Verb and Preposition Collocations
Many verbs and verbal expressions colocate with specific prepositions before their object. Here are some of the more common collocations.
Examples:
to wait for (He is waiting for the bus.)
to look for (I am looking for my telephone.)
to look at (She is looking at a photo.)
to listen to (They are listening to the radio.)
to pay for (Your shoes are nice. How much did you pay for them?)
to ask for (Remember to ask for a discount!)
to be happy with something (She is very happy with the present you gave her.)
to be mad at (or with) someone (You shouldn't have said she was stupid. She is mad with you!)
to depend on (We might go to the beach tomorrow, but it depends on the weather.)
to be interested in (He is very interested in biology.)
to thank (somebody) for (Remember to thank your mother for cooking dinner!)
to be busy with (I'm sorry, Paul is busy with a customer.)
to be responsible for (The secretary is responsible for answering the telephones and speaking to visitors.)
to rely on (I rely on my alarm clock to wake me up in the morning! Without it, I would never get out of bed.)
