What Is a Prepositional Verb?
A prepositional verb is an idiomatic phrase that blends a verb and a preposition to make up a new verb with a distinctive meaning. Some illustrations of prepositional verbs are care for, long for, apply for, approve of, add to, resort to, result in, count on, and deal with.
Examples
Verbs with Prepositions: TO
- Adapt to
- Add to
- Agree to
- Apologize to
- Belong to
- Consent to
- Devote to
- Happen to
- Lead to
- Listen to
- Object to
- React to
- Refer to
- Reply to
- Speak to
- Talk to
- Turn to
Verbs + Prepositions: FOR
- Admire for
- Apologize for
- Apply for
- Ask for
- Blame for
- Care for
- Excuse for
- Head for
- Long for
- Pay for
- Pray for
- Prepare for
- Scold for
- Search for
- Vote for
- Wait for
- Wish for
- Work for
Verbs + Prepositions: FROM
- Abstain from
- Borrow from
- Escape from
- Graduate from
- Hide from
- Infer from
- Prevent from
- Prohibit from
- Protect from
- Recover from
- Rescue from
- Resign from
- Retire from
- Save from
- Separate from
- Stem from
- Suffer from
Verbs with Prepositions: ON
- Agree on
- Base on
- Be on
- Blame on
- Comment on
- Concentrate on
- Congratulate on
- Count on
- Depend on
- Elaborate on
- Impose on
- Insist on
- Play on
- Pride on
- Rely on
- Work on
Verb Preposition Collocations: AT
- Aim at
- Arrive at
- Glance at
- Guess at
- Hint at
- Laugh at
- Look at
- Marvel at
- Peer at
- Point at
- Smile at
- Stare at
- Wink at
Verb + Preposition: ABOUT
- Argue about
- Ask about
- Be about
- Boast about
- Care about
- Concern about
- Decide about
- Dream about
- Forget about
- Know about
- Laugh about
- Protest about
- Think about
- Worry about
Verbs + Prepositions: WITH
- Acquaint with
- Agree with
- Associate with
- Charge with
- Clutter with
- Coincide with
- Collide with
- Compare with
- Comply with
- Confront with
- Confuse with
- Cover with
- Cram with
- Deal with
- Discuss with
- Help with
- Tamper with
- Trust with
Verbs with Prepositions: IN
- Absorb in
- Arrive in
- Be engrossed in
- Believe in
- Confide in
- Implicate in
- Involve in
- Participate in
- Result in
- Specialize in
- Succeed in
- Trust in