Prepositions of Direction Quiz | Intermediate Level | 20 Questions & Answers with Explanations

"Stayed" describes a static position over a duration, not movement, so on is correct, describing where he remained.

Correct sentence: "He stayed on the roof for hours, watching the sunset."

Memory hook: "stayed," like "stood" and "remained," is a static verb — pair it with on, never onto.

"Dipped" describes the hand moving from outside to inside the bucket, a movement of entry, so into is required, not the static in.

Correct sentence: "He dipped his hand into the bucket to check the water temperature."

Memory hook: "dip" behaves exactly like "pour" — both describe something moving from outside to inside a container, so both take into.

"Expected to arrive by evening" confirms the delegation will reach the capital, so to is correct, indicating a destination that will actually be reached.

Correct sentence: "The delegation is travelling to the capital for urgent talks, expected to arrive by evening."

Memory hook: look past the main verb for confirmation words like "arrive" or "reach" elsewhere in the sentence — they settle the to/towards question even if the main verb alone seems ambiguous.

"Their final destination remained unclear" explicitly signals that arrival is not confirmed, matching the open-ended, in-progress meaning of towards.

Correct sentence: "The refugees were seen moving towards the border, though their final destination remained unclear."

Memory hook: phrases like "destination unclear," "not confirmed," or "uncertain whether they arrived" are strong textual clues pointing to towards.

"Dived" is a movement verb showing entry from outside to inside the pool, so into is required, following the same logic as more common verbs like "walked" or "jumped."

Correct sentence: "She dived into the swimming pool without hesitation."

Memory hook: add "dive" to your list of movement verbs (alongside walk, run, jump, pour) that trigger into — less common verbs still follow the same rule.

"Threw" describes the jewellery moving through the air and entering the river, a clear movement of entry, so into is correct, not the static in.

Correct sentence: "The thief threw the stolen jewellery into the river before being caught."

Memory hook: "throw" something into water, a bin, or a container always signals movement of entry — treat it the same as "pour" and "drop."

"Were kept" describes a static, ongoing state rather than movement, so in is correct here, describing where the valuables remained over time.

Correct sentence: "The valuables were kept in the river, hidden from searchers for years."

Memory hook: "kept," like "stored" and "hidden," describes an ongoing static state — even with a body of water like a river, static verbs still take in, not into.

"Climbed" is a movement verb showing he moved and reached the roof's surface, so onto is required, not the static on.

Correct sentence: "He climbed onto the roof to fix a loose tile."

Memory hook: "climb onto" a surface (movement) is different from "stand on" a surface (already there) — check whether the verb describes reaching the surface or already being on it.

"Made their way...determined to complete the climb" describes an ongoing journey where the outcome isn't yet confirmed within the sentence, matching the in-progress meaning of towards, not the confirmed-arrival meaning of to.

Correct sentence: "The tourists made their way towards the summit, determined to complete the climb."

Memory hook: "determined to" and "attempting to" signal effort in progress, not confirmed success — this usually points to towards rather than to.

"Reached" is a transitive verb that takes a direct object with no preposition at all, so the correct answer is to use no preposition, following the same fixed rule as "reach the station" or "reach home."

Correct sentence: "After eight gruelling hours, the climbers finally reached the summit."

Memory hook: "reach" never needs to or towards after it — the moment you see "reached," check whether a preposition has been wrongly inserted.

 "Approach," like "reach," is a transitive verb that takes a direct object without any preposition, so no preposition is needed here at all.

Correct sentence: "She approached the manager's office nervously, unsure of what to say."

Memory hook: group "approach" with "reach" as verbs that never take a preposition before their object — both are common exam traps.

"Enter," similar to "reach" and "approach," is a transitive verb that takes its object directly without a preposition, even though it might seem to logically pair with into given its meaning.

Correct sentence: "The company plans to enter the Southeast Asian market next year."

Memory hook: "enter" seems like it should need into because of its meaning, but grammatically it's transitive — no preposition needed, just like "reach" and "approach."

"Discuss" is another transitive verb frequently tested alongside "reach," "approach," and "enter" — it takes a direct object with no preposition, and adding "about" is a very common student error.

Correct sentence: "The report will closely discuss the economic impact of the new policy."

Memory hook: extend your no-preposition verb list to include "discuss," "resemble," and "comprise" — these are commonly tested transitive verbs that never take a following preposition.

"Resemble" is a transitive verb that directly takes its object, requiring no preposition at all, similar to "discuss" and "reach."

Correct sentence: "The two brothers resemble each other so closely that people often confuse them."

Memory hook: never write "resemble to" or "resemble with" — "resemble" behaves exactly like "reach": direct object, no preposition.

"Comprises" is a transitive verb taking its object directly, and "comprises of" is one of the most commonly tested errors in competitive exams, even though it's frequently heard in casual speech.

Correct sentence: "The final report comprises six detailed chapters and an extensive appendix."

Memory hook: "comprise" never takes "of" — if you want "of," use "is composed of" instead; "comprise" alone is already complete.

"Rushed" is a movement verb showing entry into the building, so into is correct, not the static in.

Correct sentence: "Rescue workers rushed into the collapsed building, searching for survivors."

Memory hook: urgency verbs like "rush," "dash," and "hurry" still follow the basic movement-verb rule — entering a space with urgency still needs into.

"Edging...though a final deal has not yet been struck" describes gradual movement toward an outcome without confirmed arrival, matching the in-progress meaning of towards, used here in its more abstract sense (progress toward a goal, not just a physical place).

Correct sentence: "The negotiators are edging towards a compromise, though a final deal has not yet been struck."

Memory hook: towards isn't limited to physical destinations — it also describes progress toward an abstract goal, like a compromise or an agreement, as long as arrival isn't confirmed.

"Finally came" confirms the agreement was actually reached, so to is correct — "come to an agreement" is also a fixed collocation meaning to successfully reach one.

Correct sentence: "After months of careful preparation, the two sides finally came to an agreement."

Memory hook: "come to an agreement/decision/conclusion" is a fixed idiom for reaching an abstract outcome — group it with "arrive at" as confirmed-arrival phrases.

"Stopped just short of the line" explicitly confirms the ball did not actually enter or reach the goal, so towards is correct, describing movement in that direction without arrival.

Correct sentence: "The ball rolled towards the goal but stopped just short of the line."

Memory hook: "stopped short of" is about as explicit a non-arrival signal as you'll find — it directly confirms towards is the answer.

"Set" here describes the movement of placing the tray so that it comes to rest on the table's surface, so onto is correct, describing the movement to a surface, not the static on.

Correct sentence: "The waiter carefully set the tray onto the table without spilling a drop."

Memory hook: "set," "place," and "put" can describe movement onto a surface just as much as "jump" or "climb" — watch for the action of arriving at a surface, not just the obvious physical verbs.