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Prepositions after adjectives

Creative in or creative with?

Creative in and creative with are both correct, but they describe different things. Creative in refers to an area or activity, while creative with refers to tools, materials, or methods.

Quick answer

Use creative in for fields and creative with for resources

Creative in describes skill or originality in a subject, field, or activity. Creative with describes using materials, tools, or methods imaginatively.

She is creative in graphic design.
They are creative with limited resources.
He became creative with recycled materials.

Choose the pattern by meaning

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

1
creative in + field

Showing originality in an area of work

Use creative in with subjects, professions, or activities.

The students are creative in their writing.
She is highly creative in marketing.
2
creative with + materials or methods

Using things imaginatively

Creative with refers to inventive use of resources, tools, or approaches.

He is creative with colour combinations.
The chef became creative with seasonal ingredients.
3
creative enough to + verb

Describing imaginative ability

This pattern introduces an inventive action or solution.

They were creative enough to solve the problem quickly.
She was creative enough to redesign the entire space.

See the difference in context

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

Construction
Example
Meaning
creative in
She is creative in advertising.
original or inventive within a field or activity
creative with
They are creative with small budgets.
inventive in the use of resources or methods
creative in doing something
He is creative in solving technical problems.
inventive within a specific activity
creative with materials
The artist is creative with metal and glass.
using materials imaginatively

Common mistakes

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

Using creative in with tools or materials

Use creative with for resources, tools, and materials.

✕ She is creative in recycled paper. ✓ She is creative with recycled paper.

Using creative with for academic fields

Use creative in for subjects or professional areas.

✕ He is creative with architecture. ✓ He is creative in architecture.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. The designer is creative ___ digital media.
2. They became creative ___ leftover ingredients.
3. She was creative enough ___ find a simple solution.

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Frequently asked questions

Can creative in and creative with both be correct?

Yes. They are both standard but describe different relationships.

What comes after creative in?

It is usually followed by a field, subject, or activity such as design, teaching, or problem-solving.

What comes after creative with?

It is commonly followed by materials, tools, methods, or resources.

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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