SPI English · Fill in the Blanks

Prepositions

A preposition gap is decided by what the small word must show (place, movement, tool, doer or purpose) or by the word before it, which takes a fixed partner.

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Why this matters

Ten questions in the bank, the largest group in this chapter: five EASY and five MODERATE. Half of them come from the sample paper's preposition set, and most hang on one fixed pair such as 'jump to' or 'success in'.

Concept 1 of 3: Place and movement: at, in, into, on, above

Prepositions of place answer 'where?'. Each one paints a different picture: at a point, in a space, on a surface, into a space you enter, above a level. Picture the scene in the sentence, then pick the word that matches it.

Definition

The pictures:

at: a point or a position. at the gate, at the front of a line, at the top.
in: inside a space. in the room, in the box.
into: moving from outside to inside. walked into the room, broke into the house.
on: on a surface, and in some fixed phrases. on the table, on holiday, on a trip.
above and below: higher or lower than a level. above sea level, below zero.

Preposition	Shows	Correct example
at	a point or position	He waited at the gate.
in	inside a space	The keys are in the drawer.
into	moving to the inside	The cat ran into the kitchen. Use into, not in, after a verb of entering.
on	a surface, or a fixed phrase	The book is on the shelf. We went on a trip.
above	higher than a level	The plane flew above the clouds.
below	lower than a level	The water was below the danger mark.

At the front of a queue is a position; in the front of a car is inside a space.

Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps

The same idea in a practice question:

Practice questionEasy

Example 1 · Fill in the Blanks · Prepositions

The temperature is just ____ freezing.

In is a place, into is a movement

'He is in the room' tells where he is. 'He walked into the room' tells how he got there. A verb of entering needs into.

Above a level, not on it

Temperature, height and marks are measured against a level, so use above or below: 'above zero', 'below the average'.

Drill 3 more on place and movement: at, in, into, on, above

Concept 2 of 3: With for the tool, by for the doer, to for the purpose

Three prepositions do jobs that are easy to mix up. 'By' names who did something; 'with' names what it was done with. 'To' before a verb gives the reason or purpose: why someone came or went.

Definition

The jobs:

by the doer: 'The letter was written by my sister.'
with the tool: 'She cut the cake with a knife.'
to + verb for a purpose: 'He came to see me.'
by in some fixed phrases: by heart, by mistake, by bus, live by a rule (follow it as the guide of one's life).

Job	Preposition	Correct example
who did it	by	The wall was painted by Ravi.
what it was done with	with	He painted it with a brush. Not 'by a brush'.
why, before a verb	to	She went out to buy milk.
a way of travelling	by	We came by train.
the rule a life follows	live by	He lives by his principles.

A sentence can carry both: 'The tree was cut down by the woodcutter with an axe.'

Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps

The same idea in a practice question:

Practice questionEasy

Example 2 · Fill in the Blanks · Prepositions

Choose the most appropriate preposition to fill in the gap.

He was killed by a rowdy ____ a dagger.

By the person, with the thing

'The window was broken by a stone' is weak: the stone is the tool. Write 'broken with a stone' or 'broken by a boy with a stone'.

For a purpose before a verb is wrong

'He came for meeting me' and 'He came for meet me' are both wrong. Before a verb, a purpose takes 'to': 'He came to meet me.'

Drill 2 more on with for the tool, by for the doer, to for the purpose

Concept 3 of 3: The preposition a word takes

Many words come with their own preposition, and the meaning cannot tell you which one. You jump to a conclusion, you succeed in a task. Learn the word and its partner together, the way you learn a spelling.

Definition

Pairs to know:

jump to a conclusion: decide too quickly.
success in doing something; succeed in doing it.
anxious for someone's safety (wanting it), anxious about a result (worried).
intrude into a place, intrude on someone's time or privacy.
congratulate on a success, good at a subject, interested in a hobby.

Word	Partner	Correct example
jump	to (a conclusion)	Hear both sides before you jump to conclusions.
success, succeed	in	She succeeded in passing the test.
anxious (wanting safety)	for	We were anxious for news of the climbers.
anxious (worried)	about	He is anxious about his marks.
intrude (a place)	into	Do not intrude into the office.
intrude (time or privacy)	on	I am sorry to intrude on your evening.
congratulate	on	We congratulated her on her win.
good	at	He is good at chess.
interested	in	She is interested in music.

If two prepositions look possible, the meaning in the sentence picks between them, as with anxious for and anxious about.

Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps

The same idea in a practice question:

Practice questionEasy

Example 3 · Fill in the Blanks · Prepositions

Choose the most appropriate preposition to fill in the gap.

A good judge never jumps ____ the conclusion.

Congratulate on, not for

'Congratulated for their win' is common but wrong in exam English. The partner is 'on': 'congratulated on their win'.

Success takes in before an -ing word

Write 'success in finding the way', not 'success of finding' or 'success on finding'. The same goes for 'succeed in'.

Drill 2 more on the preposition a word takes

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 (3)

Place and movement: at, in, into, on, above6 rows

Preposition	Shows	Correct example
at	a point or position	He waited at the gate.
in	inside a space	The keys are in the drawer.
into	moving to the inside	The cat ran into the kitchen. Use into, not in, after a verb of entering.
on	a surface, or a fixed phrase	The book is on the shelf. We went on a trip.
above	higher than a level	The plane flew above the clouds.
below	lower than a level	The water was below the danger mark.

At the front of a queue is a position; in the front of a car is inside a space.

With for the tool, by for the doer, to for the purpose5 rows

Job	Preposition	Correct example
who did it	by	The wall was painted by Ravi.
what it was done with	with	He painted it with a brush. Not 'by a brush'.
why, before a verb	to	She went out to buy milk.
a way of travelling	by	We came by train.
the rule a life follows	live by	He lives by his principles.

A sentence can carry both: 'The tree was cut down by the woodcutter with an axe.'

The preposition a word takes9 rows

Word	Partner	Correct example
jump	to (a conclusion)	Hear both sides before you jump to conclusions.
success, succeed	in	She succeeded in passing the test.
anxious (wanting safety)	for	We were anxious for news of the climbers.
anxious (worried)	about	He is anxious about his marks.
intrude (a place)	into	Do not intrude into the office.
intrude (time or privacy)	on	I am sorry to intrude on your evening.
congratulate	on	We congratulated her on her win.
good	at	He is good at chess.
interested	in	She is interested in music.

If two prepositions look possible, the meaning in the sentence picks between them, as with anxious for and anxious about.

Watch out for (6)

In is a place, into is a movement
→ Place and movement: at, in, into, on, above
Above a level, not on it
→ Place and movement: at, in, into, on, above
By the person, with the thing
→ With for the tool, by for the doer, to for the purpose
For a purpose before a verb is wrong
→ With for the tool, by for the doer, to for the purpose
Congratulate on, not for
→ The preposition a word takes
Success takes in before an -ing word
→ The preposition a word takes

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