Preposition + Gerund Patterns in Technical English
5 exercises — practise using the gerund form after prepositions.
0 / 18 completed
1 / 18
Which sentence correctly completes: "The on-call engineer is responsible for _____ the incident within fifteen minutes."
"...responsible for acknowledging the incident..." is correct: after a preposition (here, "for"), English always requires a gerund, never a to-infinitive or bare base form. Option A incorrectly uses a to-infinitive, a common error since "responsible to acknowledge" sounds plausible but is ungrammatical; the preposition "for" demands "-ing". Option B uses the bare base form, which cannot follow a preposition. Option D uses the past participle, which would require a passive auxiliary ("for the incident being acknowledged") to work grammatically.
2 / 18
Which sentence correctly completes: "Instead of _____ the whole service, we rolled back the single faulty pod."
"Instead of restarting the whole service..." is correct: "instead of" is a preposition, so it must be followed by a gerund. Option A uses the bare base form, which is ungrammatical after a preposition. Option B incorrectly uses a to-infinitive; prepositions never take to-infinitives. Option D uses the past participle, which does not fit this slot without an auxiliary structure.
3 / 18
Which sentence correctly completes: "The team is interested in _____ the API before the next major version."
"...interested in deprecating the API..." is correct: the preposition "in" must be followed by a gerund. Option B incorrectly uses a to-infinitive, a frequent mistake because many similar adjective + infinitive patterns exist (e.g., "eager to deprecate"), but "interested in" specifically pairs an adjective with a preposition, which forces the gerund. Option C uses the bare base form, which cannot follow a preposition. Option D uses the past participle, which would need to be restructured as a passive gerund ("being deprecated") to be grammatical.
4 / 18
Which sentence correctly completes: "Prior to _____ the migration script, back up the production database."
"Prior to running the migration script..." is correct: "prior to" functions as a compound preposition, and like all prepositions, it must be followed by a gerund. Option A uses the bare base form, which is ungrammatical here. Option C incorrectly adds "to" a second time in a to-infinitive form; note that "prior to" already contains "to" as part of the preposition itself, so "running" alone (not "to run") must follow it. Option D uses the past tense, which cannot function as a complement immediately after a preposition.
5 / 18
Which sentence correctly completes: "The dashboard is used for _____ latency across all regions in real time."
"...used for monitoring latency across all regions..." is correct: the preposition "for" must be followed by a gerund when describing the purpose or function of a tool. Option A uses the bare base form, which is ungrammatical after a preposition. Option B incorrectly uses a to-infinitive; while "used to monitor" is grammatical as a separate purpose construction, it changes the sentence structure and does not fit after the preposition "for" as written. Option C uses the past participle, which would require additional auxiliary structure to function correctly.
6 / 18
David (in a Slack message): 'The team needs to prioritize optimizing the database queries. We've identified several slow operations and are working on implementing indexing strategies.'
This scenario uses the preposition 'optimize + gerund' to describe a task. The question tests understanding that 'optimizing' refers to improving performance—a common developer concern. Options A and B offer alternative solutions but don't directly address the core issue of slow queries. Option D introduces a related, but distinct, problem: network latency.
7 / 18
David (in a Slack message): 'The team needs to prioritize optimizing the database queries. We've identified several slow operations and are working on implementing indexing strategies.'
This scenario uses the preposition 'optimize + gerund' to describe a task. The question tests understanding that 'optimizing' refers to improving performance—a common developer concern. Options A and B offer alternative solutions but don't directly address the core issue of slow queries. Option D introduces a related, but distinct, problem: network latency.
8 / 18
Maria (in a PR description): 'I've implemented the new authentication flow. I'm focusing on ensuring seamless user experience while minimizing potential security vulnerabilities.' What is Maria doing in this sentence?
This question assesses the use of prepositions + gerunds to articulate a complex rationale. The phrase 'focusing on ensuring… while minimizing…' demonstrates a balanced approach to development— considering both user experience and security. The incorrect options misinterpret the sentence's purpose as purely problem-focused or goal-oriented without detailing the process.
9 / 18
API Response (from a microservice): {
{"status": "success", "message": "User profile updated successfully. Consider implementing caching strategies to reduce database load."}
}
This tests understanding of how prepositions + gerunds are used in feedback and recommendations. The response uses 'requesting' + 'implementing' to suggest an action – caching strategies – which is the correct interpretation of the API's message. It avoids misinterpreting the API as a direct instruction or error report.
10 / 18
John (during a standup update): 'I'm currently debugging the integration with the third-party payment gateway. I'm focusing on resolving intermittent transaction failures and optimizing the API calls.' What is John primarily communicating?
This scenario examines how prepositions + gerunds are used to convey progress and priorities. 'Focusing on resolving… and optimizing' clearly indicates John's current efforts and the goal— achieving reliable transactions and efficient API usage. The other options represent different communication styles not reflected in this update.
11 / 18
Ben (in a Slack message): 'We need to improve the responsiveness of the frontend. I'm investigating ways to reduce the number of HTTP requests and optimize data transfer sizes.' What is Ben doing in this sentence?
This question probes the use of prepositions + gerunds in describing problems and proposing solutions. The phrase 'investigating ways to reduce…' clearly indicates Ben is identifying a problem – slow responsiveness – and suggesting actions—reducing requests and optimizing data. This aligns with standard developer communication regarding performance issues.
12 / 18
Sarah (in a code review comment): 'I've refactored the error handling logic. I'm focusing on ensuring that all exceptions are logged with sufficient detail for debugging.' What is Sarah doing in this sentence?
The phrase 'I'm focusing on ensuring…' indicates that Sarah is concentrating her efforts. The core of the sentence highlights an action – refactoring – and the *reason* for that action: detailed logging. This demonstrates a preposition + gerund pattern used to explain the purpose behind a code change.
13 / 18
Mark (in a PR description): 'I've implemented the new data validation rules. I'm considering adding more comprehensive error messages to improve user feedback.' What is Mark doing in this sentence?
The phrase 'I'm considering adding…' clearly shows Mark is evaluating different options. The core of the sentence describes a specific task – creating error messages – which aligns with input validation and feedback mechanisms. This exemplifies using a preposition + gerund to express an ongoing thought process.
14 / 18
Lisa (in an API response): {
{"status": "warning", "message": "The service is experiencing higher than expected CPU utilization. Consider implementing resource limits to prevent performance degradation."}
} What is Lisa doing in this sentence?
The phrase 'Consider implementing…' indicates advice or recommendation. The message itself is a suggestion – to implement resource limits – to address the reported problem of high CPU utilization. This demonstrates the preposition + gerund pattern used to offer guidance and propose solutions.
15 / 18
Liam (in a Slack message): 'We're tackling the scalability issues with the new deployment. I'm concentrating on ensuring efficient resource allocation and minimizing potential bottlenecks.' What is Liam doing in this sentence?
The phrase 'ensuring efficient resource allocation' and 'minimizing potential bottlenecks' clearly indicates that Liam is focusing on optimizing performance – a common use case for prepositions + gerunds. The other options relate to different technical tasks (database optimization, error handling, or frontend responsiveness) rather than overall system efficiency. This scenario tests the ability to recognize focus based on phrasing.
16 / 18
Maria (in a PR description): 'I've been working on streamlining the user onboarding process. I'm prioritizing reducing the number of steps involved and simplifying the interface.' What is Maria doing in this sentence?
'Prioritizing reducing the number of steps' directly corresponds to streamlining a process. This is a classic prepositions + gerund construction used to describe an ongoing effort or action. The other options represent specific technical solutions (indexing, HTTP requests, or error messages), not the overall goal of simplification.
17 / 18
David (during a standup update): 'I'm currently investigating potential performance issues with the new service. I'm focusing on identifying and addressing areas where latency is high.' What is David doing in this sentence?
'Identifying and addressing areas where latency is high' describes a process of investigation and remediation. The use of 'focusing on' highlights David's deliberate effort to pinpoint performance bottlenecks – this aligns perfectly with the prepositions + gerund pattern for describing ongoing actions related to problem-solving.
18 / 18
Sarah (in a code review comment): 'I've been reviewing the security protocols. I'm concentrating on ensuring compliance with industry standards and mitigating potential vulnerabilities.' What is Sarah doing in this sentence?
'Ensuring compliance with industry standards and mitigating potential vulnerabilities' clearly indicates a focus on security – this is a common use case for the prepositions + gerund pattern. The phrasing highlights Sarah's deliberate effort to identify and address risks within the codebase.
What will I practise in "Preposition + Gerund Patterns — IT Grammar Exercise"?
Practise the rule that any verb form directly following a preposition (for, in, instead of, prior to) must be an -ing gerund, never a to-infinitive, in
How many exercises are in this module?
This module has 18 multiple-choice exercises, each with instant feedback and a full explanation of the correct answer.
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You'll immediately see which answer was correct, plus a full explanation covering the grammar rule and reasoning behind it — mistakes are where most of the learning happens.
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Where can I find more Grammar exercises?
Browse the full Grammar hub for related drills, or check the "Next up" link below to continue with a connected topic.
How is this different from reading an article on the same topic?
Articles explain grammar rules in prose; this exercise tests and reinforces those rules through active recall with immediate feedback — the two work best together.
Who writes these exercises?
Every exercise is written by the CoderSlingo team, drawing on real workplace English used in IT roles, then reviewed for accuracy and clarity.