Prepositions – NDA English Notes

1. Introduction

Prepositions are among the smallest words in English: two and three letters, often one syllable, grammatically invisible in everyday speech. Yet the Prepositions chapter is the largest grammar chapter in the JOVIK NDA English series.

Why does such a small word class generate so many questions? Because prepositions are governed by idiomatic specificity, not logical rules. You cannot derive “interested in” from the meaning of “in.” You cannot predict “die of cancer” from the meaning of “of.” These combinations (and hundreds like them) are conventional in English, acquired through exposure, and tested by UPSC precisely because Indian students consistently apply prepositions from interference patterns in Indian language usage.

The chapter has two dominant examination patterns that together account for roughly 70% of all confirmed errors:

★  IMPORTANT Pattern 1: Superfluous Prepositions: Adding a preposition after a verb or conjunction that takes no preposition. “Comprising of”, “discuss about”, “enter into a room”, “despite of”, “await for”. These are the most frequently confirmed errors in the chapter.   Pattern 2: Wrong Prepositions: Using the wrong preposition after a verb that does require one. “Conform by rules” (should be “to”), “die by cancer” (should be “of”), “prefer coffee than tea” (should be “to”). Same structure, different error type.

Mastering this chapter requires two skills: learning which verbs take no preposition, and learning which preposition each verb, adjective, and noun requires when one is needed. There is no shortcut. These are collocational facts that must be stored, recognised, and retrieved.

2. What Is a Preposition?

A preposition is a word that links a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase to another element of the sentence, expressing a relationship of time, place, direction, manner, cause, accompaniment, or possession.

“She arrived at the station.”  → place (at)

“He has worked here for ten years.”  → duration (for)

“I came here by train.”  → means (by)

“She is interested in music.”  → relation (in)

“He died of cancer.”  → cause (of)

Every preposition is followed by a noun phrase, its object. This combination of preposition + object is called a prepositional phrase. The whole prepositional phrase functions like an adverb (modifying a verb: “arrived at the station”) or like an adjective (modifying a noun: “the house on the hill”).

Relationship	Common Prepositions	Example
Time	at, in, on, for, since, during, by, until	“He arrived at noon.” / “She has lived here since 2010.”
Place	at, in, on, near, beside, between, among	“The book is on the table.” / “She stood near the door.”
Direction	to, into, onto, from, towards, through	“She walked into the room.” / “He ran towards the exit.”
Manner	by, with, in, on	“He came by train.” / “She did it with care.”
Cause / Reason	of, for, from, with, through	“He died of cancer.” / “She trembled with fear.”
Accompaniment	with, without	“She came with her sister.” / “He left without a word.”
Possession	of, with	“The capital of India.” / “A man with integrity.”

3. Superfluous Prepositions: The Chapter’s Dominant Pattern

This section is the most important in the chapter. The Superfluous Preposition pattern (adding a preposition after a word that takes no preposition) accounts for more confirmed NDA questions than any other single concept in the Prepositions chapter. Fourteen or more Spotting Errors questions across fifteen papers confirm it. A student who masters this section eliminates the largest single source of preposition errors in the examination.

The core insight: certain English verbs are transitive with respect to their objects: they take the object directly, with no preposition. Adding a preposition after these verbs is a grammatical error, even if the resulting phrase sounds natural in spoken Indian English.

“Comprising Of”: The Most Confirmed Error in the Chapter

“Comprise” and “comprising” mean “to consist of” or “to include.” The verb “comprise” takes its object directly: no preposition is needed because “comprise” already contains the meaning of inclusion within itself.

“Consist” needs “of”:  “The committee consists of five members.”

“Comprise” needs nothing:  “The committee comprises five members.”

Never:  “comprising of”: the “of” is superfluous.

Why do students write “comprising of”? Because they confuse “comprise” with “consist of.” Both mean the same thing: “consist” requires “of”; “comprise” does not. The two are near-synonyms with different prepositional requirements.

NDA 2009-I, NDA 2020, NDA 2021-I: Spotting Errors: (×3 confirmations: the most repeated individual error in the chapter)

NDA 2009-I: “…a committee of experts comprising OF five members…”  [Error: “of”]

NDA 2020: “This building comprises OF six houses…”  [Error: “of”]

NDA 2021-I: “…wealth as something comprising OF movable property.”  [Error: “of”]

Correct: “comprising five members” / “comprises six houses” / “comprising movable property”

“Comprising” is complete without any preposition.

The Zero-Preposition Verb List: Complete Reference

★  IMPORTANT The following verbs take NO preposition. Adding a preposition after any of them is always an error in formal English. Study this list as a single named unit.

Verb / Word	Incorrect Form: NDA Confirmed	Correct Form	Why Error Occurs	NDA Paper(s)
comprise / comprising	“comprising OF six houses”	“comprising six houses”	Confused with “consist of”	2009-I, 2020, 2021-I
discuss	“discussing ABOUT the issue”	“discussing the issue”	Confused with “talk about”	2020
describe	“describe ABOUT it”	“describe it”	Confused with “talk about”	2011-I
stress / emphasize	“stressed ON the importance”	“stressed the importance”	Confused with “focus on”	2011-I
enter (physical space)	“entered INTO the room”	“entered the room”	Confused with “go into”	2014-II, 2015-I
await	“awaiting FOR the arrival”	“awaiting the arrival”	Confused with “wait for”	2015-I
marry (active verb)	“marry WITH the girl”	“marry the girl”	Indian English interference	2009-II
despite (conjunction)	“despite OF the pain”	“despite the pain”	Confused with “in spite of”	2012-I, 2013-I
ensure	“ensures FOR happiness”	“ensures happiness”	Superfluous “for”	2015-I
cope (remove “up”)	“cope UP with this”	“cope WITH this”	“Up” is superfluous particle	2020
suggest	“suggest ABOUT the plan”	“suggest the plan”	Confused with “talk about”	Standard syllabus
order (to purchase)	“order FOR a meal”	“order a meal”	Superfluous “for”	Standard syllabus
request	“request FOR assistance”	“request assistance”	Superfluous “for”	Standard syllabus

Notice that “enter into” is acceptable in abstract or metaphorical senses: “enter into a contract”, “enter into negotiations”, “enter into discussion.” The superfluous preposition error applies only to the physical sense of entering a space: “enter the room”, “enter the building”, “enter the hall.”

The Critical Distinction: Superfluous Prepositions vs Phrasal Verb Particles

Students who learn to eliminate superfluous prepositions must not eliminate required phrasal verb particles. “Cope with” is a phrasal verb: “with” is a required element, not superfluous. “Dispose of” requires “of”. “Make up for” requires “for”. Removing these particles would create errors in the opposite direction.

Superfluous: Must Remove ✗	Required Particle: Must Keep
“comprising OF” → “comprising”	“cope WITH” (phrasal verb, “with” required)
“discuss ABOUT” → “discuss”	“dispose OF” (phrasal verb, “of” required)
“await FOR” → “await”	“make up FOR” (phrasal verb, “for” required)
“stress ON” → “stress”	“run INTO” (phrasal verb, “into” required)
“despite OF” → “despite”	“look forward TO” (phrasal verb, “to” required)

4. Verb-Preposition Collocations: Wrong Preposition Errors

The second dominant pattern: the verb does require a preposition, but the wrong one has been used. These errors are harder to spot than superfluous prepositions because both the verb and the preposition are grammatically present: only the pairing is wrong. They must be learned verb by verb.

The errors consistently arise from two sources: interference from the equivalent Hindi/Urdu construction (which may use a different relational word) or false analogy with a nearby English verb that takes a different preposition. Neither source is derivable from a rule. The correct collocation must be stored.

Verb	Wrong Preposition (Confirmed)	Correct Preposition	Correct Example	NDA Paper
conform	conform BY rules	conform TO	“conform to rules and regulations”	2009-I
congratulate	congratulate FOR success	congratulate ON	“congratulate him on his success”	2010-II
die	died BY cancer	die OF	“die of cancer” / “die of hunger”	2013-I
insist	insisted TO ask	insist ON	“insist on asking questions”	2014-II
accuse	accused FOR murder	accuse OF	“accused of murder”	2015-I
sympathize	sympathize FOR others	sympathize WITH	“sympathize with others in their troubles”	2016-I
prefer	prefer coffee THAN tea	prefer TO	“prefer coffee to tea”	2016-II
accord	accord to / in / for	accord WITH	“does not accord with what you said”	2010-II FITB
deviate	deviate to / in / for	deviate FROM	“deviated from the beaten track”	2013-II FITB
apologize	apologize for / at	apologize TO	“apologized to me for what happened”	2018-II FITB
commit	commit of / by / with	commit TO	“commit myself to that course of action”	2018-II FITB
compete	compete for / to / on	compete WITH	“competed with each other for the prize”	2013-II FITB
cope	cope to / in / up	cope WITH	“cope with the heavy rush of work”	2013-II FITB
dispose	dispose OFF the garbage	dispose OF	“dispose of the garbage properly”	2020
home (noun)	home OF 2600 species	home TO	“home to 2600 plant species”	2019-II
stay clear	stay clear FROM	stay clear OF	“tried to stay clear of the government”	2021-I
felicitate	felicitated IN the ceremony	felicitated AT	“felicitated at the prize distribution ceremony”	2023-II
arbitrate	arbitrate WITH two merchants	arbitrate BETWEEN	“arbitrate between two merchants”	2014-I SI

For “die”: The cause of death in English always uses “of”: “die of cancer”, “die of hunger”, “die of a broken heart.” The preposition “by” is used for the agent of a passive action, not the cause. “He was killed by the enemy” (agent) vs “He died of cancer” (cause). This distinction eliminates a frequent error.

For “prefer”: In comparisons, “prefer X to Y”: not “prefer X than Y.” Students use “than” by analogy with “better than”, “more than.” But “prefer” takes “to” for its comparison, not “than.”

5. Adjective-Preposition Collocations

Adjective-preposition collocations are the primary content of the FITB (Fill in the Blanks) format in this chapter. NDA 2010-II alone had six FITB questions testing different adjective-preposition pairs. The examiner presents four preposition options (typically to, with, for, in) alongside the same adjective and tests whether the student knows the conventional pairing.

Unlike verb-preposition collocations (which can sometimes be inferred from meaning), adjective-preposition pairs are almost entirely idiomatic and must be memorised. “Contented with” is correct; “contented in” and “contented for” are not, and no rule explains why.

Adjective + Preposition	Meaning / Context	Example Sentence	NDA Paper
contented WITH	satisfied with something one has	“Happiness consists in being contented with what we have.”	2010-II
alive TO	aware of; sensitive to	“I am fully alive to the problems facing the industry.”	2010-II
bad AT	not skilled in	“The Romans were bad at science.”	2010-II
disgrace TO	brings shame on	“His rude behaviour is a disgrace to his organisation.”	2010-II
endowed WITH	naturally given a quality	“Satish was endowed with a natural talent for music.”	2015-II
doubtful ABOUT	uncertain regarding	“Are you feeling doubtful about your decision?”	2015-II
immune TO / AGAINST	protected from; not affected by	“Vaccination makes people immune against certain diseases.”	2016-I
beset WITH	troubled or afflicted by	“The path of progress is beset with difficulties.”	2016-II
insured AGAINST	protected against loss from	“My house is insured against theft and fire.”	2017-II
averse TO	having a strong dislike of	“She is averse to hard work.”	2020 FITB
beside oneself WITH	overwhelmed with emotion	“She was beside herself with joy.”	2010-II SE
dull OF / IN (understanding)	slow to understand	“No child is dull of understanding.”	2010-II

“Immune to” and “immune against” are both confirmed as acceptable in NDA 2016-I: the FITB question offered both “to” and “against” as options, and the answer was “against.” Both prepositions can co-occur with “immune” in different contexts (immune to a disease; immune against vaccination), so students should be comfortable with both.

6. Noun-Preposition Collocations

Noun-preposition collocations are confirmed across multiple FITB and SE questions. The principle is identical to verb and adjective collocations: the preposition is not derivable from meaning but is a fixed conventional pairing with the noun. “Disparity between” (not “disparity in/for”); “effect on” (not “effect in”); “home to” (not “home of”): all confirmed.

Noun + Preposition	Meaning / Context	Example	NDA Paper
effect ON	result or impact on something	“a direct effect on the rising and falling of the tides”	2013-I SE
disgrace TO	shame or dishonour brought to	“a disgrace to his organisation”	2010-II FITB
home TO	place where something/someone lives	“The Eastern Ghats are home to 2600 plant species”	2019-II SE
input INTO	contribution made to a project or process	“will have an input into the project”	2013-II FITB
disparity BETWEEN	difference or inequality between two groups	“We must eliminate the disparity between rich and poor”	2013-II FITB
cure FOR	remedy for a disease or problem	“Scientists seek a cure for the common cold”	2020 FITB
notice OF	attention paid to something	“The sparrow took no notice of the bread”	2016-I SI
progress IN	advancement in a field or direction	“though there is progress in different directions”	2022-II SE
woman OF humble origin	noun-of phrase for characteristic	“a woman of humble origin”	2020 FITB

“Home to” vs “Home of”: In NDA 2019-II, the correct form was “home to 2600 plant species”: not “home of.” When “home” means the place where species, people, or institutions are located/based, use “home to.” “Home of” is used in possessive/characteristic contexts (“the home of jazz”, “the home of democracy”).

7. Time Prepositions: In, On, At, For, Since

Time prepositions are the one area of the Prepositions chapter where explicit rules apply. Unlike collocations (which must be memorised), time prepositions follow systematic patterns. Learning the rules and the confirmed exceptions gives students a reliable framework.

The Core Time Preposition Rules

Preposition	Use For	Examples	Key Exception / Note
IN	Years, months, seasons, centuries, parts of day	“in 1492”, “in January”, “in spring”, “in the 19th century”, “in the morning”	“on Columbus Day” (specific day takes “on”)
ON	Specific days and dates	“on Monday”, “on 15 August”, “on Christmas Day”	“on your watch” (surface of clock face: NDA 2020)
AT	Specific clock times, named points in the day, certain fixed expressions	“at 9 o’clock”, “at noon”, “at midnight”, “at the end of February” (NDA 2024-I SC)	“at home”, “at school”, “at work”, “at a ceremony” (NDA 2023-II)
FOR	Duration: how long a period lasts	“for thirty years”, “for a long time”, “for a few moments” (NDA 2024-I SC)	Use with all tenses; NOT “from thirty years” (NDA 2019-I)
SINCE	Starting point of a period continuing to now	“since 2010”, “since Monday”, “since she left”	Always with perfect tenses; “I have known her for a long time”: for, not since (NDA 2020 FITB)

The “For” vs “Since” Distinction: Confirmed NDA Target

“For” and “since” both describe time periods but from different perspectives.

“For”  = duration: how long. It answers: “for how long?”

“Since”  = starting point: when from. It answers: “since when?”

Confirmed Time Preposition Errors from NDA

Error Tested	Correct Form	Rule	NDA Paper
“on 1492” (Columbus’s voyage)	“in 1492”	Years use “in”	2023-I SE
“from thirty years”	“for thirty years”	Duration uses “for”, not “from”	2019-I SE
“since a long time”	“for a long time”	“since” needs a specific starting point	2020 FITB
“with a few moments”	“for a few moments”	Duration of pause uses “for”	2024-I SC
“on the end of February”	“at the end of February”	“at the end of” is fixed expression	2024-I SC
“in your watch”	“on your watch”	Time displayed on surface of watch → “on”	2020 SE

8. Place and Direction Prepositions

Place prepositions establish where something is located or where an action occurs. Direction prepositions establish movement toward or away from a location. Both categories have confirmed NDA instances: many of which are idiomatic rather than rule-based.

At, In, On: Place Distinctions

Preposition	Primary Use (Place)	Examples	NDA Confirmed Instance
AT	A point or specific location; events/venues; fixed expressions	“at the station”, “at a ceremony”, “at home”, “at school”	“felicitated AT the ceremony”: not “in” [2023-II SE]; “stay AT home”: not “in their home” [2017-I SI]
IN	Inside an enclosed space; within a large area	“in the room”, “in London”, “in the forest”	“entered IN the room” is wrong: “enter” takes no preposition [2014-II, 2015-I SE]
ON	On a surface; on certain modes of transport; on bodies of water	“on the table”, “on the bus”, “on the lake”	“boating ON the lovely lake”: not “in” [2020 FITB]; “time ON your watch”: surface [2020 SE]

Confirmed Place and Direction Errors from NDA

Error Tested	Correct Form	Concept	NDA Paper
“entered INTO the room”	“entered the room”	“Enter” (physical space): zero preposition	2014-II, 2015-I
“in their home” every evening	“at home” every evening	“At home” is fixed idiomatic expression	2017-I SI
“felicitated IN the ceremony”	“felicitated AT the ceremony”	Events/venues use “at”	2023-II SE
“flew HALF MAST” (no preposition)	“flew AT half mast”	“At half mast”: fixed expression	2016-II SE
“came BY walk”	“came ON foot”	“On foot”: fixed manner expression	2020 SE
“in your watch”	“on your watch”	Watch face is a surface → “on”	2020 SE

9. Fixed Phrases and Idiomatic Prepositional Expressions

Several confirmed NDA questions test prepositions within fixed idiomatic phrases. In these cases, the preposition is not merely a collocational companion but an integral part of the idiom: changing it changes or destroys the idiomatic meaning.

Idiom / Fixed Phrase	Incorrect Form (Confirmed)	Correct Form	Meaning	NDA Paper
beside oneself WITH	“beside herself IN joy”	“beside herself WITH joy”	Overwhelmed by an emotion	2010-II SE
hell bent ON	“hell bent AT getting”	“hell bent ON getting”	Determined to do something at all costs	2015-I SI
joined IN crushing	“joined AT crushing”	“joined IN crushing”	Participated in an action	2015-I SI
make up FOR	“makes up TOWARDS her want”	“makes up FOR her want of beauty”	Compensates for a deficiency	2014-II SI
for THESE reasons	“due TO these reasons”	“For these reasons”	Stating the reason/justification	2015-I SI
arrange FOR the car	“arrange the car”	“arrange FOR the car to be ready”	Make provision for something	2015-II SI
notice OF	“notice ABOUT the bread”	“notice OF the bread”	Pay attention to something	2016-I SI
at half mast	“flew half mast” (no prep)	“flew AT half mast”	Flag positioned midway up the pole	2016-II SE
came ON foot	“came BY walk”	“came ON foot”	Travelled by walking	2020 SE
cope WITH (no “up”)	“cope UP with pressure”	“cope WITH pressure”	Manage a difficult situation	2020 SE
with which delighted (rel. pronoun)	“for which she was delighted”	“with which she was absolutely delighted”	“Delight with” (pleased by means of)	2026-I SC

For “due to these reasons”: “due to” is correctly used before a noun phrase expressing cause: “the delay was due to the traffic.” Using “due to these reasons” as a sentence-opener is non-standard; “for these reasons” or “because of these reasons” are the correct alternatives. This is a register and collocation issue, not just a preposition error.

10. Near-Synonym Discrimination: Among, Amidst, Between, Except

“Among / Amongst” vs “Amid / Amidst” vs “Between”

Preposition	Use	Example	Key Rule
between	Exactly two items; or when items are individually named	“the disparity between rich and poor”; “arbitrate between two merchants”	Two parties always use “between”
among / amongst	More than two members of a defined group	“distribute the food among the children”; “a feeling among the students”	“Among” is more common; “amongst” slightly more formal/literary
amid / amidst	In the middle of an uncountable or mass situation (chaos, confusion, noise)	“amidst the confusion” [NDA 2025-II]; “amid the chaos”; “amidst the celebrations”	“Amidst” preferred with abstract mass situations: not with countable groups
except	Exclusion from a group: not position within it	“All countries signed the treaty except Germany and France.” [NDA 2024-I SC]	Tests exclusion, not grouping; “among” would be wrong here

NDA 2025-II: Fill in the Blanks:

“_________ all the confusion the thief made a quiet getaway.”

Options: (a) Among  (b) Amongst  (c) Amidst  (d) Amid

Answer: (c) Amidst  [NDA 2025-II]

“Confusion” is an abstract mass noun: a state, not a countable group. “Amidst” is most idiomatic for abstract situations. “Amid” is also correct. “Among/amongst” would be used for distributable groups, not for mass abstract states.

NDA 2024-I: Sentence Completion:

“All the countries signed the treaty _________.”

Options: (a) beneath Germany and France  (b) except Germany and France  (c) among Germany and France  (d) during Germany and France

Answer: (b) except Germany and France  [NDA 2024-I SC]

“Except” signals exclusion from the group: the two countries did not sign. “Among” would suggest they are positioned within the group, not excluded from it. “Beneath” and “during” are semantically wrong entirely.

The Relative Pronoun + Preposition Construction: Confirmed 2026

NDA 2026-I introduces a sophisticated construction: the preposition that collocates with an adjective or verb appears before a relative pronoun. “She was delighted with the orchids” → relative pronoun replacing “the orchids” → “the orchids with which she was absolutely delighted.”

NDA 2026-I: Sentence Completion:

“I sent her a bouquet of orchids _____________.”

Options: (a) for which she was absolutely delighted  (b) with which she was absolutely delighted  (c) of which she was absolutely delighted  (d) on which she was absolutely delighted

Answer: (b) with which she was absolutely delighted  [NDA 2026-I SC]

Base sentence: “She was absolutely delighted WITH the orchids.” “Delight” collocates with “with” (delighted with something). In the relative clause: “with which” = “with the orchids”: preposition moves with the pronoun.

(a) “for which delighted”: “delighted for” is not standard.

(c) “of which delighted”: “delighted of” is not standard.

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