English Grammar Exercises for B1 B2 – Prepositions

A. Fill in the crossword with the words that complete the sentences.

Across

2   I need a holiday. I’m ………………… of getting up early. (5)

3   I didn’t expect to meet her at the airport – I met her by ………………… . (6)

6   She never has any money. She ………………… all her money on books. (6)

8   On …………………, women live five to ten years longer than men. (7)

9   The actor ………………… from cancer when he was 73. (4)

10   We could see a lot of smoke in the sky. We were surprised to see a building was on ………………… . (4)

Down

1   Mark said the new teacher was friendly, but she wasn’t very ………………… to me. (4)

2   One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez has been ………………… into over 27 languages. (10)

4   Colin showed me a chair he had made himself. He’s very ………………… at making things. (6)

5   My grandparents were married for 60 years. They were very much in ………………… . (4)

7   Jenny’s son is a soldier. She finds it very hard, because she knows his life is always in ………………… . (6)

B. Underline the correct option.

1   The students never arrive on / in time – they are always five or ten minutes late.

2   He’s always very kind with / to me.

3   The baby couldn’t use a spoon to / for eating.

4   I had a phone call of / from Caroline.

5   I am writing thanks to / concerning your article in the paper.

6   Why did you go out without / despite telling me?

7   I got to the airport just in / on time to see my parents before they left.

8   Dr Lauder is not here this week. She’s in / on holiday.

9   They have already started preparing to / for the wedding.

10   She does not eat meat. It’s against / about her beliefs.

C. Complete the sentences with the correct prepositions.

1   J K Rowling is famous ……for…… creating the character of Harry Potter.

2   Books ………………… Rowling include Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. The stories are ………………… a young boy with magical powers.

3   The author originally wrote under the name Joanne Rowling. Her publisher thought that boys would not be keen ………………… reading a book by a female author. So she called herself J K Rowling.

4   She has said that the character Hermione from the Harry Potter stories is similar ………………… herself at the age of 11.

5   She says writing is the perfect job for her as the is happy ………………… herself in a room ‘making things up’.

6   The idea for Harry Potter came to her when she was ………………… the way home on a train, but she did not complete the first book for several years.

7   She was at first disappointed ………………… the reaction from publishers – twelve publishers were not interested ………………… the first Harry Potter book.

8   When she wrote the first book, she had little money. She was a single mother, bringing up her child ………………… her own, but the Harry Potter books turned her into a multi-millionaire.

9   Many parents say that thanks ………………… the Harry Potter books, their children now enjoy reading again.

D. Complete the sentences using the prepositional phrases from the box.

1   I am writing ……with regard to…… your advertisement in The Yorkshire Times.

2   The summer school is only for young people ………………… the age of 16.

3   ………………… fire, break the glass.

4   We had a good time at the car racing ………………… the weather.

5   ………………… helping us, you’ve actually made things worse.

6   Cows are kept out of the field ………………… an electric fence.

7   The temperatures this week are ………………… for this time of year.

8   Maurice appeared to have plenty of money, but ………………… he owed money to a lot of people.

9   The room was empty ………………… an old shoe lying in the corner.

10   Rayner is playing in the football match ………………… the injured Cole.

E. Rewrite each sentence so that it has a similar meaning, using the word in brackets.

1    I threw away the letter but I didn’t mean to. (mistake)

      I threw away the letter by mistake.

2    There was a lack of confidence among the players. (lacked)

      …………………………………………………

3    She didn’t fall over by accident. (purpose)

      …………………………………………………

4    There was a problem with the train. That’s why there was a delay. (reason)

      …………………………………………………

5   My grandmother’s life was not at all similar to mine. (from)

      …………………………………………………

6    He writes books for adults and children too. (as well as)

      …………………………………………………

7    The trains were delayed because of the snow. (to)

      …………………………………………………

8    She’s always doing things too quickly. (hurry)

      …………………………………………………

9    He is in charge of advertising. (for)

      …………………………………………………

F. Complete the questions with the correct prepositions. Then answer the questions using a full sentence with a noun or an –ing form.

1    What are you afraid ……of……?

      I’m afraid of deep water. / I’m afraid of swimming in deep water.

2    What are you worried ……………… at the moment?

      …………………………………………….

3    What school subject are you not interested ………………?

      …………………………………………….

4   When you were younger, what books were you keen ………………?

      …………………………………………….

5    What are you proud ………………?

      …………………………………………….

6    What’s the best thing ……………… being on holiday?

      …………………………………………….

7    Do you prefer to study with friends or ……………… your own?

      …………………………………………….

8   What was the last thing you watched ……………… TV?

      …………………………………………….

G. When you are famous, what will your teachers say about you? In your notebook, write six sentences using prepositions from this unit.

Example: She was terrible at spelling.

H. Circle the correct option.

1    ………… my opinion, Roald Dahl was one of the world’s best writers.

      a On     b From     c In

2    Why don’t you go to bed instead of ………… on the sofa?

      a lie     b to lie     c lying

3    James and the Giant Peach is a story ………… a boy who makes friends with some insects.

      a by     b about     c of

4    Their new car is very similar ………… their old one – it’s even the same colour!

      a of     b as     c to

5    She is very good ………… swimming.

      a at     b for     c in