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Common adjective-preposition combinations.
Many adjectives require specific prepositions.
The choice of preposition depends on the adjective and must often be learned as part of the expression.
She is afraid of dogs.
Она боится собак.
"Afraid of" is a fixed adjective-preposition combination.
He is interested in photography.
Он интересуется фотографией.
"Interested in" is a common adjective-preposition combination.
She is good at mathematics.
Она хорошо разбирается в математике.
"Good at" is used to describe ability.
They are responsible for the project.
Они отвечают за проект.
"Responsible for" identifies an area of responsibility.
I am proud of my daughter.
Я горжусь своей дочерью.
"Proud of" expresses pride in someone or something.
We are satisfied with the service.
Мы довольны обслуживанием.
"Satisfied with" identifies the thing that satisfies someone.
She is similar to her sister.
Она похожа на свою сестру.
"Similar to" expresses resemblance.
He is tired of waiting.
Он устал ждать.
"Tired of" expresses annoyance or boredom caused by something continuing.
Many adjectives are followed by of.
Examples include afraid of, proud of, capable of, aware of and tired of.
She is afraid of flying.
Она боится летать.
"Afraid of" is followed by a gerund here.
He is proud of his achievements.
Он гордится своими достижениями.
"Proud of" expresses pride.
She is capable of solving the problem.
Она способна решить эту проблему.
"Capable of" is followed by a gerund.
I am aware of the risks.
Я осознаю риски.
"Aware of" expresses knowledge or awareness.
We are tired of the noise.
Мы устали от шума.
"Tired of" expresses annoyance or boredom.
He is fond of classical music.
Он любит классическую музыку.
"Fond of" expresses liking or affection.
She is jealous of her colleague.
Она завидует своей коллеге.
"Jealous of" identifies the person toward whom jealousy is directed.
They are certain of success.
Они уверены в успехе.
"Certain of" expresses confidence about something.
Many adjectives are followed by in.
Examples include interested in, successful in, experienced in and involved in.
She is interested in history.
Она интересуется историей.
"Interested in" expresses interest in a subject.
He is successful in business.
Он успешен в бизнесе.
"Successful in" identifies an area of success.
She is experienced in marketing.
Она имеет опыт в маркетинге.
"Experienced in" identifies an area of experience.
They are involved in the project.
Они участвуют в проекте.
"Involved in" expresses participation.
He is interested in learning Spanish.
Он заинтересован в изучении испанского.
"Interested in" can be followed by a gerund.
She is skilled in repairing computers.
Она умеет ремонтировать компьютеры.
"Skilled in" identifies an area of skill.
The company is active in international markets.
Компания активно работает на международных рынках.
"Active in" identifies an area of activity.
He is involved in organizing the event.
Он участвует в организации мероприятия.
"Involved in" can be followed by a gerund.
Many adjectives combine with at, for or with.
Examples include good at, famous for, responsible for, pleased with and satisfied with.
She is good at solving problems.
Она хорошо умеет решать проблемы.
"Good at" is followed by a gerund when describing an ability.
He is bad at remembering names.
Он плохо запоминает имена.
"Bad at" describes weak ability.
She is famous for her novels.
Она известна своими романами.
"Famous for" identifies the reason for someone's fame.
They are responsible for the children.
Они отвечают за детей.
"Responsible for" identifies responsibility.
I am pleased with the results.
Я доволен результатами.
"Pleased with" expresses satisfaction.
We are satisfied with the arrangement.
Мы довольны договоренностью.
"Satisfied with" expresses satisfaction with something.
She is angry with her brother.
Она сердится на своего брата.
"Angry with" commonly introduces the person who caused the anger.
He is careful with money.
Он осторожен с деньгами.
"Careful with" describes how someone handles something.
Some adjectives are followed by to.
Examples include similar to, married to, kind to, rude to and accustomed to.
This color is similar to the original one.
Этот цвет похож на оригинальный.
"Similar to" expresses resemblance.
She is married to a doctor.
Она замужем за врачом.
"Married to" identifies a spouse.
It was kind of you to help.
Было очень любезно с твоей стороны помочь.
"Kind to" describes considerate behavior toward someone.
He was rude to the waiter.
Он был груб с официантом.
"Rude to" identifies the person receiving the behavior.
I am accustomed to the cold weather.
Я привык к холодной погоде.
"Accustomed to" expresses familiarity through experience.
She is committed to her work.
Она предана своей работе.
"Committed to" expresses dedication.
The company is committed to quality.
Компания привержена качеству.
"Committed to" can be followed by a noun phrase.
This approach is preferable to the alternative.
Этот подход предпочтительнее альтернативного.
"Preferable to" expresses preference between alternatives.
Changing the preposition may change the meaning of the adjective.
Compare angry with someone and angry about something.
She was angry with her brother.
Она сердилась на своего брата.
"Angry with" commonly identifies the person who caused the anger.
She was angry about the delay.
Она сердилась из-за задержки.
"Angry about" identifies the situation or thing that caused the anger.
He is good at mathematics.
Он хорошо разбирается в математике.
"Good at" describes ability.
She is good with children.
Она хорошо ладит с детьми.
"Good with" describes skill or effectiveness in dealing with people or things.
He is sorry about the mistake.
Ему жаль из-за ошибки.
"Sorry about" expresses regret concerning something.
She is sorry for the inconvenience.
Она сожалеет о доставленных неудобствах.
"Sorry for" commonly introduces the thing or situation for which someone apologizes.
He is worried about his exam.
Он беспокоится из-за экзамена.
"Worried about" identifies the source of concern.
She is worried for her children.
Она беспокоится за своих детей.
"Worried for" emphasizes concern for another person's safety or well-being.
Many adjective-preposition combinations are followed by a gerund.
Examples include interested in learning, good at cooking and afraid of flying.
She is interested in learning Spanish.
Она заинтересована в изучении испанского.
"Interested in" is followed by the gerund "learning".
He is good at cooking.
Он хорошо готовит.
"Good at" is followed by the gerund "cooking".
She is afraid of flying.
Она боится летать.
"Afraid of" is followed by the gerund "flying".
They are tired of waiting.
Они устали ждать.
"Tired of" is followed by the gerund "waiting".
He is responsible for organizing the event.
Он отвечает за организацию мероприятия.
"Responsible for" is followed by the gerund "organizing".
She is interested in working abroad.
Она заинтересована в работе за границей.
"Interested in" is followed by the gerund "working".
We are worried about losing the contract.
Мы беспокоимся из-за возможной потери контракта.
"Worried about" is followed by the gerund "losing".
He is capable of handling difficult situations.
Он способен справляться со сложными ситуациями.
"Capable of" is followed by the gerund "handling".
Adjective-preposition combinations commonly introduce noun phrases.
Examples include proud of her son and responsible for the project.
She is proud of her son.
Она гордится своим сыном.
"Proud of" introduces a noun phrase.
He is responsible for the project.
Он отвечает за проект.
"Responsible for" introduces a noun phrase.
I am interested in this subject.
Я интересуюсь этим предметом.
"Interested in" introduces a noun phrase.
She is angry with me.
Она сердится на меня.
"Angry with" introduces the person toward whom the anger is directed.
They are satisfied with the result.
Они довольны результатом.
"Satisfied with" introduces the thing that satisfies them.
He is familiar with the procedure.
Он знаком с процедурой.
"Familiar with" introduces the thing or person known through experience.
She is dependent on her parents.
Она зависит от своих родителей.
"Dependent on" introduces the source of dependence.
We are grateful to you for your help.
Мы благодарны вам за вашу помощь.
"Grateful to" introduces the person receiving the gratitude.
Many adjective-preposition combinations are fixed collocations.
Learning common combinations improves fluency and naturalness in both speech and writing.
She is deeply interested in environmental issues.
Она глубоко интересуется экологическими проблемами.
"Interested in" is a conventional collocation.
He is highly experienced in software development.
Он имеет большой опыт в разработке программного обеспечения.
"Experienced in" is a common formal collocation.
The company is committed to improving customer service.
Компания стремится улучшить обслуживание клиентов.
"Committed to" is a common formal collocation and is followed by a gerund.
She is capable of handling complex projects.
Она способна справляться со сложными проектами.
"Capable of" is a conventional formal collocation.
We are pleased with the outcome.
Мы довольны результатом.
"Pleased with" is a standard collocation.
He is responsible for managing the team.
Он отвечает за управление командой.
"Responsible for" is a standard professional collocation.
The company is famous for its innovative products.
Компания известна своими инновационными продуктами.
"Famous for" is a conventional collocation.
She is aware of the potential consequences.
Она осознает возможные последствия.
"Aware of" is a common formal collocation.
Some adjective-preposition combinations vary across dialects or according to meaning.
Reliable dictionaries are useful for confirming less common patterns.
She is different from her sister.
Она отличается от своей сестры.
"Different from" is widely accepted in standard English.
The two plans are different to each other.
Эти два плана отличаются друг от друга.
"Different to" occurs especially in British English.
He is different than his brother.
Он отличается от своего брата.
"Different than" is common in American English, especially before clauses.
She is angry with her manager.
Она сердится на своего менеджера.
"Angry with" commonly refers to a person.
She is angry at the decision.
Она сердится из-за решения.
"Angry at" can refer to a person, situation or thing and varies by usage.
He is disappointed in his colleague.
Он разочарован в своем коллеге.
"Disappointed in" is common when referring to a person or their behavior.
He is disappointed with the service.
Он разочарован обслуживанием.
"Disappointed with" commonly refers to a thing, situation or service.
She is married to a lawyer.
Она замужем за юристом.
"Married to" is the standard modern construction.
Adjective-preposition combinations are best learned as complete lexical units.
Memorizing the adjective together with its usual preposition leads to more natural English.
She is interested in science.
Она интересуется наукой.
Learn "interested in" as a complete adjective-preposition unit.
He is responsible for the budget.
Он отвечает за бюджет.
Learn "responsible for" as a complete collocation.
They are proud of their achievements.
Они гордятся своими достижениями.
Learn "proud of" as a complete collocation.
She is good at explaining difficult ideas.
Она хорошо умеет объяснять сложные идеи.
Learn "good at" together with the preposition "at".
He is familiar with the software.
Он знаком с программным обеспечением.
Learn "familiar with" as a complete unit.
We are satisfied with the result.
Мы довольны результатом.
Learn "satisfied with" as a complete collocation.
She is capable of solving the problem.
Она способна решить проблему.
Learn "capable of" as a complete unit followed by a gerund.
They are committed to improving the service.
Они стремятся улучшить обслуживание.
Learn "committed to" as a complete collocation followed by a gerund.
Use the preposition required by the adjective.
Common mistakes include choosing the wrong preposition, omitting the preposition and translating adjective-preposition combinations directly from another language.
She is interested in art.
Она интересуется искусством.
Use "interested in", not "interested on".
He is proud of his son.
Он гордится своим сыном.
Use "proud of", not "proud about".
She is good at cooking.
Она хорошо готовит.
Use "good at", not "good in", when describing ability.
They are responsible for the project.
Они отвечают за проект.
Use "responsible for", not "responsible of".
I am afraid of flying.
Я боюсь летать.
Use "afraid of", not "afraid from".
She is similar to her brother.
Она похожа на своего брата.
Use "similar to", not "similar with".
He is satisfied with the service.
Он доволен обслуживанием.
Use "satisfied with", not "satisfied by", when referring to the thing that satisfies someone.
She is tired of waiting.
Она устала ждать.
Use "tired of" followed by a gerund, not a direct infinitive.