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Preposition after adjective

Confident in, about or of?

Confident can be followed by in, about, or of, but the meaning changes slightly with each pattern.

Quick answer

How do you use confident with prepositions?

Use confident in for skills, abilities, or trust in someone. Use confident about for situations or future events. Confident of is more formal and often refers to certainty about an outcome.

She is confident in her abilities.
I feel confident about the interview.
They are confident of success.

Choose the pattern by meaning

These forms are not interchangeable. Choose the construction by meaning, not by which preposition appears most often.

1
confident in + ability/person

Trusting skills or people

Use confident in for abilities, judgments, systems, or people you trust.

He is confident in his team.
She became confident in public speaking.
2
confident about + situation

Feeling positive about an event or topic

Use confident about for plans, decisions, or future situations.

We are confident about the launch.
She sounded confident about her exam results.
3
confident of + outcome

Expressing certainty in formal style

Confident of is more formal and often refers to expected success or achievement.

The company is confident of recovery.
He felt confident of victory.
4
confident that + clause

Following confident with a full statement

A that-clause is common when expressing certainty about a fact or result.

She is confident that the plan will work.
We are confident that sales will improve.

See the difference in context

The same subject can take different constructions because each sentence answers a different question.

Construction
Example
Meaning
confident in
She is confident in her leadership skills.
Trusting or believing in abilities or people.
confident about
She is confident about tomorrow's presentation.
Feeling positive about a situation or event.
confident of
She is confident of success.
More formal expression of certainty about an outcome.
confident with
She is confident with spreadsheets.
Useful alternative for ease or skill in using something.

Common mistakes

Some combinations appear in real text but do not mean what learners often assume.

Using in for future events

About is often more natural for situations or upcoming events.

✕ I am confident in the meeting tomorrow. ✓ I am confident about the meeting tomorrow.

Using of with people

Use in when talking about trust in people or abilities.

✕ She is confident of her manager. ✓ She is confident in her manager.

Missing the preposition

Confident usually needs a preposition before a noun phrase.

✕ He is confident his decision. ✓ He is confident about his decision.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. She is confident ___ her ability to lead the project.
2. We are confident ___ winning the contract.
3. I feel confident ___ the interview next week.

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Frequently asked questions

Is confident of old-fashioned?

It is still used, especially in formal writing, but confident about is often more common in everyday speech.

Can I say confident in myself?

Yes. Confident in myself is a standard expression about self-belief.

What is the difference between confident about and confident in?

Confident about usually refers to situations or outcomes, while confident in refers to trust in abilities, judgments, or people.

calm, in, calm, for, calm, about "candid about" or "candid in"? capable of or in? careful about, with, of, in or on? careless about, with, in, of or on? caribbean in, for, with, to or on? "catastrophic for" or "catastrophic to"? "cautious about" or "cautious in"? celtic in, for, on, at or to? central to, in, for, at or of? "certain of" or "certain about"? "challenging for" or "challenging of"?

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