📚 Prepositions Practice

Explanation The correct answer is to. Rule: be a witness to means to testify about or observe something. Here, the road witnessed the assassination. Why others are wrong: A. of – not used with “witness” in this sense. C. at – not the fixed phrase for witnessing an event. D. on – not used with “witness” here.

Answer: A. at Why this is correct: We use smile at to show a reaction or attitude toward someone or something (e.g., threats, remarks). Rule/usage: Verb + preposition at for a facial reaction directed toward a person/situation. Why others are wrong: on / upon / over: not standard collocations with smile to indicate reaction to threats.

Explanation Correct: A) at — The phrasal verb smile at someone is the standard, natural collocation. It shows the direction of the smile toward a person. Other options are incorrect for this context: in — not used with smile here. with — not a common collocation for smile. upon — archaic/rare; not used in this modern sentence.

explanation Correct: B) to – The phrase “essential to” means something is necessary for something else. Here, contentment is necessary for happiness. Rule – Use to after adjectives like essential when linking to what it is essential for. Why others are wrong – A) for – not the common link for necessity with the object. C) in – not used to show necessity. D) of – not used to show being essential.

Correct answer: B (to) Rule: "Adjacent to" is the fixed phrase to show location/next to something. Why option B is correct: His house is next to mine = adjacent to mine. Why others are wrong: A) "with" = together with; not used for location. C) "from" = away from. D) "of" = possessive/description, not for location.

Explanation Correct answer: C (to) — “antipathy” means a strong dislike, and it is followed by the preposition to (antipathy to something). Example: antipathy to smoking. Why others are wrong: A) for — not the usual collocation with antipathy. B) against — antipathy is not typically used with “against.” D) of — incorrect collocation with antipathy.

Explanation: The correct preposition is of because the adjective envious is followed by of to show what one is jealous about. Rule: Envious of + noun/phrase (e.g., envious of his success). Why others are wrong: to, for, in are not used with “envious” in this meaning. Correct answer: C — of

Explanation Correct: C) before — “stand before the court” is the fixed expression meaning to appear in court. It is the standard collocation with a court. Note: for is used with “charged with” for the crime, not for standing in front of the court. “Stand in the court” and “stand of the court” are not correct collocations here.

Answer: C) to Rule/Usage: After confined (restricted) we use to to show the limit or boundary: confined to bed. Why correct: "Confined to bed" is the standard expression meaning he is restricted to lying in bed. Why others are wrong: in bed – not the usual collocation with confined; on bed – incorrect; of bed – incorrect;

Correct option: C — to Rule: The adjective sensitive is followed by the preposition to + a thing (sensitive to criticism). Why correct: “to criticism” is the natural collocation; it shows what the subject is reactive toward. Why others are wrong: A at, B on, D for are not used with sensitive in this sense.