Choose the right preposition 3
✓ Useful for TOEIC
✓ Useful for Cambridge BEC
💡 Top tips
Common business collocations with 'in', 'on', and 'at'
'In' is used with companies and industries: 'She works in finance.' 'On' is used with committees and projects: 'He's on the board.' 'At' refers to specific organizations: 'I work at Google.'
Prepositions of time: 'in', 'on', 'by', 'until'
Use 'by' for deadlines (completed no later than): 'Please submit by Friday.' Use 'until' for duration (continuing up to a point): 'The offer is valid until Friday.' These are frequently confused in professional writing.
Avoid common preposition errors with verbs
Common correct collocations: 'agree on' (a decision), 'agree with' (a person), 'deal with' (a problem), 'result in' (a consequence), 'depend on' (a factor). These fixed combinations are best memorized as complete units.
Common business collocations with 'in', 'on', and 'at'
'In' is used with companies and industries: 'She works in finance.' 'On' is used with committees and projects: 'He's on the board.' 'At' refers to specific organizations: 'I work at Google.'
Prepositions of time: 'in', 'on', 'by', 'until'
Use 'by' for deadlines (completed no later than): 'Please submit by Friday.' Use 'until' for duration (continuing up to a point): 'The offer is valid until Friday.' These are frequently confused in professional writing.
Avoid common preposition errors with verbs
Common correct collocations: 'agree on' (a decision), 'agree with' (a person), 'deal with' (a problem), 'result in' (a consequence), 'depend on' (a factor). These fixed combinations are best memorized as complete units.
READY TO PRACTICE? LET’S GO!
These exercises will help you to practice using prepositions in a Business English context and can be used to to prepare for the Test of English for International Communication (TOEIC) and the Business English Certificate (BEC).
1. What we like __________________________ them is that they always deliver on their promises.
Correct answer: about — What we like about them — about introduces the topic.
2. He always comes __________________________ time. ( = at the right time, neither late nor early)
Correct answer: on — Fixed expression: on time = punctually.
3. I came __________________________ time to hear him speak. ( = I arrived at the last moment, but I wasn't late)
Correct answer: in — Fixed expression: in time = early enough.
4. __________________________ time ( = In the future) you'll see that I was right.
Correct answer: In — Fixed expression: in time = in the future.
5. We offer free advice _________________ financial planning.
Correct answer: on — Advice on something is the standard collocation.
6. We offer free _______________________ financial planning advice.
Correct answer: NO PREPOSITION — When the noun directly precedes what it modifies, no preposition is used.
7. We'll help you develop your business idea _______________________ an award winning enterprise.
Correct answer: into — Develop into = transform/grow into something.
8. How many people are __________________________ your team?
Correct answer: B or C — On and in are both correct with team.
9. It's always best to focus more __________________________ quality than _______________________ quantity.
Correct answer: on — Focus on something is the standard collocation.
10. He doesn't really know much _________________________ mapping out processes.
Correct answer: about — Know about something is the standard collocation.
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