01 / 07
What are dependent prepositions in English?
Dependent prepositions are combinations in which an adjective, verb, or noun selects a particular preposition as part of its usual chunk. Learn not merely responsible, but responsible for the rollout; not merely depend, but depend on the supplier; not merely increase, but increase in costs. One general meaning rule is rarely enough because the English combination cannot be predicted reliably from German. Store three parts together: the content word, the preposition, and a short realistic context. This method stops you from guessing every preposition again when you write. It also shows which word family controls the combination. In "The increase in costs depends on the supplier," in belongs to the noun increase, while on belongs to the verb depends. Rule: learn a dependent preposition as one part of a complete, reusable chunk.
02 / 07
Which adjective-preposition collocations belong on a B2 list?
A practical B2 adjective list contains fixed units for interest, responsibility, ability, and reaction. Learn the core combinations interested in, responsible for, good at, and angry with a person. For workplace contexts, add aware of, familiar with, suitable for, satisfied with, worried about, ready for, involved in, similar to, different from, and capable of. Say every unit with a completion: interested in the proposal, responsible for the rollout, good at negotiations, or angry with the project manager. That prevents the list from becoming an overloaded inventory without application. Pay particular attention when a German adjective suggests a different preposition. With a person, the relevant pattern here is "The client was angry with our project manager," not angry about our project manager. Rule: store every adjective together with its preposition and a typical completion.
03 / 07
Which verb-preposition collocations should you learn?
Your B2 verb list should store common project, communication, and application actions as complete units. The core group is depend on, apologise for, and apply for, while discuss provides the important contrast with no preposition. Other useful units are agree with a person, agree on a topic, belong to, care about, deal with, focus on, insist on, listen to, pay for, prepare for, rely on, respond to, and wait for. Learn them in short sentences such as "The date depends on the supplier," "We apologised for the delay," and "She applied for the position." The list is not a universal rule for all verbs; it is a limited bank of reusable chunks. The contrast discuss the terms shows that taking no preposition can itself be a fixed choice. Rule: store each verb explicitly with its fitting preposition or direct object pattern.
04 / 07
Which noun-preposition collocations help in reports?
In reports, you particularly need noun combinations that name reasons, changes, needs, and relationships precisely. The core units are reason for, increase in, and demand for. For common business writing, add solution to, need for, effect on, access to, experience of, relationship with, and difference between. Always attach a context: the reason for the delay, an increase in costs, demand for the service, a solution to the problem, or the effect on the schedule. These groups help you write dense reports without rebuilding the connection every time. Do not automatically copy the structure of a related verb because a different word family can bring a different pattern. The stored noun phrase controls the choice here. When several combinations appear in one sentence, mentally mark their boundaries, such as the increase in costs and the effect on the schedule. Rule: learn report nouns with their preposition and a concrete completion as one unit.
05 / 07
Why does discuss take no preposition before its object?
Discuss takes its object directly, so "We discussed the contract terms" has no about. The common German transfer "We discussed about the contract terms" inserts a preposition that the English verb does not need in this structure. Treat the absence of a preposition as part of the chunk: discuss a proposal, discuss the terms, discuss the schedule. You then learn a reusable pattern rather than one isolated correction. Do not copy the different structure talk about the contract as if it belonged to the same verb; this lesson focuses on the fixed combination selected by the chosen word. A second transfer error affects apply: "She applied on the marketing position" becomes "She applied for the marketing position." With a person, the adjective error "angry about our project manager" becomes "angry with our project manager." Rule: do not translate the German preposition; retrieve the complete English chunk.
06 / 07
How do you learn dependent prepositions without list overload?
Learn dependent prepositions without list overload by reviewing the roughly forty core combinations in small families and concrete contexts. Divide them into adjectives, verbs, and nouns, and take only a few chunks in each study round. Say responsible for the rollout, depend on the supplier, and increase in costs aloud instead of copying only for, on, and in. Then add a new workplace context without breaking the combination. A second round can include contrasts: apply for the position, but discuss the position with no preposition. After writing, mark the complete chunk and check whether its partner has stayed intact. This method uses the list as working material rather than an inventory for one-time memorisation. It also supports pronunciation because an unstressed preposition becomes more fluent inside its unit. Rule: review small groups in complete sentences and vary the context, not the fixed combination.
07 / 07
How do you use preposition collocations at work?
At work, use preposition collocations to express responsibility, dependence, change, and applications concisely. A project update can begin: "We are responsible for the rollout, but the increase in costs depends on the supplier." That places an adjective, noun, and verb combination in one natural context. In an application, write "She applied for the marketing position." In an explanation, name "the reason for the delay," and in a correction you can "apologise for the delay." Such units make reports more precise because the relationships between pieces of information are immediately visible. Do not inspect every preposition in isolation. Instead, underline responsible for, increase in, and depends on as three complete building blocks. In speech, for in responsible for normally weakens to /fə/, which keeps the unit fluent. Rule: use fixed chunks as ready-made building blocks for clear project and application sentences.