TO and FOR are prepositions that are often confused because they both have many different uses in English.
1. Let’s start with the basics…
If you are not sure about when to use TO or FOR, follow these two basic rules:
Rule 1: if there is a verb, use TO + infinitive
I came here to talk to you.
I study everyday to improve my English.
Rule 2: if there is a noun, use FOR
He came for the results.
I did this for the team.
That only gives us an idea of how to start, but there is much more.
I have researched and watched several videos to choose the least confusing approach. I think the following one is a smart approach. Ronnie puts it this way:
TO – TRANSFER / EXCHANGE
FOR – BENEFIT (GOOD)
“For you” or “To you”? People and pronouns
Should you say “I sent this letter to you” or “I sent this letter for you”? The answer is – both are possible, depending on what you mean.
‘I sent this letter to you’ means that, hopefully, you will receive my letter, because you are the recipient.
‘I sent this letter for you’ means that I did you a favor and took the letter to the mailbox, but the recipient is a third person.
So remember these two rules:
If there is a transfer of something to someone → TO
Can you give this to her?
I wrote the letter to her. (I wrote the letter and she will receive it soon)
If the person will benefit from a service or a favor → FOR
This present is for him.
I wrote the letter for her. (She wasn’t able to write it and I did it for her as a favor)
Now we are going to work on another video. I would like you to start with the “5 levels” lesson below. The lesson has five parts. Each section will give you a challenge. Each section is designed to be more difficult than the previous ones.
If you find a section easy move on to the following one, but if you find it difficult, stop it and start working on the second video. Watch it carefully and take notes. Then read the rest of this lesson and then finish the “5 levels” lesson.
Read the full script, take notes and take the quiz on this lesson here.
So let’s look at some key points:
To Indicate the Destination
Our CEO is going to Rome tomorrow.
We’ll head to the headquarters in a second.
I am traveling to our branch in Bristol next month.
We use to when we indicate the destination, and usually there is movement involved. We often use verbs such as: go to, travel to, come to, head to, mail to, send to.
But there’s one common exception: you say go home, without to.
In the construction “from … to …”
It’s about 5km from my house to the university.
I work from 5 to 9.
To tell the time
In the USA, it is quite common to tell the time by saying the hour + the minutes.
Examples:
5:30 – It’s five thirty.
8:50 – It’s eight fifty.
However, especially in the UK, it is very common to express how many minutes there are left until you reach the next hour, once it is 30 minutes after o’clock.
Examples:
5:40 – it’s twenty to six.
8:50 – it’s ten to nine.
With the verb “to give”
We also use to with the verbs of giving, such as give, lend, pay, deliver. However, with these verbs, it’s common to use a structure without to. For example, with give, you can give someone something, or give something to someone. Both structures are possible, but the first is more common.
So, you can say: Give the bottle to me.
Or: Give me the bottle.
Both are possible, but the second is more common.
Giving a reason
Reason tells you why someone does something. Here, you can use to plus an infinitive or for plus a noun. Don’t use for plus an -ing verb.
Examples:
We need to go to the shop to buy some batteries.
We need to go to the shop for some batteries.
Again, you’re talking about why you’re going to the shop.
Function
Function tells you what something is used for, for example a tool. Here, you can use three structures: to plus infinitive verb, for plus -ing or for plus noun.
Examples:
She developed a tool to analyse data collected at different times and places.
She developed a tool for analysing data collected at different times and places.
Expressing the benefits of something
Getting this certificate will be good for your career.
Fruits and vegetables are good for your health.
Doing a favor
He picked up the mail for me.
I didn’t know how to write the letter and she did it for me.
Scheduling something for the future
I set up our interview for May 4.
I will schedule our next session for next Tuesday.
A student was describing his weekend, and he said: “We went to downtown to visit.”
Can we say that? So, I decided to research American and British English. They seem to use “downtown” not quite the same way. It might be that Americans favor the use of the word “downtown” as an adjective and an adverb, while the British use it mainly as a noun.
downtown, adverb
in or to the central part of a city:
I’m going downtown now.
I work downtown, but I live in the suburbs.
You have to be downtown in a hurry.
downtownadjective
of the main business section of a city or town (only before noun):
downtown Los Angeles
downtown store
a downtown address
Downtown business interests say that restoration would be too costly.
He works in an office tower in downtown San Francisco.
downtown, noun
the centre of a city or town, especially its main business area:
There is a good hotel in the heart of downtown.
The hotel is situated two miles north of downtown.
The two chains were frequent neighbors at many malls and in many downtowns.
Here is a video that shows you how to pronounce downtown in British English. The speaker has an accent from Glasgow, Scotland.
So, how do we say that we went to visit a new city and that we wanted to get to know the downtown of the city?
There are a couple of possibilities:
“We went downtown to visit.” (adverb)
“We drove downtown to visit.” (adverb)
“We went to downtown Luiz Alves to visit.” (adjective)
“We went to visit the downtown of the city.” (noun)
The comma is perhaps the most puzzling mark of punctuation. The rules for using commas are numerous and can seem so arbitrary. Look at the sentences below:
Historically the comma is derived from the diagonal slash which was used to indicate a pause. [incorrect]
Historically, the comma is derived from the diagonal slash, which was used to indicate a pause. [correct]
It seems, that the comma can be removed in the first example. However, its presence becomes justified if we read the sentence aloud — we make a short pause after the word historically and slash, precisely the place where the comma should be. A useful rule of thumb is to place commas where one makes a pause in speech.
Rule of thumb: a comma indicates a pause in speech.
When in doubt, read the sentence aloud. If you pause at some place, insert a comma to mark the pause.
Still, commas are more than simple pause-markers; they help the reader understand the structure of the sentence and resolve ambiguity. Compare the two sentences:
The students who passed the exam went on a fieldwork trip.
The students, who passed the exam, went on a fieldwork trip.
The sentence without comma means that only those students who passed the exam went on a trip. The sentence with commas means that all students went on a fieldwork trip, and they all, by the way, passed the exam.
Below are a few rules about how to use commas correctly.
1. Use commas to separate items in a series of two or more things.
That last comma, known as the serial comma, Oxford comma, or Harvard comma, is not obligatory, and causes serious controversy. For example, while U.S. and Canadian English often use of a serial comma, U.K. and Australian English do not. Although many consider it unnecessary, others insist on its use to reduce ambiguity.
There’s an Internet meme that demonstrates its necessity perfectly. The sentence, “We invited the strippers, JFK, and Stalin,” means the speaker sent three separate invitations: one to some strippers, one to JFK, and one to Stalin. The version without the Oxford comma, however, takes on an entirely different meaning, potentially suggesting that only one invitation was sent — to two strippers named JFK and Stalin.
2.Use a comma between two adjectives that modify the same noun.
Only coordinate adjectives require a comma between them. Two adjectives are coordinate if you can answer yes to both of these questions: 1. Does the sentence still make sense if you reverse the order of the words? 2. Does the sentence still make sense if you insert “and” between the words?
Since “I saw the mean, big duck “ and “I saw the big and mean duck” both sound fine, you need the comma.
Sentences with non-coordinate adjectives, however, don’t require a comma. For example, “I lay under the powerful summer sun.” “Powerful” describes “summer sun” as a whole phrase. This often occurs with adjunct nouns, a phrase where a noun acts as an adjective describing another noun — like “chicken soup” or “dance club.”
3. Use a comma to separate independent clauses (complete thoughts) when they are joined by the following conjunctions: and, but, for, or, nor, so, yet.
An independent clause is a complete thought, i.e, a unit of grammatical organization that includes both a subject and verb and can stand on its own as a sentence. In the previous example, “I went running” and “I saw a duck” are both independent clauses, and “and” is the coordinating conjunction that connects them. Consequently, we insert a comma.
If we eliminate the second “I” from that example, the second clause lacks a subject, making it not a clause at all. In that case, it no longer needs a comma: “I went running and saw a duck.”
4. Use a comma to separate a dependent clause (incomplete thought) from an independent clause (complete thought) after a dependent clause that starts a sentence.
A dependent clause is an incomplete thought, i.e, a grammatical unit that contains both subject and verb but cannot stand on its own, like “When I went running …”
The dependent clause can provide the time, the condition, the reason, etc., for the event in the main clause. Commonly, dependent clauses begin with if, whether, because, although, since, when, while, unless, even though, whenever, etc.
If Smith accepts our conditions, we will agree to the proposal.
Although Smith did not accept our conditions, we agreed to the proposal.
Note that a dependent clause should be separated from an independent clause by a commaonly when the dependent clause precedes the independent one. If a dependent clause ends the sentence, however, it no longer requires a comma.
Because Smith accepted our conditions, we agreed to the proposal. [correct]
We agreed to the proposal because Smith accepted our conditions. [correct]
5. Use commas before and after parts of the sentence that are not essential to its meaning.
Appositives act as synonyms for a juxtaposed word or phrase, but are not essential to its meaning. In the above example — “While running, I saw a mallard, a kind of duck” — “A kind of duck” is the appositive, which gives more information about “a mallard.” but are not essential to its meaning.
If the appositive occurs in the middle of the sentence, both sides of the phrase need a comma. As in:
“A mallard, a kind of duck, attacked me.”
Such non-essential parts can be words, phrases and entire clauses. An easy way to test whether a word, a phrase, or a clause is non-essential is to simply leave it out and see whether the message changes dramatically.
The audience, indifferent at the beginning, became more and more interested.
In 1888, when my great grandmother was born, there was only one hospital in the entire country.
There’s one exception to this rule. Do not use commas to separate essential parts of the sentence. For example, “The duck that attacked me scared my friend” doesn’t require any commas. Even though the phrase “that attacked me” describes “the duck,” it provides essential information to the sentence. Otherwise, no one would know why the duck scared your friend.
Clauses that begin with “that” are usually essential to the sentence and do not require commas.
People who live in glass houses should not throw stones. [correct]
People, who live in glass houses, should not throw stones. [incorrect]
The part who live in glass houses is essential to the meaning since the only the people to whom this applies should not throw stones. The first sentence above, implies that people generally live in glass houses.
6. Use a comma after introductory adverbs or an introductory element.
Another example: “Finally, I went running.”
Many adverbs end in “ly” and answer the question “how?” How did someone do something? How did something happen? Adverbs that don’t end in “ly,” such as “when” or “while”, usually introduce a dependent clause, which rule number two in this post already covered.
Also insert a comma when “however” starts a sentence. Phrases like “on the other hand” and “furthermore” also fall into this category.
7. Use a comma when the first word of the sentence is a freestanding “yes” or “no.”
Another example: “Yes, I saw a duck when I went running.”
8. Use a comma with direct quotations.
Another example: “I wouldn’t want to mess with that editor,” said one reader to another.
In American and Canadian English, the comma tends to come before the closing quotation mark, while in British English it is usually placed after the closing quotation mark.
9. Use a comma when directly addressing someone or something in a sentence.
10. Beware of putting a comma before “but” every single time. It should only be used when connecting two independent clauses (despite what middle school teachers tell the students).
As you may recall from above, an independent clause has a subject and a verb and can stand on its own as a sentence. Often, a coordinating conjunction will connect two independent clauses — like the word “but.”
But — and it’s a big but — middle school teachers tell students to always throw a comma before “but.” Don’t do that!
You should only put a comma before “but” when connecting two independent clauses.
For example, this usage of “but” does not take a comma:
“To quack but to have no one hear is a sad thing for a duck.”
11. Use a comma to separate each element in an address. Also use a comma to separate the name of a city from a country or state.
Another example: “Cleveland, Ohio, is a great city.”
12. Use a comma to separate the day of the week, the day of the month, and the year.
More examples:
Friday, March 15, 2013, was the day I saw the duck.
Friday, March 15, was the day I say the duck.
I saw the duck on Friday, 15 March 2013.
You don’t need to add a comma when the sentence mentions only the month and year:
March 2013 was a strange month.
13. Use commas before every sequence of three numbers when writing a number larger than 999. (Two exceptions are writing years and house numbers.)
Here is a video that complements the information given above and provides an opportunity for practice.
When a verb is part of a longer sentence, it is often followed by a specific preposition, before an object or another verb, and it is called a prepositional verb. The preposition is only grammatical, so it doesn’t change the meaning of the verb.
I agree with Mike. She listens to the radio a lot. He thanked me for the flowers.
Look at a few more:
arrive at / in somewhere We arrived at the airport. We arrived in London.
belong to somebody This book belongs to me.
borrow something from somebody I borrowed a book from my classmate.
concentrate on something / doing something I concentrated on studying at the weekend.
depend on something / somebody It depends on the weather.
explain something to somebody The teacher explained the exercise to the students.
listen to something / somebody I listened to music.
pay somebody for something I paid the waiter for the coffee.
wait for somebody / something Wait for me!
worry about somebody / something Don’t worry about a thing!
There are no grammatical rules to help you know which preposition is used with which verb, so it’s a good idea to try to learn them together. Here are some more:
Verb +for
They’re waiting for a bus. He apologised for being late. I applied for the job but I didn’t get it. How do you ask for a coffee in Polish? I can’t go out tonight because I have to prepare for my interview tomorrow.
Verb +from
This spray should protect you from mosquitoes. Has he recovered from the accident yet? She won an award because she saved someone from drowning. I suffer from allergies.
Verb +in
She doesn’t believe in coincidences. Our company specialises in computer software. You have to work hard if you want to succeed in life.
Verb + of
I don’t approve of hunting animals for their fur. Our dog died of old age. This shampoo smells of bananas.
Verb +on
Their decision will depend on the test results. The film is based on the novel by Boris Pasternak. If you make so much noise, I can’t concentrate on my work. Come on! We’re relying on you! We don’t agree on anything but we’re still good friends.
Verb +to
Listento me! Can I introduce you to my grandfather? Please refer to the notes at the end for more information. Nobody responded to my complaint. She apologised to me the next day.
Verb + with
I agree with everything you’ve said. My assistant will provide you with more information if you need it. We’re finding it difficult to deal with the stress.
Practice:
Write the correct preposition to complete the sentence. Choose from the following prepositions: for, from, in, of, on, to, with.
1. It smells ______ coconut in here.
2. Tax is based ______ how much you earn.
3. We promise to respond ______ all emails within three days.
4. I’m doing a law degree, specializing ______ commercial law.
5. Our staff will provide you ______ audio guides on request.
6. It took me two weeks to recover ______ the flu.
7. Shall I ask ______ the bill?
8. We succeeded ______ raising the money for the local animal shelter.
9. I find it hard to concentrate ______ anything when the television is on.
10. They apologized ______ hurting her feelings.
11. I never agree ______ my sister on politics.
12. She suffers ______ terrible headaches in hot weather.
13. I’m applying ______ internships this summer to get some work experience.
14. My mother didn’t approve ______ my friends when I was a teenager.
15. Do you believe ______ ghosts?
16. Kerem, let me introduce you ______ Professor Tsang.
Verb + other prepositions
Other prepositions can be used to create prepositional verbs. Some of these prepositions are against, into, and like. For example:
We decided against visiting my aunt.
The car nearly crashed into a tree.
I feel like going on an adventure.
Verb + multiple prepositions
Certain verbs can take multiple prepositions without changing the overall meaning of the sentence. For example, the verb talk can use the prepositions to and with interchangeably:
I need to talk to the principal.
I need to talk with the principal.
On the other hand, some verbs’ meanings do change when a different preposition is introduced. For example, the verb dream can mean to aspire when it is used with the preposition of; however, when it is used with the prepositions about, it means to see images during sleep. For example:
She dreams of becoming a pilot. (aspiration)
She often dreams about flying. (image during sleep)
Comparing a prepositional verb to a phrasal verb
While the meaning of a phrasal verb is often different to the original meaning of the main verb, the meaning of a prepositional verb is usually the same as the main verb. Phrasal verbs also use adverbs as well as prepositions, whereas prepositional verbs do not.
For example, the meaning of the verb ask doesn’t change when combined with the preposition for; however, it changes dramatically when combined with the preposition out:
Kelly asked for a raise. (The literal meaning of to ask is to inquire. Kelly inquired about a raise, making it a prepositional verb.)
Kelly asked out Chad. (Ask out means to invite someone on a date, making it an idiomatic phrasal verb.)
Phrasal verbs are also often separated by nouns and pronouns. For example,
Put your jacket on.
Put it on.
Prepositional verbs cannot be separated. The two words must remain together.
Okay! In times of pandemic and social distance as being the main strategy for stopping the disease, words like social distance itself , quarantine, containment and confinement,allowed or not allowed, come up all the time.
We’ve already had the chance to work with the other words in context. Today we’re going to look at ‘allow‘ within the context of the image above.
allow verb (PERMISSION)
[transitive] 1 can do something to let someone do or have something, or let something happen [= permit]
allow somebody/something to do something
My parents wouldn’t allow me to go to the party. Women are not allowed to enter the mosque. Don’t allow your problems to dominate your life.
allow somebody something Passengers are allowed one item of hand luggage each. How much time are we allowed?
allow somebody in/out/up etc I don’t allow the cat in the bedroom. The audience is not allowed backstage.
something is (not) allowed (=something is or is not officially permitted) Are dictionaries allowed in the exam? We don’t allow diving in the pool.
2 make something possible to make it possible for something to happen or for someone to do something, especially something helpful or useful [= permit]:
This adjustment of the figures allows a fairer comparison.
allow for Our new system will allow for more efficient use of resources.
allow somebody to do something A 24-hour ceasefire allowed the two armies to reach an agreement.
allow somebody something a seatbelt that allows the driver greater freedom of movement
