Prepositions & Corrections

Introduction

Appropriate prepositions are among the most predictable questions in NTRCA and BCS papers. A preposition is usually fixed by the word before it, whether a verb, an adjective or a noun. So the most efficient way to learn is to memorise word + preposition pairs. This lesson also covers the error-correction patterns that appear again and again.

Adjective and participle + preposition

Word	Preposition	Example
afraid, fond, proud, jealous, capable, tired, ashamed, guilty, worthy, independent	of	He is fond of music.
angry	with (a person), at or about (a thing)	She is angry with me. He was angry at the delay.
good, bad, weak, quick, clever, expert	at	He is good at mathematics.
rich, poor, interested, deficient	in	Bangladesh is rich in natural resources.
kind, cruel, polite, loyal, indifferent, hostile, senior, junior, superior, inferior, prior, similar, contrary, accustomed, married, addicted	to	He is senior to me.
responsible	for (a thing), to (a person)	He is responsible for the loss.
satisfied, pleased, content, familiar, busy, disappointed	with	I am satisfied with the result.
different, free, absent, exempt	from	This is different from that.
aware, conscious, certain, sure, confident	of / about	He is aware of the danger.
grateful, thankful	to (person) for (thing)	I am grateful to you for your help.

Verb + preposition

Verb	Preposition	Example
abide	by	We must abide by the rules.
accuse, suspect, convict, acquit, cure, rob, deprive, relieve	of	He was accused of theft.
believe, succeed, persist, participate, engage	in	He succeeded in the exam.
blame, punish, scold, thank, praise, reward	for	She blamed him for the failure.
insist, depend, rely, count, focus, congratulate, concentrate	on	You can rely on him.
laugh, look, aim, stare, shout, glance	at	Do not laugh at the poor.
listen, refer, object, belong, reply, prefer	to	Listen to the teacher.
suffer, recover, prevent, prohibit, stop, save, protect, refrain, escape	from	He suffers from fever.
provide, supply, equip, fill, cover	with	He provided me with food.
wait, hope, wish, long, search, ask, pray	for	We are waiting for the bus.
die	of (disease), from (injury or cause), for (a cause)	He died of cancer. He died for his country.

Noun + preposition

Noun	Preposition	Example
reason	for	the reason for his absence
cause	of	the cause of the accident
respect, love, affection	for	respect for elders
attention, access, reply, invitation	to	pay attention to the lesson
interest, belief, faith, success	in	faith in God
demand, effect, influence, ban, impact	on	the effect of smoking on health

Prepositions of time and place

Preposition	Use	Example
at	a clock time or a small place	at 5 pm, at night, at the station
on	days, dates, surfaces	on Sunday, on 21 February, on the table
in	months, years, seasons, cities, countries	in May, in 1971, in summer, in Dhaka
by	a deadline, a means, an agent	by Friday, by bus, written by Tagore
for	a length of time	for two years
since	the starting point of a period	since 2010
between	two persons or things	between the two brothers
among	more than two	among the students
within	inside a time limit	within an hour

Fixed phrases that students forget

• Differ from means to be unlike. Differ with means to disagree.
• Prefer A to B. Never use than.
• Superior, inferior, senior, junior, prior and preferable take to, not than.
• In spite of, in front of, on behalf of, in charge of, by means of, on account of, in case of.
• Prevent someone from doing, congratulate someone on, insist on, depend on, account for.

Error correction patterns

Verbs that take no preposition

Wrong	Correct
We discussed about the problem.	We discussed the problem.
He reached at Dhaka.	He reached Dhaka. (or: He arrived at Dhaka.)
She entered into the room.	She entered the room.
He married with a rich girl.	He married a rich girl. (or: He was married to a rich girl.)
Please order for a cup of tea.	Please order a cup of tea.
I cannot cope up with him.	I cannot cope with him.
We should obey to the law.	We should obey the law.
He resembles with his father.	He resembles his father.
Please return back the book.	Please return the book.
I am agree with you.	I agree with you.
The reason is because he was ill.	The reason is that he was ill.

Articles

• Use an before a vowel sound: an hour, an honest man, an MA, an umbrella. Use a before a consonant sound: a university, a European, a one-eyed man.
• Use the with rivers, seas, mountain ranges, holy books, unique things (the sun), superlatives, ordinals and the + adjective.
• Omit the before languages, subjects, games, meals, colours, months and most country names.

Other frequent errors

• Less or fewer: fewer for countable nouns (fewer books) and less for uncountable ones (less water).
• Each other or one another: each other for two, one another for more than two.
• Who or whom: who is the subject, whom is the object. Whom did you meet?
• Double comparatives are wrong: more better should be better, and most unkindest should be most unkind.

Common exam traps

• He is senior than me. Wrong. Use senior to me.
• I prefer tea than coffee. Wrong. Use prefer tea to coffee.
• He died for cholera. Wrong. For a disease, use died of.
• Divide the money among the two. Wrong. For two, use between.
• He is an European. Wrong. The sound is yoo, so use a European.
• I am good in English. Wrong. Use good at. Compare rich in.

Memory tips

• The of-group: afraid, fond, proud, jealous, capable, tired, ashamed, guilty, worthy all take of.
• The to-group: senior, junior, superior, inferior, prior, prefer all take to, never than.
• Direct verbs: discuss, reach, enter, marry, resemble, order and obey take their object directly, with no preposition.
• Between means two, among means more than two.

Solved examples

Example 1. He was accused ____ taking bribes. Answer: of. The pattern is accuse someone of something.

Example 2. The teacher was angry ____ the students. Answer: with. Anger at a person takes with.

Example 3. He is indifferent ____ criticism. Answer: to.

Example 4. Correct the sentence: The teacher explained about the rule. Answer: The teacher explained the rule. Explain is transitive and takes its object directly.

Example 5. The prize was shared ____ the five winners. Answer: among. More than two persons.

Practice problems

1. She is jealous ____ her sister's success.
2. He was prevented ____ entering the hall.
3. Correct: We must obey to our parents.
4. He is capable ____ doing much better.
5. She is married ____ a doctor.
6. Correct: The team consists with eleven players.

Answers: 1. of. 2. from. 3. We must obey our parents. 4. of. 5. to. 6. The team consists of eleven players.

Practice MCQs with solutions

Note: these are practice questions written in the style of past NTRCA/BCS preliminary papers. Please cross-check with the official question bank.

Question 1. He is fond ____ music.

• (a) in
• (b) of
• (c) at
• (d) for

Correct answer: (b) of

Explanation: The fixed pair is fond of.

Question 2. She is angry ____ me.

• (a) at
• (b) with
• (c) on
• (d) to

Correct answer: (b) with

Explanation: Anger directed at a person takes with.

Question 3. He died ____ cholera.

• (a) from
• (b) of
• (c) with
• (d) by

Correct answer: (b) of

Explanation: A disease takes die of.

Question 4. He is senior ____ me.

• (a) than
• (b) from
• (c) to
• (d) of

Correct answer: (c) to

Explanation: Senior, junior, superior, inferior take to.

Question 5. She insisted ____ going.

• (a) in
• (b) on
• (c) at
• (d) for

Correct answer: (b) on

Explanation: The fixed pair is insist on.

Question 6. The property was divided ____ the three brothers.

• (a) between
• (b) among
• (c) with
• (d) to

Correct answer: (b) among

Explanation: More than two persons take among.

Question 7. Correct the error: He reached at Dhaka yesterday.

• (a) He reached in Dhaka yesterday.
• (b) He reached Dhaka yesterday.
• (c) He reached to Dhaka yesterday.
• (d) No error

Correct answer: (b) He reached Dhaka yesterday.

Explanation: Reach takes its object directly.

Question 8. I prefer tea ____ coffee.

• (a) than
• (b) to
• (c) from
• (d) over

Correct answer: (b) to

Explanation: Prefer A to B never uses than.

Key takeaways

• Prepositions are decided by the word before them, so learn the pairs.
• Senior, junior, superior, inferior and prefer take to, never than.
• Discuss, reach, enter, marry, resemble and obey need no preposition.
• Between is for two and among is for more than two.
• Use an for a vowel sound and a for a consonant sound, whatever the spelling.