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Prepositions after adjectives

Evil in, for, to, of or from?

Evil can appear with several prepositions, but the meaning depends on the structure and context.

Quick answer

How evil combines with prepositions

Evil to is common when describing harmful behaviour toward someone. Evil in can describe something bad within a situation or action. Evil of appears in the pattern it was evil of someone to do something. Evil for is uncommon and usually means harmful for someone. Evil from is rare as a direct adjective pattern.

It was evil of him to lie to them.
She was evil to her staff.
There is nothing evil in asking questions.

Choose the pattern by meaning

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

1
evil to + person

Describing cruel behaviour toward someone

Use evil to when someone behaves in a morally wrong or cruel way toward others.

The ruler was evil to his enemies.
She seemed evil to everyone around her.
2
evil in + activity or thing

Describing badness within something

Use evil in to discuss whether something contains moral harm or wrongdoing.

They saw nothing evil in the ritual.
There is something evil in his plan.
3
evil of + person + to infinitive

Judging an action as morally wrong

This formal pattern comments on someone's behaviour.

It was evil of her to spread rumours.
That was evil of them to exploit workers.
4
evil for + person

Describing harmful effects

Evil for is uncommon but possible when meaning harmful for someone or something.

Too much power can be evil for leaders.
The drug proved evil for his health.

See the difference in context

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

Construction
Example
Meaning
evil in
There was nothing evil in the joke.
Badness or harm within something.
evil for
Smoking is evil for your lungs is nonstandard.
Harmful for is more natural in modern English.
evil to
He was evil to the animals.
Cruel or morally bad toward someone.
evil of
It was evil of him to deceive them.
Used to judge an action morally.
evil from
Evil from is not a common adjective pattern.
From usually belongs to another structure, such as protection from evil.

Common mistakes

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

Using evil for instead of harmful for

Evil for is rare in modern English when discussing health or practical harm.

✕ Fast food is evil for children. ✓ Fast food is harmful for children.

Using evil from as a direct adjective pattern

Evil from is generally not idiomatic after the adjective evil.

✕ The policy is evil from society. ✓ The policy is harmful to society.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. It was evil ___ him to cheat the customers.
2. She was evil ___ her younger brother.
3. There is nothing evil ___ asking difficult questions.

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Frequently asked questions

Is evil to common in English?

Yes. Evil to someone means cruel or morally bad toward them.

Can I say evil for your health?

It is possible but uncommon. Harmful for or bad for is more natural.

What does evil of someone mean?

It appears in structures like it was evil of him to lie, which judge an action as morally wrong.

eager-for-to-in-about, on "early in", "early on" or "early for"? earnest in, with, on, for or at? easy for, on, in, to or with? "economical with" or "economical in"? "ecstatic about" or "ecstatic with"? "effective in", "effective at" or "effective for"? "efficient in" or "efficient at"? elderly in, with, at, of or as? elegant in, with, of, as or to? eligible for, to, in or under? "embarrassed by" or "embarrassed about"?

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