1. A pair to learn together
A preposition is often needed to specify what a quality relates to: interested in music, afraid of dogs. This lesson teaches six useful combinations; it does not claim that every adjective has only one preposition or cannot stand alone.
The preposition does not carry its ordinary independent meaning here. In after interested does not indicate a location, and of after afraid does not indicate origin. There is no general rule that predicts the required preposition: the British Council recommends learning these combinations as whole phrases.
For a simple statement, be + adjective is useful: I am interested in music. Other verbs are also possible, such as feel afraid of or become interested in. Be itself is not required in every sentence containing these words.
be + adjective + preposition + noun / pronoun / -ing
- V-ing / -ing —
- The verb form ending in -ing: working, going. Its role depends on the construction.
- noun —
- A word naming a person, thing or idea: student, book, happiness.
- adjective —
- A word describing what someone or something is like: happy, tired, interesting.
- preposition —
- A word showing a relationship, such as in, on or from: from Ukraine.
- pronoun —
- A word used instead of naming a person or thing: I, you, she, it, they.
Nina is interested in old maps.
Nina is interested in old maps.
Interested takes in; this in does not name a location.
My brother is good at fixing bicycles.
My brother is good at fixing bicycles.
When describing skill at an activity, good takes at.
We are afraid of thunder.
We are afraid of thunder.
For fear of thunder, use afraid of thunder. Afraid for someone has a different meaning: being worried about someone’s safety or well-being.
2. What follows the preposition?
A preposition can be followed by a noun phrase, as in of thunder, an object pronoun, as in of them or of him, or an action in the -ing form, as in of flying. These prepositions are not followed by a to-infinitive, a common source of errors after choosing the preposition itself.
That is why interested in learn is incorrect: the action after in must take the form learning. The same requirement applies to all six pairs: at playing, of walking, about moving, in reading.
If the object has already been named, a pronoun can replace it, and the pronoun must take its object form: afraid of them, not afraid of they. It is the same pronoun form used as a verb’s object.
preposition + noun | object pronoun (me, him, her, us, them) | verb + -ing
- verb / V —
- A word for an action or state, such as work or be. The pattern determines its form.
- V-ing / -ing —
- The verb form ending in -ing: working, going. Its role depends on the construction.
- object / O —
- Who or what an action affects: in I read a book, a book is the object.
- noun —
- A word naming a person, thing or idea: student, book, happiness.
- preposition —
- A word showing a relationship, such as in, on or from: from Ukraine.
- pronoun —
- A word used instead of naming a person or thing: I, you, she, it, they.
They are excited about the new library.
They are excited about the new library.
An ordinary noun phrase follows about.
He is good at listening to people.
He is good at listening to people.
The action after at takes the -ing form, not an infinitive.
I do not like wasps; I am afraid of them.
I do not like wasps; I am afraid of them.
The pronoun after the preposition takes object-form them, not they.
3. A closer look at the six pairs
Interested in describes interest in a topic or activity; the interest may be long-standing or newly developed. Good at and bad at describe ability; at is also possible with skill evaluations such as amazing and terrible.
Afraid of names what someone fears. Tired of usually means that something has become tiresome. Excited about conveys positive excitement about an event or thing, not necessarily only a future one.
These six pairs cover common A2 situations: discussing interests, evaluating your abilities, naming a fear, complaining about something tiresome and talking about an anticipated event.
Olena is bad at parking the car.
Olena is bad at parking the car.
Bad takes the same preposition at as good.
I am tired of the same music in every café.
I am tired of the same music in every café.
Tired of describes something tiresome, not physical fatigue after work.
We are excited about moving to a new flat.
We are excited about moving to a new flat.
Excited about + -ing describes an anticipated event.
4. Negatives, questions and intensifiers
In the pattern with be, be forms the negative and question while the adjective–preposition pair stays unchanged: I am not interested in…, Are you afraid of…? Only be changes position in the question; nothing inside the pair is rearranged.
You can put very, really, quite, a bit or not very before the adjective. These expressions go between be and the adjective rather than splitting the pair: very good at, not good very at.
A short answer needs only be, without repeating the whole pair: “Are you interested in this course?” — “Yes, I am.” In the ordinary question with what, the preposition stays at the end: What are you interested in?
be (+ not) + very/really/quite + adjective + preposition + …
- adjective —
- A word describing what someone or something is like: happy, tired, interesting.
- preposition —
- A word showing a relationship, such as in, on or from: from Ukraine.
I am not very good at planning trips.
I am not very good at planning trips.
Not very comes before the adjective; at remains next to good.
Are you afraid of big crowds?
Are you afraid of big crowds?
Be forms the question; afraid of remains unchanged.
She is really interested in the local museum.
She is really interested in the local museum.
Really intensifies the adjective, not the preposition.
5. Where mistakes come from
Similar meanings do not guarantee the same grammatical pattern. Fear dogs is a verb followed directly by its object, but the adjective construction requires afraid of dogs. Neither afraid dogs nor afraid from dogs follows the target pattern.
For interest in a topic, use interested in; for skill at performing an activity, use good at. Other prepositions may be correct with different meanings: good in an emergency describes performing well in that situation.
Do not omit the verb in a simple description: My brother is interested in films. If another suitable verb is already present, as in became interested, there is no need to add is.
He is interested in ancient languages.
He is interested in ancient languages.
The adjective interested requires in to connect it to the topic of interest.
My cousin is afraid of wasps.
My cousin is afraid of wasps.
In this adjective construction, the feared thing is introduced by of.
They are good at saying no.
They are good at saying no.
For ability to perform an action, the correct preposition is at, not in.
6. Boundaries: related patterns outside this lesson
Related material covers verb–preposition pairs: wait for, listen to, look at, agree with and arrive at. There the preposition belongs with a verb, and the combinations differ. Compare the verb pair listen to music with the adjective pair good at music.
These six adjectives do not each have exactly one possible preposition. Good with describes skill in dealing with someone or something, as in good with children, while good at describes performing an activity. Excited by and excited at also exist, so closed exercises in this material use excited only in contexts where about is natural; they do not declare by or at inherently incorrect.
Tired from is a separate pattern: it describes physical fatigue after effort, whereas tired of means being fed up. Similarly, afraid to + infinitive, as in I am afraid to ask, describes not daring to act, while afraid of asking names fear of the action. Both are correct; this material specifically practises afraid of.
We waited for the bus for twenty minutes.
We waited for the bus for twenty minutes.
Here for belongs with the verb wait rather than an adjective; this is a related rule.
My aunt is good with animals.
My aunt is good with animals.
Good with concerns dealing with someone or something; good at concerns performing an activity.
He was tired from the long walk home.
He was tired from the long walk home.
Tired from describes physical fatigue; tired of describes something that has become tiresome.
7. Using these pairs in your own speech
Three or four sentences with these pairs can already form a short self-introduction covering an interest, ability, fear and anticipated event. These phrases work when meeting people, in interviews or on a course questionnaire.
In conversation, the pair often appears in a question to the other person: Are you good at…? Are you afraid of…? What are you interested in? The question gives them a topic to respond to and keeps the conversation going.
You do not need all six pairs in one text. It is more natural to combine two or three and add a detail: why you are interested, how long you have been interested or what exactly frightens you.
What are you interested in?
What are you interested in?
In this ordinary question with what, the preposition remains at the end.
I am interested in old films, and I am excited about the festival in May.
I am interested in old films, and I am excited about the festival in May.
Two pairs in one sentence connect an interest with an event.
My sister is afraid of noisy places, so we chose a quiet café.
My sister is afraid of noisy places, so we chose a quiet café.
The pair explains the reason for a decision rather than simply naming an emotion.
Common mistakes
Incorrect:He is afraid from big dogs.
Correct:He is afraid of big dogs.
For fear of big dogs, use afraid of big dogs. Afraid for someone is a separate correct combination meaning concern for that person.
Incorrect:She is good in playing the violin.
Correct:She is good at playing the violin.
Use good at to describe skill at performing an activity. In does not fit this meaning and pattern.
Incorrect:I am interested about modern art.
Correct:I am interested in modern art.
Interested takes in; about belongs to the different adjective combination excited about.
Incorrect:We are tired for the noise.
Correct:We are tired of the noise.
Tired meaning fed up requires of. For does not belong to any of the pairs in this rule.
Incorrect:I am interested in visit old churches.
Correct:I am interested in visiting old churches.
An action following the preposition takes the -ing form; neither a bare infinitive nor a to-infinitive fits here.
Incorrect:My brother interested in old films.
Correct:My brother is interested in old films.
This complete statement needs a verb: is interested. The fragment My brother interested… does not form a complete sentence.
Incorrect:He is good at tennis and bad running.
Correct:He is good at tennis and bad at running.
The second adjective needs its own preposition; at cannot be omitted simply because it already appeared earlier in the sentence.
Sources
- British Council LearnEnglish — Adjectives and prepositions: at for skills, about for feelings and their causes, of for fears, in for interests; learning combinations and using nouns or -ing forms after prepositions
- British Council LearnEnglish — Verbs and prepositions: the boundary with verb pairs such as wait for, listen to, agree with and depend on
- Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English — afraid: afraid of something/somebody, afraid of doing something, afraid to do something and afraid for somebody
- Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English — tired: tired of (doing) something for being fed up, and tired from (doing) something for physical fatigue
- Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English — good: good at (doing) something for skills, and good with for dealing with people or things
- Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English — excited: excited about something, alongside valid excited by/at alternatives