📚 Prepositions Practice

Explanation: Correct answer: D (to) — Use confide something to someone when you reveal or entrust a secret to a person. Using in would mean confide in someone, i.e., have trust in them, not reveal it. Using with or on is incorrect in this context.

Explanation Correct: of — The common collocation is beware of + noun (or -ing). It means to be cautious about something. Other options: out — not used after beware. off — incorrect here; beware off is not a fixed phrase. out of — incorrect; beware does not pair with out of.

Explanation The correct answer is with. We say “infested with pests,” meaning the pests present inside the place. Rule: infested is followed by with to show the thing causing infestation (infested with rats). Why other options are wrong: of: not used after infested. by: shows agent, not the thing causing infestation. from: indicates origin, not presence.

Correct option: A Answer: for — The fixed phrase is “a match for someone” or “no match for someone,” meaning you cannot compete with them. Why others are wrong: to: not used after “match” in this sense. with: “a match with” is not correct here. at: not used in this idiom. Rule: use for after match when indicating someone you cannot compete against.

Correct option: C Reason: Use for to indicate a duration. He has been absent for a fortnight means "during a period of two weeks." Rule: For + duration (e.g., for two days, for a week) is used with perfect tenses to show how long something lasts.

Correct option: C — under Reason: “bring under control” is a fixed English idiom meaning to make a situation controllable or manageable. Rule: under + control shows state after action; “under” indicates being within the realm of control. Why others are wrong: in control → means actively guiding or in charge, not the process of controlling something. within control → not a standard collocation; sounds awkward here. under no control → negates control; opposite meaning. at control → not a typical collocation.

Explanation Correct: with. Use “with” to show the instrument or means used to do something: kill with a rifle. Other options: by is for the doer/agent (often in passive voice: “killed by him”), from and at do not indicate instrument. Rule: use with for tool/means; by for agent in passive voice.

Correct option: C The rocks were worn out by wind and weather. Reason: In passive voice, by marks the agent or cause of the action. “Worn out by wind and weather” is a common collocation indicating cause. Why others are wrong: A. from – indicates origin, not agent. B. through – not used to show cause by natural elements here. D. with – suggests accompaniment or instrument, not the causal agent.

Answer: through Why correct: "get through" a history examination means to pass or successfully complete it.

Explanation: Correct: D. at – We say surprised at when reacting to news or a situation. It shows your reaction to something you heard or learned. By – used for the cause/agent (e.g., surprised by the news is less common here). With – means accompanied by someone/something; not standard for reaction to news. Upon – archaic/rare in modern use for this sense.