CDS English · Cloze Test
Prepositions: Time, Place and Fixed Partners
A preposition is chosen by the words next to it: in for a month, on for a date, between for two, and many words that always take the same partner.
Why this matters
Prepositions are a large group of cloze blanks. The four options are short words that all look possible, so meaning alone rarely decides. The right one is fixed by the noun after the blank or by the word before it, and many of those pairs simply have to be learnt.
Concept 1 of 3: Time, place and between: the preposition the noun needs
Time and place words come with their own preposition. A month or a year takes in; a day or a date takes on; a clock time takes at. Between links two things; among links more than two.
Definition
The terms:
- Preposition: a small word before a noun that shows time, place or relation: in, on, at, from, between.
The method:
- Find the noun after the blank and ask what kind of noun it is.
- Time: at + a clock time (at 6 a.m.); on + a day or a date (on Monday, on 15 August); in + a month, a year, a season or a century (in winter, in the 12th century).
- Place: in + a country, a city or an area (in all parts of India); at + a point (at the gate); all over + the whole surface (all over the world).
- A starting point: from (from the beginning). Inside a limit: within (within a week, within a democratic structure).
- Two things or two groups named: between X and Y. Three or more, or a crowd: among.
- by + a time means 'not later than': by Friday.
Worked example
Fill the three blanks: 'The ceasefire began ___ 2 March. The talks ___ the two generals lasted ___ dawn till midnight.' Options: (on / in / at); (among / between / with); (from / since / by)
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2018 · CDS (I) 2018 — English · Q94Moderate
Example 1 · Cloze Test · Prepositions in the Blank
Directions: Each of the following sentences in this section has a blank space with four words or group of words given. Select whichever word or group of words you consider most appropriate for the blank space and indicate your response on the Answer Sheet accordingly.
Passage
One of India’s greatest musicians is M.S. Subbulakshmi, affectionately known to most people as M.S. Her singing has brought ___(91)___ to millions of people not only ___(92)___ all parts of India, but in ___(93)___ countries around the world as well. ___(94)___ October 1966 Subbulakshmi was invited to ___(95)___ in New York, where people of ___(96)___ foreign countries listened to her music ___(97)___ This was one of the greatest ___(98)___ ever given to any musician. For ___(99)___ together M.S. kept that international ___(100)___ spell-bound with the beauty of her voice and her style of singing.
Blank (94): "around the world as well. ______ October 1966 Subbulakshmi was invited to ..."
Counting people instead of groups
'any difference ___ Indian students and their counterparts in the other country': each group has many students, but there are two groups. So between, not among.
on with a month
on needs a day or a date: on 5 October. A month alone, with or without the year, takes in.
with for 'from the start'
'___ the beginning, India was committed to ...' marks a starting point that runs on, so from. with and for do not mark a start.
Concept 2 of 3: Words that carry their own preposition
Many words always take the same preposition after them. Logic will not tell you which one; you have to know the pair. Learn each word together with its partner, as one unit.
Definition
The terms:
- Fixed preposition: the one preposition a word always takes after it: conscious of, different from, contribute to.
How to handle them:
- When the blank comes right after a verb, an adjective or a noun, ask whether that word has a fixed preposition.
- Say the word and its partner as one unit in your head.
- If two prepositions both seem to make sense, the fixed partner wins.
- The pairs below are the ones CDS cloze passages have tested.
| Word and partner | In the passage | Wrong options offered | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| force itself upon | has been forcing itself upon the attention of all thoughtful men | at, over | 2019 (I) |
| a course on | The idea of a course on 'peace education' | to, for | 2021 (I) |
| fight against | One should fight against the force of habit. | from, for | 2022 (I) |
| conscious of | conscious of his bad habits | about, with regard to | 2022 (I) |
| in excess | harmful when done in excess | to, with | 2022 (I) |
| the sight of | the sight of him simply terrifies me | at, by | 2017 (II) |
| different from | Giving up cigarettes is different from curbing overeating | since, into | 2020 (II) |
| predicated on | Modern lifestyles are predicated on debt. | with, for | 2022 (II) |
| a range of | access to a range of modern financial products | to, with | 2022 (II) |
| contribute to | say 'No' to plastic bags and contribute to society | by, into | 2021 (II) |
| smile at | You are listening to me and smiling at each other | smiling for, smiling to | 2018 (II) |
| diversity in | regional diversity in expenditure or political engagement | on, for | 2025 (II) |
| the relations of X to Y | the relations of living creatures to other organisms | for, within | 2019 (II) |
| along with | eating waste food along with these polythene bags | besides, beside | 2021 (II) |
| in regard to | It is necessary, in regard to any war, to consider ... | connecting, linking | 2023 (I) |
Learn the word and its partner together. The wrong options are all real prepositions; only the pair decides.
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2022 · CDS (II) 2022 — English · Q46Easy
Example 2 · Cloze Test · Prepositions in the Blank
Directions: Each of the following sentences in this section has a blank space with four words or group of words given. Select whichever word or group of words you consider the most appropriate for the blank space and indicate your response on the Answer Sheet accordingly.
Passage
CLOZE COMPOSITION
Banking is ___(41)___ essential building block to reach greater prosperity and help build a better system ___(42)___ financial services can create a path out of poverty. However, big traditional banks often exclude low-income populations ___(43)___ requirements or by using historically discriminatory practices that keep ___(44)___ low-income customers ___(45)___ from formal finance. Modern lifestyles are predicated ___(46)___ debt. If you have a stable and reliable income, have a bank account with access to a range ___(47)___ modern financial products, you can manage your debts efficiently. This ___(48)___ what the entire financial system is for. But debt ___(49)___ a lifetime's trap if you don't have easy access to ___(50)___ financial products.
Blank (46): "Modern lifestyles are predicated ____ debt."
smile to, smile with
Many speakers say 'she smiled to me'. In standard English you smile at someone. smile with means sharing a smile, which is not the same.
Choosing the preposition that 'makes sense'
'conscious about' sounds reasonable, and 'with regard to' even means 'about'. But conscious has one partner: of. When a word has a fixed preposition, sense does not decide.
beside and besides
beside means next to; besides means in addition to. Neither replaces along with, which means together with: the animals ate the food along with the bags.
Concept 3 of 3: by for the means or agent, for the purpose
by answers 'how?' or 'by whom?'. for answers 'for what?'. Ask which question the phrase after the blank is answering.
Definition
The terms:
- Means: the method by which something is done: by solving it, by train.
- Agent: the doer of an action in a passive sentence: decomposed by micro-organisms.
- Purpose: what something is for: a fund for flood relief.
The method:
- Ask what the phrase after the blank tells you.
- How something is done: by. by + -ing is very common: by using new methods.
- Who does it, in a passive sentence: by. written by a soldier.
- A tool held in the hand: with. cut with a knife.
- The purpose, or the thing a word is used for: for. the term used for the study of ...; aims for change.
- Read on. A matching 'or by ...' or 'and for ...' later in the sentence repeats the same preposition.
Worked example
Fill the three blanks with by, with or for: 'The bridge was repaired ___ army engineers, who cut the steel ___ gas torches. The money came from a fund ___ flood relief.'
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2022 · CDS (II) 2022 — English · Q43Moderate
Example 3 · Cloze Test · Prepositions in the Blank
Directions: Each of the following sentences in this section has a blank space with four words or group of words given. Select whichever word or group of words you consider the most appropriate for the blank space and indicate your response on the Answer Sheet accordingly.
Passage
CLOZE COMPOSITION
Banking is ___(41)___ essential building block to reach greater prosperity and help build a better system ___(42)___ financial services can create a path out of poverty. However, big traditional banks often exclude low-income populations ___(43)___ requirements or by using historically discriminatory practices that keep ___(44)___ low-income customers ___(45)___ from formal finance. Modern lifestyles are predicated ___(46)___ debt. If you have a stable and reliable income, have a bank account with access to a range ___(47)___ modern financial products, you can manage your debts efficiently. This ___(48)___ what the entire financial system is for. But debt ___(49)___ a lifetime's trap if you don't have easy access to ___(50)___ financial products.
Blank (43): "big traditional banks often exclude low-income populations ____ requirements ..."
with for the doer
'they cannot be decomposed ___ micro-organisms': the micro-organisms do the decomposing. The doer in a passive sentence takes by, not with or through.
by for a purpose
'used the term ___ the study of the relations ...': the term names the study; it is not done by it. Purpose takes for.
Missing the match later in the line
When the sentence goes on with 'or by doing X' or 'and for Y', the first blank usually takes the same preposition. Read to the end before you choose.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Reference tables (1)
Words that carry their own preposition15 rows
| Word and partner | In the passage | Wrong options offered | Sitting |
|---|---|---|---|
| force itself upon | has been forcing itself upon the attention of all thoughtful men | at, over | 2019 (I) |
| a course on | The idea of a course on 'peace education' | to, for | 2021 (I) |
| fight against | One should fight against the force of habit. | from, for | 2022 (I) |
| conscious of | conscious of his bad habits | about, with regard to | 2022 (I) |
| in excess | harmful when done in excess | to, with | 2022 (I) |
| the sight of | the sight of him simply terrifies me | at, by | 2017 (II) |
| different from | Giving up cigarettes is different from curbing overeating | since, into | 2020 (II) |
| predicated on | Modern lifestyles are predicated on debt. | with, for | 2022 (II) |
| a range of | access to a range of modern financial products | to, with | 2022 (II) |
| contribute to | say 'No' to plastic bags and contribute to society | by, into | 2021 (II) |
| smile at | You are listening to me and smiling at each other | smiling for, smiling to | 2018 (II) |
| diversity in | regional diversity in expenditure or political engagement | on, for | 2025 (II) |
| the relations of X to Y | the relations of living creatures to other organisms | for, within | 2019 (II) |
| along with | eating waste food along with these polythene bags | besides, beside | 2021 (II) |
| in regard to | It is necessary, in regard to any war, to consider ... | connecting, linking | 2023 (I) |
Learn the word and its partner together. The wrong options are all real prepositions; only the pair decides.
Watch out for (9)
- Counting people instead of groups→ Time, place and between: the preposition the noun needs
- on with a month→ Time, place and between: the preposition the noun needs
- with for 'from the start'→ Time, place and between: the preposition the noun needs
- smile to, smile with→ Words that carry their own preposition
- Choosing the preposition that 'makes sense'→ Words that carry their own preposition
- beside and besides→ Words that carry their own preposition
- with for the doer→ by for the means or agent, for the purpose
- by for a purpose→ by for the means or agent, for the purpose
- Missing the match later in the line→ by for the means or agent, for the purpose
Test yourself on Cloze Test
20 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 20 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.