- Choose the correct word. This backup system prevents files ___ being lost.
Answer: from
The verb 'prevent' is followed by 'from' plus a gerund: prevents files from being lost. 'To' is the tempting error because some verbs take 'to', but 'prevent' does not. 'About' and 'with' do not fit the meaning.
- Yusuf was surprised _______ the low price and immediately decided to buy the apartment.
Answer: by
When a verb is paired with a specific preposition to create a fixed expression, you need to memorize that combination — these are called collocation patterns, and they're exactly what this question tests. The phrase "surprised + preposition" has one correct partner in standard English.
The verb surprised collocates with by when describing the cause or agent of the surprise — especially something external that triggers an unexpected reaction. "Surprised by the low price" correctly signals that the price is the thing that caused Yusuf's surprise. This is the natural, idiomatic phrasing, making C the right answer.
A) "from" doesn't work here because from typically indicates a source or separation ("she came from Paris"), not the cause of an emotional reaction. "Surprised from the price" is not grammatically or idiomatically acceptable in English.
B) "about" is a tempting distractor because "surprised about something" does exist in informal use. However, about tends to follow surprised when referring to news or information ("surprised about the announcement"), not a direct sensory or immediate trigger like a price. The distinction is subtle but important on this exam.
D) "of" is simply not used with surprised in any standard context. You might see afraid of or proud of, but surprised of is not an accepted collocation in English.
Your study tip: Build a personal list of emotion adjectives and their correct prepositions — surprised by, afraid of, interested in, excited about. These fixed pairings appear frequently on the ESL Language Use exam and must be memorized rather than reasoned out.
- The new hospital is located _______ the corner of Fifth Avenue and Main Street.
Answer: at
Prepositions of location can be tricky in English because several of them seem interchangeable, but each one signals a different spatial relationship. When describing where a place is situated relative to a street intersection, the preposition you choose carries a very specific meaning.
The correct answer is B) at. In English, "at" is used to indicate a specific point or location — a precise address or spot. Intersections are treated as exact points on a map, so we say something is located "at the corner of" two streets. This phrasing is a fixed, conventional expression in English that signals an exact address.
A) in suggests being enclosed within a space or area, like "in the building" or "in the city." A corner of two streets is not an enclosed space, so "in the corner" would be unnatural here (though we do say "in the corner of a room," referring to an interior space).
C) on is used for streets and surfaces — for example, "on Fifth Avenue" or "on the sidewalk." While you might say a building is "on Fifth Avenue," when referring to the intersection point itself, "on the corner" is actually informally acceptable in some dialects, but "at the corner" remains the standard, preferred form tested in formal English exams.
D) by means near or beside something, as in "by the window." It suggests proximity rather than a precise location, which doesn't match the meaning of a specific corner address.
A useful tip: memorize the phrase "at the corner of [Street] and [Street]" as a fixed expression — it almost always appears this way in standard written English.
- The flight to Tokyo departs _______ 6:45 _______ the morning, so passengers should arrive early.
Answer: at / in
When a question tests prepositions of time, your job is to match each preposition to the type of time expression it accompanies. English uses three main prepositions for time — at, in, and on — and each follows strict rules.
Use at for specific clock times (at 6:45, at noon, at midnight). Use in for longer, general periods like parts of the day (in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening — but note "at night" is the exception), months, seasons, and years. Use on for specific days and dates (on Monday, on July 4th).
With that in mind, the sentence asks which prepositions fit "6:45" and "the morning." Since 6:45 is a precise clock time, it takes at. Since "the morning" is a general period of the day, it takes in. That makes B) at / in the correct answer.
Choice A) in / at reverses the two prepositions entirely — "in 6:45" and "at the morning" are both unnatural and grammatically wrong in English. Choice C) on / in correctly handles "the morning" with in, but uses on before the clock time, which would only work with a day name or date, not a specific hour. Choice D) at / at gets the first blank right but incorrectly applies at to "the morning" — at does not pair with morning, afternoon, or evening.
A handy memory trick: AT a clock, IN a period, ON a day. If you keep that trio memorized, time-preposition questions become much more manageable on the Accuplacer ESL.
- She has been interested _______ marine biology ever since she read a book _______ ocean ecosystems.
Answer: in / about
This question tests your knowledge of fixed preposition collocations — combinations where specific verbs, adjectives, or nouns are always paired with particular prepositions. English has many of these pairings, and they must simply be memorized since they don't always follow logical rules.
The adjective "interested" always takes the preposition "in" — you are interested in something, never "about" or "for" something. This is a fixed collocation in English. The second blank follows the noun "book," and when describing what a book covers or discusses, native speakers use "about" — a book about a topic. This makes choice A) in / about the correct answer.
Looking at the wrong choices: B) about / on fails immediately because "interested about" is not standard English — "interested" requires "in," not "about." Choice C) in / of gets the first blank right but fails on the second — "a book of ocean ecosystems" sounds like the book is made from ecosystems, which is nonsensical. The preposition "of" signals possession or composition, not subject matter. Choice D) for / about uses the wrong preposition for "interested" — "interested for" is simply not a valid English collocation, making the entire phrase grammatically incorrect from the start.
A useful strategy: when studying for the ESL Language Use exam, keep a running list of common adjective + preposition pairings such as interested in, afraid of, good at, and responsible for. These fixed collocations appear frequently on this exam, and memorizing them as complete phrases — not word-by-word — is the most effective approach.
- Choose the correct word. According ___ the schedule, the exam starts early.
Answer: to
The phrase is "according to," which means as stated by or in agreement with the schedule. The word "with" is tempting because it often pairs with agreement, but "according with" is not standard in this meaning. Choose "to" to complete the fixed expression.
- Choose the correct word. Please focus ___ the warning signs.
Answer: on
The verb "focus" takes the preposition "on" to show where attention is directed. The most tempting wrong answer is "at" because you can look at something, but with focus, "on" is correct.
- The professor congratulated the students _______ their outstanding performance _______ the final exam.
Answer: on / on
Questions like this test your knowledge of fixed preposition collocations — phrases where specific verbs or nouns always pair with specific prepositions. There's no grammar rule to calculate here; you simply need to know which prepositions native speakers use with which expressions.
The key phrases are "congratulate someone on something" and "performance on an exam." Both slots require "on." In English, "congratulate" always takes "on" to introduce the reason for congratulation — you congratulate someone on a promotion, on a victory, on an achievement. Similarly, performance is described as happening on a test or exam, not in or for one. That makes B) on / on the correct answer.
Looking at the wrong choices: A) for / in uses "for," which feels logical (you congratulate someone for doing something), but "congratulate for" is not standard English — the fixed collocation is "congratulate on." The second preposition "in" is also wrong since exams use "on." C) for / on gets the second preposition right ("on the final exam") but still uses the non-standard "congratulate for" in the first slot, making it a tempting trap. D) about / in is the most incorrect — "congratulate about" is not a recognized collocation in English, and "in the final exam" is equally unnatural.
A useful study tip: when you encounter preposition questions, memorize verb-preposition pairs as complete chunks rather than trying to reason them out. Keep a running list of common collocations like congratulate on, apologize for, insist on, and agree with — these appear frequently on the Accuplacer ESL.
- The scientist's new theory differs significantly _______ the one proposed _______ her colleague last year.
Answer: from / by
This question tests your knowledge of prepositional collocations — fixed phrases where specific verbs or adjectives require specific prepositions. English often doesn't follow logical rules here, so memorizing common pairings is essential.
The verb differ always pairs with the preposition from, not "with" or "than." This is a fixed collocation: you say "A differs from B," meaning A is not the same as B. For the second blank, you need to explain who proposed the theory — and in English, when a person performs an action (proposing something), we use by to indicate that agent, especially in passive-style constructions. The theory was proposed by her colleague, not from her colleague. So the correct answer is D: from / by.
Looking at the wrong choices: A) "with / by" fails immediately because "differs with" is not standard English — you never say a theory "differs with" another. B) "than / from" is a common trap because "than" is used for comparisons with adjectives like different ("A is different than B"), but differ as a verb requires "from," not "than." Mixing up differ and different is a frequent mistake. C) "from / from" gets the first blank right but fails on the second — "proposed from her colleague" makes no grammatical sense; you need "by" to identify who did the proposing.
As a study tip, memorize these two patterns: "differ from" (not "differ with/than") and "proposed/written/created by" (agent = by). These collocations appear frequently on the ESL Language Use exam.
- The museum exhibit focuses _______ ancient civilizations that thrived _______ the banks of the Nile River.
Answer: on / along
Preposition questions like this one test your knowledge of fixed expressions — phrases where specific prepositions are required by convention, not just logic. When you spot a two-blank preposition question, tackle each blank independently by asking: "What verb or noun does this preposition attach to?"
For the first blank, the key phrase is "focuses _____." In English, the verb focus always pairs with the preposition on — you focus on something. This is a fixed collocation you simply need to memorize. For the second blank, the phrase describes a location relative to a river's edge. "The banks of the Nile" are long, extended surfaces, and when something exists alongside a linear feature like a riverbank, shoreline, or road, English uses along to suggest movement or extension parallel to that feature.
That makes A) on / along the correct answer.
Looking at the wrong choices: B) "at / beside" fails on both counts — focus at is not standard English, and beside implies a single point next to something, not a stretch of geography. C) "about / on" is tempting because focus about can seem natural to non-native speakers, but focus requires on, not about (talk about or learn about use about). D) "on / beside" gets the first preposition right but repeats the beside error — beside works for a single position ("the chair beside the door"), not for civilizations spread across an entire river system.
Your study tip: Build a list of common verb-preposition collocations (focus on, rely on, consist of, result in) — the ACCUPLACER ESL frequently tests these fixed pairs.
- Andrés depends heavily _______ public transportation to get _______ work every day.
Answer: on / to
When a question tests prepositions, focus on fixed expressions — certain verbs and phrases in English always pair with specific prepositions, regardless of logic. These combinations are called collocations, and memorizing them is the most reliable strategy.
The sentence has two gaps to fill, so you need to find the pair that satisfies both fixed expressions correctly. First, consider the verb "depend." In English, the correct and standard collocation is depend on something or someone — this is a fixed phrase. You might occasionally see "depend upon" in formal or literary writing, but the far more natural, everyday form is "depend on." Second, consider the phrase for arriving at a destination for work or school. The correct preposition is to — you get to work, to school, to the store. This expresses movement toward a destination.
That makes D (on / to) the correct answer. It captures both fixed expressions accurately.
Looking at the wrong choices: A (upon / in) fails on both counts — "upon" is overly formal and uncommon here, and "in work" is not standard English for this meaning. B (on / at) gets the first preposition right but stumbles on the second — "at work" means you are already at your workplace, not that you are traveling to it, which changes the meaning of the sentence. C (in / to) uses the wrong preposition for "depend" entirely — "depend in" is simply not a correct English collocation.
Your study tip: Build a personal list of common verb-preposition pairs like depend on, arrive at, belong to, and rely on. These appear frequently on the ESL exam and cannot be guessed from logic alone.
- Choose the correct word. The author is known ___ her vivid storytelling.
Answer: for
Known for is the correct preposition when citing a quality or skill. The author is recognized because of her vivid storytelling. Known as is tempting, but it means recognized in a role or by a title, not the reason for recognition.
- The children ran _______ the bridge and jumped _______ the cold water below.
Answer: across / into
When choosing prepositions of movement, think carefully about the path of motion and where it ends. Each preposition paints a specific picture: across means moving from one side to the other along a surface, into means entering an enclosed space or substance, over means above something (often without touching it), and through means passing within something from one end to the other.
In this sentence, the children ran along the surface of the bridge from one side to the other — that's across. Then they jumped and entered the water below — that's into, because they're moving from outside the water to inside it. This makes C) across / into the correct answer.
Choice A) across / in gets the first blank right but stumbles on the second. In describes a static location ("she is in the water"), not the act of entering it. The sentence describes movement, so in doesn't capture the transition. Choice B) over / into gets the second blank right but misuses over in the first. Running over a bridge suggests passing above it without contact, which isn't physically possible — you run on its surface, from one side to the other. Choice D) through / in uses through, which would mean the children passed inside the bridge's structure, like going through a tunnel — that makes no sense here. And in again fails to show movement into the water.
A handy tip: whenever you see movement entering something (water, a room, a car), into is almost always correct. Save in for descriptions of where something already is, not where it's going.
- Fatima has been working _______ this company _______ she graduated from university.
Answer: for / since
When a sentence involves prepositions of place and time, you need to evaluate each blank independently. Ask yourself: what preposition correctly links the subject to their workplace, and what preposition correctly links the action to a point in time?
For the first blank, English uses specific prepositions depending on how we describe a workplace. "Work for a company" means you are employed by that organization — this is the standard phrasing when the company is your employer. The first blank needs for, which immediately makes choice A and D your only candidates.
For the second blank, the key is understanding the difference between "since" and "for" in time expressions. "Since" refers to a specific starting point — a moment, date, or event (since she graduated). "For" refers to a duration — a length of time (for three years). The sentence gives you "she graduated from university," which is a specific event in the past, so "since" is the correct choice. This confirms that A (for / since) is correct.
Choice B fails because "work at a company" is grammatically possible in casual speech, but pairing it with "*for*" in the second blank is wrong — graduation is a point in time, not a duration. Choice C uses "work in a company," which sounds unnatural in English when referring to employment by an organization. Choice D uses "*for*" twice, but the second blank follows a specific event (graduation), requiring "since," not "for."
A quick memory trick: "since" = specific starting point; "for" = duration of time. This distinction appears frequently on the ESL Language Use exam, so memorizing it pays off.
