Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[partridge]

Hi teachers

is there a rule for when to use in,by,with, for example

I am interested in football (not I am interested BY football)

I was scared by lightening (not I was scared with lightening)

is there a rule or do you just have to learn them in each case?

thanks for your help!!

[bud]

I'm not aware of any good lessons for prepostions. It might be that you have to learn them as you go along.

Btw, just to keep it interesting, here's a little more to think about:

I was scared by lightening. - (To me, this suggests that you are talking about a particular instance... Just as I kicked the ball, I was scared by lightening. A bolt struck the ground five feet away from me.)

I was scared of lightening. (When you were young, you were scared during every thunderstorm.)

Good luck!