Definition / Explanation
Dependent prepositions are fixed links between words and the prepositions that usually follow them. They often appear after verbs, adjectives, and nouns, for example depend on, interested in, and responsible for. These combinations are partly grammatical and partly lexical, which means learners usually need to memorise them as chunks. A wrong preposition may still be understood, but it often sounds non-native or awkward. At B2, accurate use of dependent prepositions becomes more important in writing and speaking.
Key Rules
- Many adjectives have fixed prepositions: afraid of, famous for, interested in.
- Many nouns have fixed prepositions: interest in, reason for, solution to.
- Many verbs also take fixed prepositions: depend on, belong to, suffer from.
- The preposition often cannot be predicted from logic alone.
- Learn the whole phrase, not only the key word.
Examples
- She is interested in music.
- He is responsible for the budget.
- It depends on the price.
- We found a solution to the problem.
- They are afraid of change.
Common Mistakes
- ❌ She is interested on music. -> ✅ She is interested in music.
- ❌ He is responsible of the budget. -> ✅ He is responsible for the budget.
- ❌ It depends from the price. -> ✅ It depends on the price.