Verb + preposition 5: in/into/with/to/on | Unit 136 | PrepMyEnglish
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Accueil English Grammar Unit 136 — Verb + preposition 5
Unit 136 · Grammar Lesson
Unité 136 · Leçon de Grammaire

Verb + Preposition 5 — in / into / with / to / on
believe in · crash into · fill with · happen to · insist on — Complete Guide
Verbe + Préposition 5 — in / into / with / to / on
believe in · crash into · fill with · happen to · insist on — Guide Complet

Five more essential patterns: believe/specialise/succeed in, crash/break/divide into, collide/fill/provide with, happen/prefer to, concentrate/insist/spend on.

Cinq nouvelles structures essentielles : believe/specialise/succeed in, crash/break/divide into, collide/fill/provide with, happen/prefer to, concentrate/insist/spend on.

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This unit covers five more prepositions that follow specific verbs: in (believe in an idea), into (entry/impact/division), with (associated or filled with), to (direction or comparison) and on (focus, insistence or expenditure). Learn each verb-preposition pair as a single unit.

Cette unité couvre cinq autres prépositions qui suivent des verbes spécifiques : in (croire en une idée), into (entrée/impact/division), with (associé ou rempli de), to (direction ou comparaison) et on (concentration, insistance ou dépense). Apprenez chaque paire verbe-préposition comme une unité.

A

Verb + in

Verbe + in

believe in

believe in

Do you believe in God?
I believe in saying what I think.
She believes in hard work.
I don’t believe in ghosts.

specialise / succeed in

specialise / succeed in

Helen specialises in company law.
He specialises in Italian cuisine.
I hope you succeed in finding a job.
She succeeded in passing the exam.
believe in = believe something exists / believe it is good to do:
I believe in free speech. · Do you believe in life after death?

BUT: believe something / believe somebody (no ‘in’) = think it is true:
The story can’t be true. I don’t believe it. (NOT believe in it)

specialise in: She specialises in tax law.
succeed in + -ing: Did you succeed in solving the problem?
believe in = croire à l’existence de / croire que c’est bien :
I believe in free speech. · Do you believe in life after death?

MAIS : believe something / believe somebody (sans ‘in’) = penser que c’est vrai :
The story can’t be true. I don’t believe it. (PAS believe in it)

specialise in : She specialises in tax law.
succeed in + -ing : Did you succeed in solving the problem?
⚠️
believe in vs believe: I believe in God (= I think God exists). I believe you (= I think you’re telling the truth — no ‘in’). I believe the story (= I think it is true — no ‘in’). believe in vs believe : I believe in God (= je crois que Dieu existe). I believe you (= je vous fais confiance — sans ‘in’). I believe the story (= je pense que c’est vrai — sans ‘in’).

B

Verb + into

Verbe + into

VerbPrepExampleVerbePrépExemple
break intointoOur house was broken into last week.
crash / drive / bump / run intointoHe lost control and crashed into a wall.
divide / cut / split intointoThe book is divided into three parts.
translate (from … into)intoHer books have been translated into many languages.
A burglar broke into the house. · I couldn’t stop and drove into the car in front.
We divided the class into four groups.
Translate FROM one language INTO another:
It was translated from Spanish into English.
A burglar broke into the house. · I couldn’t stop and drove into the car in front.
We divided the class into four groups.
Translate FROM one language INTO another :
It was translated from Spanish into English.
📌
into implies movement, entry, collision or transformation into parts. Think: crash into (collision), divide into (split into parts), translate into (convert into another language). into implique un mouvement, une entrée, une collision ou une transformation. Pensez : crash into (collision), divide into (diviser en parties), translate into (convertir dans une autre langue).

C

Verb + with

Verbe + with

VerbPrepExampleVerbePrépExemple
collide withwithA bus collided with a car at the junction.
fill (sth) withwithTake this saucepan and fill it with water.
provide / supply (sb) withwithThe school provides all students with books.
There was an accident. A bus collided with a car.
Fill it with water. (Note: full OF — see Unit 131)
The company provides / supplies its workers with uniforms.
Also possible: provide something FOR somebody.
There was an accident. A bus collided with a car.
Fill it with water. (Note : full OF — voir Unité 131)
The company provides / supplies its workers with uniforms.
Aussi possible : provide something FOR somebody.
💡
fill with vs full of: Use fill with (verb): Fill the glass with water. Use full of (adjective): The glass is full of water. ‘Fill’ takes ‘with’; ‘full’ takes ‘of’. fill with vs full of : Fill with (verbe) : Fill the glass with water. Full of (adjectif) : The glass is full of water. ‘Fill’ → ‘with’ ; ‘full’ → ‘of’.

D

Verb + to

Verbe + to

VerbPrepExampleVerbePrépExemple
happen totoWhat happened to that gold watch you used to have?
invite (sb) totoThey only invited a few people to their wedding.
prefer (X) to (Y)toI prefer tea to coffee.
What happened to your old bicycle? (= where is it now?)
They invited us to the party. (invite somebody TO a place/event)
I prefer the cinema to the theatre. (prefer X TO Y — NOT than)
What happened to your old bicycle? (= où est-il maintenant ?)
They invited us to the party. (invite somebody TO a place/event)
I prefer the cinema to the theatre. (prefer X TO Y — PAS than)
⚠️
prefer … to … (NOT than):I prefer tea to coffee.I prefer tea than coffee. Compare: I’d rather have tea than coffee — where ‘rather… than’ is correct. prefer … to … (PAS than) :I prefer tea to coffee.I prefer tea than coffee. Comparez : I’d rather have tea than coffee — où ‘rather… than’ est correct.

E

Verb + on

Verbe + on

VerbPrepExampleVerbePrépExemple
concentrate ononI tried to concentrate on my work but kept thinking of other things.
insist ononI wanted to go alone but my friends insisted on coming with me.
spend (money/time) ononHow much do you spend on food each week?
I tried to concentrate on my work, but kept thinking about other things.
She insisted on paying the bill herself.
He spends a lot of money on clothes. / She spent three hours on the report.
I tried to concentrate on my work, but kept thinking about other things.
She insisted on paying the bill herself.
He spends a lot of money on clothes. / She spent three hours on the report.
💡
spend on works for both money AND time: I spent €200 on shoes (money). I spent two hours on the homework (time). Always ‘on’ in both cases. spend on fonctionne pour l’argent ET le temps : I spent €200 on shoes (argent). I spent two hours on the homework (temps). Toujours ‘on’ dans les deux cas.

Verb + in/into/with/to/on — ExercisesVerbe + in/into/with/to/on — Exercices

Check your answers instantly

Vérifiez vos réponses instantanément

EX 1

Complete using these verbs (correct form) + a preposition: believe · break · concentrate · divide · drive · fill · happen · insist · invite · succeed

Complétez avec ces verbes (forme correcte) + une préposition : believe · break · concentrate · divide · drive · fill · happen · insist · invite · succeed

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Answers: 1. insisted on · 2. happened to · 3. divided into · 4. invited to · 5. believe in · 6. fill it with · 7. breaks into · 8. concentrate on · 9. succeeded in · 10. drove into
EX 2

Complete the second sentence so it means the same as the first.

Complétez la deuxième phrase pour qu’elle ait le même sens que la première.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Answers: 1. with a car · 2. to big cities · 3. with all the information · 4. on a pair of shoes · 5. into ten districts
EX 3

Put in the correct preposition. Write — if no preposition is needed.

Mettez la bonne préposition. Écrivez — si aucune n’est nécessaire.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Answers: 1. with · 2. to · 3. on · 4. in · 5. to · 6. in · 7. with · 8. into · 9. in · 10. on · 11. — · 12. into · 13. on · 14. into · 15. from / into
EX 4

Mixed: complete with the correct preposition or write — if none is needed.

Mixte : complétez avec la bonne préposition ou écrivez — si aucune n’est nécessaire.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Answers: 1. with · 2. from / into · 3. — (believe what = think it’s true, no preposition) · 4. to · 5. into · 6. in · 7. with · 8. on

Frequently Asked Questions

Questions Fréquentes

Believe in = believe something exists, or believe it is valuable/right: Do you believe in God? / I believe in working hard. Just believe (no ‘in’) = think something is true or trust what someone says: I believe your story. / I believe you.

Believe in = croire à l’existence de / croire que c’est bien : Do you believe in God? Juste believe (sans ‘in’) = penser que c’est vrai : I believe your story.

Prefer always takes to: ✓ I prefer tea to coffee.I prefer tea than coffee. This is often confused with I’d rather have tea than coffee, where rather… than is correct. Key rule: prefer = to; rather = than.

Prefer prend toujours to : ✓ I prefer tea to coffee.I prefer tea than coffee. Règle clé : prefer = to ; rather = than.

Crash/drive/run into use into — one object hits another. Collide with uses with — implies both objects were moving and hit each other. In practice: The car crashed into the wall (one-way). The two cars collided with each other (mutual).

Crash/drive/run into utilisent into — un objet en heurte un autre. Collide with utilise with — implique que les deux objets se heurtent mutuellement.

Yes, both are correct. ✓ The school provides students with books.The school provides books for students. Same meaning, different word order. The same applies to supply.

Oui, les deux sont corrects. ✓ The school provides students with books.The school provides books for students. Même sens, ordre différent.

🎯 Unit 136 · MCQ QuizUnité 136 · Quiz QCM

Verb + in/into/with/to/on — Quiz

Verbe + in/into/with/to/on — Quiz

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Verb + in/into/with/to/on Quiz

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