with Chapter 3.
break with to sever relations; to cease one's
connection with someone or something
He broke with his family.
He broke with his old friends.
He broke with the past.
Compare with to examine to see the difference or
similarity
This writer is often compared with Leo
Tolstoy.
connect with 1. to have a connection with; 2. to join
two things together
1. This bank is connected with several big
banks. Her work is connected with music.
2. Can you connect me with Mr. Cole?
correspond
with
to be in correspondence with He corresponds with many famous people.
disagree with to have a different opinion from
someone else.
I disagree with your plan.
Equip with to provide with necessary things The kitchen is equipped with modern
appliances.
Help with to assist someone with something What can I help you with?
He helped me with my report /with my
work.
mark with something - to make more visible Mark mistakes with a red pencil.
Speak with
Talk with
Someone She is speaking with her friend right now.
She is talking with her friend right now.
Stay with to be with someone, visit with someone Stay with me for an hour.
He stayed with us for Christmas.

count to (some number) - to count Close your eyes and count to 10.
get to (some place) - to reach (some place) We got to London at night.
Explain to to make clear. Can you explain this task to the students?
Give to to hand, to pass something to someone /
something
She often gives to charity.
go to to reach, visit, travel to, attend (some
place).
Go to bed.
Go to page 9.
He went to the bank.
He went to Rome last year.
Her son goes to law school.
I have to go to work now.
Does this bus go to the center?
happen to someone What happened to Tom? He looks awful.
hint to to suggest something indirectly to
someone.
He hinted to me that he wanted to buy that
house.
lead to 1. to guide to someone / something; 2. to
result in something
1. He led us to the director's office.
2. This road leads to a nice lake.
3. His carelessness led to a tragic
accident.
listen to 1. pay attention by listening; 2. to obey 1. Listen to the teacher.
2. He is listening to music.
3. You should listen to your parents.
move to to change the place of living They moved to another house last year.
run to to go to someone for help or advice;
2. to come to the amount
1. She always runs to him for help.
2. The bill ran to $300
devote to to give one's time, energy, effort to
something or someone
A dog is devoted to working on your
behalf.
object to to be against something I object to doing all the work.´
FOR
account for to give an explanation How can your account for your absence at
the meeting?
answer for to be responsible for one's actions He will have to answer for his actions.
He should answer for his rude behavior
apply for to make an application or request for
something
He applied for the position of sales
representative.
I want to apply for a job.
apologize for Something I apologized for being late.
ask for to request something. He asked for a cup of coffee.
He asked for a permission to leave
blame for to say that someone is responsible for
something wrong
I was blamed for losing the game.
She blamed him for the loss of her bag.
He is to blame for this terrible mistake.
care for 1. to like; 2. to want; 3. to look after
someone / something
1. He cares for his little sister.
2. Do you care for a drink?
3. Will you care for my cat while I'm
away?
4.I don't care for wearing shorts.

stand for to symbolize, mean What does the letter Q in IQ stand for?
They won't stand for having such
nonsense.
charge for to ask as a price for service or goods How much do you charge for a single
room?
depart for to leave for (some place) The train departs for Paris at one o'clock.
go for to go and do something Let's go for a walk.
Let's go for a drive.
leave for 1. to go to (a place); 2. to abandon one
thing and start another
The train leaves for Paris at twelve o'clock.
He left his wife for a younger woman.
He left his job for a sailing expedition.
look for to search for someone / something. I'm looking for Tom Brown.
What are you looking for?
pay for to give money for something How much did you pay for this bag?
run for 1. run to get something; 2. to try to get a
position of
1. Run for help! Run for cover!
2. He is going to run for President.
vote for to vote in favor of someone / something Five members voted for the candidate.
Did you vote for the new plan or against
it?
wait for someone / something I waited for the bus for twenty minutes.
work for 1. to work for an employer; 2. to get a
certain pay for work
1. He works for IBM. He works for a
newspaper.
2. He agreed to work for $2,000 a month.
He works for free.
OF
approve of to be in favor of something. Her father doesn't approve of her
boyfriend.
Her mother doesn't approve of smoking.
They approved of doing that.
dream of Something He dreams of playing ball
consist of to be composed of (parts, ingredients) Water consists of hydrogen and oxygen.
The book consists of five chapters.
be made of to be made up of some material to be made up of some material
Accuse of to charge someone with something wrong
(e.g., a crime, an offense)
He was accused of murder.
He was accused of stealing money.
He was accused of lying.
in charge of Something He is in charge of collecting tickets.
take care of Something I took care of making reservations.
think of someone / something We thought of a new way to fix that.
AT
Call at to dial the number and speak to someone Call me at 555-3246
drive at to drive at a certain speed He was driving at 70 miles per hour when
the accident happened.

hint at to suggest something indirectly What are you hinting at?
He hinted at this possibility.
knock at to beat lightly on something Somebody is knocking on the door.
I knocked at the door.
laugh at 1. to laugh (at a funny joke);
2. to make fun of someone /something
1. We all laughed at his jokes.
2. The boys laughed at the new boy.
3. They laughed at his accent.
look at 1. to take a look at someone / something;
2. to consider something.
1. He looked at her for a long time.
What are you looking at?
2. I'll look at your report tomorrow.
point at to direct (a finger, gun) to someone Don't point at people!
He pointed a gun at him.
shout at to yell at someone Don't shout at children.
stay at to live at some place for a while We stayed at the Sheraton Hotel.
I stayed at my sister's for two weeks.
stop at to stop at a certain place. He stopped at the red traffic light.
He will stop at nothing! We stopped at my
sister's.
wonder at to admire, marvel at or be surprised by
something
I wondered at his strength and composure
in such a difficult situation.
work at 1. to have a job at some place; 2. work
at/on something - to work (hard) on
something
1. He works at a bank. She works at IBM.
2. Work at your pronunciation. He is still
working on his new novel.
IN
believe in to have faith in someone / something He believes in you.
She believes in justice for all.
She believes in being well-educated.
arrive in to come to some city He arrived in London yesterday.
We arrived in Chicago at night.
work in to have a job at some place . He works in a bank.
She works in a restaurant.
deal in 2. To include (someone) in an enterprise
or undertaking.
He deals in selling real estate.
interest in --------------------- He is interested in being a scientist.
participate in something They will participate in running the race.
result in something Distraction can result in an accident.
specialize in something He will specialize in making wine.
succeed in doing something He succeeded in winning the race.
FROM
come from to be from (some place) He comes from a small town in France.
depart from to leave (some place) The train departs from Rome at 6:30.
expect from to expect (good work, results, etc Don't expect good work from him, he is
lazy and careless.
I expected more from her.
graduate to finish school He graduated from college in 1997.

from
hear from to have news from someone I haven't heard from him in years.
make from to produce, to create something from
something
She made a summer dress from a length of
silk.
Butter is made from milk.
Translate
from
another language This passage was translated from German.
ON
comment on to give one's opinion about something He commented on the current situation.
count on to depend / rely on someone You can always count on me for help.
agree on We agreed on renting the condominium.
concentrate
on
to give full attention to something I concentrate on getting experience.
I am trying to concentrate on my work.
congratulate
on
to express praise to someone for success
in something.
We congratulated them on winning
continue on He continued on sleeping all day
depend on 1. to be conditioned by; 2. to rely on, to
count on someone
1. It depends on the weather.
2. You can always depend on him.
We depend on getting help.
get on to take a bus, train, plane He got on the bus on Maple Avenue
go on Will you go on working?
insist on to demand He insists on selling the house.
He insists on coming too.
live on 1. to live on a certain street; 2. to live on
certain food; 3. to live on certain income.
1. She lives on Baker Street.
2. She lives on apples, bread, and cheese.
3. She lives on 500 dollars a month.
rely on to count on, depend on someone /
something
You can always rely on him. You can
always rely on his help.
We rely on their assisting us.
touch on to mention as a subject We touched on many questions briefly.
report on to give information on something He reported on the current situation.
spend on spend (money, time) on something How much time did you spend on this
report?
How much money do you spend on food?

BIBLIOGRAFY
http://www.studyandexam.com/preposition3.html
http://usefulenglish.ru/idioms/verbs-with-prepositions-and-nouns-short-list

ACTIVITY
Choose the most appropriate answer:
1.- He applied for the position of sales manager.
a) to b) for c)at
2.- His books have been translated into many languages.
a)by b)for c)into
3.- I looked through the magazine, but I didn't find anything interesting.
a)by b)on c)through
4.-He insisted on telling the manager about the incident.
a)for b)at c)on
5.-Let's drink to Mike's health!
a) to b) for c)at
6.- Can I help you? - Yes, please. I'm looking for a good book of English idioms.
a) at b) for c)to
7. - We hope that she will get over her illness soon.
a) over b) out of c)by
8.- He is lagging behind the other students in his mathematics class.
a) from b) behind c)by
9.- I sympathize with her, of course, but there's nothing I can do for her.
a) for b) with c)to
10.- They accused him of murder.
a) of b) for c)in
11.- He was sentenced to ten years for his crime.
a) for b) to c)on
12.-His wife stood by him in everything he did.
a) for b) by c)with

13. I ran into an old friend yesterday whom I hadn't seen for a year.
a) into b) for c)by
14.- It might be dangerous. Can you prevent him from doing it?
a) from b) by c)for

TEST
OBJECTIVE: Know the degree of knowledge that students have about the proper use
of prepositions after verbs.
Time: 10 minutes
INSTRUCTION: Write the correct answer in the blank spaces.
1.- You shouldn't shout at __ children.
a) at b) to c) by
2.- How can you account for your absence at the meeting?
a) by b) to c) for
3.- He is always arguing about something.
a) with b) about c) of
4. He askedfor a cup of coffee.
a) for b) about c) by
5. In his letter, he writes about an old friend of his who lives in our city.
a) over b) about c) to
6.- We arrived in Chicago at night.
a) to b) in c) on
7.- One member voted against the resolution.
a) for b) against
8.- She takes after her mother in character.
a)after b)for
9.- Honestly, I'd prefer to go for dinner.
a)to b)for c)of
10.- 1. Do you believe in ghosts?
a) about b)of c)in

TEST
OBJECTIVE: Know the degree of knowledge that students have about the proper use
of prepositions after verbs.
Time: 10 minutes
INSTRUCTION: Write the correct answer in the blank spaces.
1.- You shouldn't shout __________ children.
a) at b) to c) by
2.- How can you account _______your absence at the meeting?
a) by b) to c) for
3.- He is always arguing _________something.
a) with b) about c) of
4. He asked_______a cup of coffee.
a) for b) about c) by
5. In his letter, he writes _________an old friend of his who lives in our city.
a) over b) about c) to
6.- We arrived______ Chicago at night.
a) to b) in c) on
7.- One member voted _________ the resolution.
a) for b)against
8.- She takes _______ her mother in character.
a)after b)for
9.- Honestly, I'd prefer ______ go for dinner.
a)to b)for c)of
10.- 1. Do you believe _______ghosts?
a) about b)of c)in

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