Adjectives + Prepositions: about, at, by, for

💭Many adjectives are often followed by the prepositions ‛about,՚ ‛at,՚ ‛by,՚ and ‛for՚.


About:

Some of the common adjectives we use with ‛about՚ are:

Angry/Annoyed/Furious

Example:

Joe was really angry about losing the race.

Worried/Upset

Example:

I was very upset about the election result.

Happy/Excited

Example:

I’m quite excited about travelling to China.

At

Some of the common adjectives we use with ‛at՚ are:

Good/Great/Excellent/Amazing

Example:

Paul is really good at playing tennis.

Bad/Terrible/Hopeless

Example:

I’m terrible at skiing.

TIP: When we talk about skills, using adjectives like ‘good’ and ‘bad’, it’s almost always with “at”.

By or At:

Some of the common adjectives we use with ‛by or at՚ are:

Amazed/Surprised/Astonished/Shocked

Example:

Everybody was amazed by their team’s performance.

Everybody was amazed at their team’s performance.

For:

Some of the common adjectives we use with ‛for՚ are:

Famous/Well-known

Example:

He is famous for his books.

Responsible

Example:

At work, I’m responsible for sales and marketing.

Sorry

Example:

We are all sorry for your loss.

💡Important points:

• After an adjective + preposition, we can have a noun or verb -ing.

• We can include an object before the verb -ing

For example: She was upset about me arriving late.