100 Common Verb + Preposition Collocations

Verb + preposition collocations can be a challenge for English language learners. Distinguishing between phrasal verbs (where the verb + particle create a new, often idiomatic meaning) - see The world of phrasal verbs: A unique challenge in English - and verbs that simply require a specific preposition to connect to their object or complement can be tricky.

As an English language teacher trainer yourself, you’ll appreciate how crucial these collocations are for fluency. This list focuses on verb + preposition combinations where the verb generally retains its core meaning, and the preposition serves a grammatical function, linking the verb to the rest of the sentence, rather than forming an idiomatic phrasal verb unit.

Here is a list of 100 common verb + preposition collocations (excluding phrasal verbs), alphabetized by verb:

1. Account for: (explain, be responsible for) - You need to account for your expenses.
2. Accuse (someone) of: He was accused of theft.
3. Adapt to: We need to adapt to the new system.
4. Add to: This will add to our problems.
5. Adjust to: She found it hard to adjust to living alone.
6. Admire (someone) for: I admire you for your courage.
7. Admit to: He admitted to making the mistake.
8. Agree on (a topic/plan): We agreed on the date for the meeting.
9. Agree to (a proposal): She agreed to their terms.
10. Agree with (a person/opinion): I agree with you completely.
11. Aim at/for: They are aiming for a high score.
12. Apologize to (someone) for (something): You should apologize to her for being late.
13. Appeal to: The idea appealed to me.
14. Apply for (a job/position): He applied for the manager position.
15. Approve of: My parents don’t approve of my decision.
16. Argue with (someone) about (something): Don’t argue with me about this.
17. Arrive at (a specific place, building): We arrived at the station just in time.
18. Arrive in (a city/country): They arrived in Paris yesterday.
19. Ask about: She asked about your health.
20. Ask for: He asked for a glass of water.
21. Attribute to: The success was attributed to teamwork.
22. Base on: The film is based on a true story.
23. Beg for: The child begged for another cookie.
24. Believe in: Do you believe in ghosts?
25. Belong to: This book belongs to Sarah.
26. Benefit from: Students will benefit from the new library.
27. Blame (someone) for: Don’t blame me for your mistakes.
28. Boast about/of: He’s always boasting about his achievements.
29. Borrow from: Can I borrow a pen from you?
30. Care about: She really cares about environmental issues.
31. Care for (look after): He cares for his elderly mother.
32. Choose between/from: You have to choose between these two options.
33. Collaborate with: We collaborated with another team on the project.
34. Collide with: The car collided with a tree.
35. Comment on: Would you like to comment on this report?
36. Communicate with: It’s important to communicate with your colleagues.
37. Compare to/with: You can’t compare apples to oranges. / Compare this version with the original.
38. Compete with/against (someone) for (something): They are competing with three other companies for the contract.
39. Complain to (someone) about (something): He complained to the manager about the service.
40. Comply with: All businesses must comply with the regulations.
41. Concentrate on: Please concentrate on your work.
42. Confess to: She confessed to the crime.
43. Confide in: You can confide in me.
44. Confuse (someone/something) with: People often confuse me with my sister.
45. Congratulate (someone) on: I congratulated him on his success.
46. Connect to/with: Connect the printer to the computer. / I feel connected with nature here.
47. Consent to: He finally consented to the plan.
48. Consist of: The team consists of five members.
49. Contribute to: Everyone contributed to the fund.
50. Convert to/into: They converted the garage into a study.
51. Convince (someone) of: I convinced him of my innocence.
52. Cope with: She is learning to cope with stress.
53. Correspond with: I’ve been corresponding with her for years.
54. Count on (rely on): You can always count on me.
55. Cover with: Cover the food with a lid.
56. Crash into: The bike crashed into the wall.
57. Deal with: I have to deal with this problem now.
58. Decide on: Have you decided on a name for the baby?
59. Dedicate to: She dedicated her life to helping others.
60. Depend on: Our success depends on teamwork.
61. Devote to: He devoted his time to studying.
62. Differ from: My opinion differs from yours.
63. Disagree with: I disagree with that statement.
64. Discourage (someone) from: They discouraged him from leaving.
65. Discuss (something) with (someone): I need to discuss the plan with my boss. (Note: discuss about is redundant)
66. Distinguish between/from: Can you distinguish between butter and margarine?
67. Dream about/of: I dreamt about you last night. / He dreams of becoming a pilot.
68. Escape from: The prisoner escaped from jail.
69. Excel at/in: She excels at mathematics.
70. Excuse (someone) for: Please excuse me for being late.
71. Experiment with/on: Scientists are experimenting with new methods.
72. Explain (something) to (someone): Could you explain this rule to me?
73. Focus on: Let’s focus on the main issue.
74. Forgive (someone) for: I forgive you for what you did.
75. Hear about/of: Have you heard about the new policy?
76. Hear from: I haven’t heard from him in weeks.
77. Hide from: The cat hid from the dog.
78. Hope for: We are hoping for good weather.
79. Insist on: She insisted on paying for dinner.
80. Interact with: He interacts well with children.
81. Interfere with/in: Don’t interfere with my work. / Please don’t interfere in my personal life.
82. Introduce (someone) to: Let me introduce you to my friend.
83. Invest in: They invested heavily in the stock market.
84. Involve in: Don’t involve me in your arguments.
85. Joke about: We joked about our old school days.
86. Know about: What do you know about this topic?
87. Laugh at/about: Don’t laugh at him. / We laughed about the funny situation.
88. Lead to: Smoking can lead to serious health problems.
89. Learn about: I want to learn about different cultures.
90. Listen to: Are you listening to me?
91. Look at: Look at that beautiful sunset!
92. Object to: Several people objected to the proposal.
93. Occur to: It never occurred to me to ask.
94. Operate on: The surgeon operated on the patient.
95. Participate in: She participated in the competition.
96. Pay for: Who is paying for the meal?
97. Prepare for: We need to prepare for the exam.
98. Prevent (someone/something) from: The rain prevented us from going out.
99. Prohibit (someone) from: Students are prohibited from using phones in class.
100. Protect from/against: This cream protects your skin from the sun.

This list covers many common combinations learners encounter. Highlighting these patterns explicitly, as you likely do in your training, can significantly help learners move beyond word-by-word translation and grasp natural English sentence structure.