GRAMMAR REFERENCE BOX

1. Gerund after Preposition

after: After having a shower, I waited for Steven.

before: The tablet must not be taken before getting up in the morning.

by: I manage it by working much longer than 40-hour weeks.

in spite of: In spite of studying a lot he didn’t pass the exams.

on: What was her reaction on hearing the news?

without: He told the joke without laughing.

2. Gerund after Adjective + Preposition

afraid of: They are afraid of losing the match.

angry about/at: Pat is angry about walking in the rain.

bad at/good at: John is good at working in the garden.

• clever at

He is clever at skateboarding.

• crazy about

The girl is crazy about playing tennis.

• disappointed about/at

He is disappointed about seeing such a bad report.

• excited about

We are excited about making our own film.

• famous for

Sandy is famous for singing songs.

• fed up with

I’m fed up with being treated as a child.

• fond of

Hannah is fond of going to parties.

• glad about

She is glad about getting married again.

• happy about/at

The children are not happy about seeing a doctor.

• interested in

Are you interested in writing poems?

• keen on

Joe is keen on drawing.

• proud of

She is proud of riding a snowboard.

• sick of

We’re sick of sitting around like this.

• sorry about/for

He’s sorry for eating in the lesson.

• tired of

I’m tired of waiting for you.

• used to

She is used to smoking.

• worried about

I’m worried about making mistakes.

3. Gerund after Noun + Preposition

• advantage of

What is the advantage of farming over hunting?

• chance of

There’s a chance of catching a cold these days.

• choice between

There’s a choice between flying to London Heathrow or Stansted.

• danger of

Peggy is in danger of making a mistake.

• difficulty in

He has difficulty in texting.

• doubt about

He is in doubt about buying the correct software for his computer system.

• hope of

There’s little hope of catching the new Corvette.

• idea of

I like the idea of setting up a new email account.

• interest in

There’s no interest in writing letters.

• method of

This is a simple method of finding solutions.

• opportunity of

There’s some opportunity of bringing her parents together again.

• possibility of

These wheels offer the possibility of riding tubeless.

• problem of

He has the problem of swimming too slow.

• reason for

There’s a real reason for winning the contest.

• risk of

There’s a risk of digging too deep.

• trouble for

He was in trouble for stealing.

• way of

This is a new way of building a wall.

4. Gerund after Verb + Preposition

• accuse of

They were accused of breaking into a shop.

• agree with

I agree with playing darts.

• apologize for

They apologize for being late.

• believe in

She doesn’t believe in getting lost in the wood.

• blame for

The reporter is blamed for writing bad stories.

• complain about

She complains about bullying.

• concentrate on

Do you concentrate on reading or writing?

• congratulate sb. on

I wanted to congratulate you on making such a good speech.

• cope with

He is not sure how to cope with getting older.

• decide against

They decided against stealing the car.

• depend on

Success may depend on becoming more patient.

• dream about/of

Sue dreams of being a pop star.

• feel like

They feel like going to bed.

• get used to

You must get used to working long hours.

• insist on

The girls insisted on going out with Mark.

• look forward to

I’m looking forward to seeing you soon.

• prevent sb. from sth.

How can I prevent Kate from working in this shop?

• rely on sth.

He doesn’t rely on winning in the casino.

• succeed in

How then can I succeed in studying chemistry?

• specialize in

The firm specialized in designing websites.

• stop sb. from

I stopped Andrew from smoking.

• talk about/of

They often talk about travel(l)ing to New Zealand.

• think about/of

Frank thinks of playing chess.

• warn sb. against

We warned them against using this computer.

• worry about

The patient worries about having the check-up.