Blog about English
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.
Many adjectives are followed by of.
Examples include afraid of, proud of, capable of, aware of and tired of.
Many adjectives are followed by in.
Examples include interested in, successful in, experienced in and involved in.
Many adjectives combine with at, for or with.
Examples include good at, famous for, responsible for, pleased with and satisfied with.
Some adjectives are followed by to.
Examples include similar to, married to, kind to, rude to and accustomed to.
Changing the preposition may change the meaning of the adjective.
Compare angry with someone and angry about something.
Many adjective-preposition combinations are followed by a gerund.
Examples include interested in learning, good at cooking and afraid of flying.
Adjective-preposition combinations commonly introduce noun phrases.
Examples include proud of her son and responsible for the project.
Many adjective-preposition combinations are fixed collocations.
Learning common combinations improves fluency and naturalness in both speech and writing.
Some adjective-preposition combinations vary across dialects or according to meaning.
Reliable dictionaries are useful for confirming less common patterns.
Adjective-preposition combinations are best learned as complete lexical units.
Memorizing the adjective together with its usual preposition leads to more natural English.
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.