Verb + Preposition 5 (in/into/with/to/on)

Verb + in

Believe in means you think something exists or that something is right to do.

• Do you believe in flexible working hours? (= do you think they are a good thing?)
• Our CEO believes in investing heavily in R&D.

When you simply think a statement is true, drop the in. Just say believe + object.

• The rumour can’t be true. I don’t believe it. (not believe in it)

Specialise in — focus your expertise on one area.

• Our firm specialises in corporate tax law.

Succeed in — manage to do something.

• After months of searching, she succeeded in landing a management role.

Verb + into

Break into — enter a place by force.

• Someone broke into the warehouse over the weekend, but the security cameras caught them.

Crash / drive / bump / run into — hit something while moving.

• A delivery truck lost control and crashed into the loading dock.

Divide / cut / split something into two or more parts.

• The training programme is divided into four modules.

Translate something from one language into another.

• The user manual has been translated into twelve languages.

Verb + with

Collide with — crash into something (used for two moving objects).

• The forklift collided with a pallet stack near the exit.

Fill something with — make something full. (Note: the adjective is full of, not full with.)

• Please fill this form with as much detail as possible.

Provide / supply somebody with — give someone what they need.

Verb	Pattern	Example
provide	somebody with something	The company provides all new hires with a laptop.
supply	somebody with something	Our vendor supplies us with raw materials every month.

Verb + to

Happen to — used when you ask or talk about what has become of something or someone.

• What happened to the project proposal you were working on?

Invite somebody to an event.

• We invited several key clients to the product launch.

Prefer one thing to another — like one thing more than something else.

• I prefer video calls to phone calls — it’s easier to read people’s reactions.

Verb + on

Concentrate on — give all your attention to something.

• I need to concentrate on finishing this report before the deadline.

Insist on — say firmly that something must happen.

• The client insisted on reviewing every clause in the contract.

Spend (money/time) on — use money or time for a purpose.

• How much does your team spend on software subscriptions each year?

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