Sign In Get Started
Prepositions after adjectives

Liable for or liable to?

Liable for usually refers to responsibility. Liable to often refers to legal obligation or a risk that something may happen.

Quick answer

Liable for vs. liable to

Use liable for when someone is responsible for damage, costs, or actions. Use liable to for legal obligation or when something is likely to happen.

The company is liable for the repairs.
Drivers are liable to prosecution.
Young children are liable to catch colds easily.

Choose the pattern by meaning

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

1
liable for + damage/cost

Responsibility for something

Liable for identifies responsibility or blame.

The tenant is liable for any damage.
Who is liable for the legal fees?
2
liable to + legal action

Being subject to legal consequences

Liable to is common in legal and formal English.

The company is liable to a fine.
Anyone who breaks the rule is liable to arrest.
3
liable to + verb

Being likely to do or experience something

Liable to can mean likely or prone to.

He is liable to forget names.
Prices are liable to rise suddenly.

See the difference in context

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

Construction
Example
Meaning
liable for
She is liable for the loss.
responsible for something
liable to + noun
The factory is liable to inspection.
subject to a legal or formal action
liable to + verb
The road is liable to flood.
likely to experience something
liable in
They were liable in the case.
possible in legal context as an adjunct, but not the usual adjective-preposition pattern
liable on
Payment is liable on delivery.
nonstandard with liable; use payable on delivery or liable for

Common mistakes

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

Using liable for before a verb

Use liable to before an infinitive verb.

✕ He is liable for forget appointments. ✓ He is liable to forget appointments.

Using liable to for responsibility

Use liable for when talking about responsibility.

✕ The driver is liable to the damage. ✓ The driver is liable for the damage.

Dropping to before a verb

Liable needs to before an infinitive.

✕ Prices are liable rise. ✓ Prices are liable to rise.

Confusing legal and everyday meaning

Liable to can mean likely, not only legally responsible.

✕ The machine is liable for break down. ✓ The machine is liable to break down.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. The supplier is ___ the missing items.
2. Children are ___ catch infections at school.
3. Anyone breaking the rule is ___ a penalty.

Check your sentence in context

Paste the complete sentence below. Linguix checks the preposition together with grammar, spelling, punctuation, and style.

Free to try · No signup required

Frequently asked questions

Can liable to mean likely?

Yes. It often means likely or prone to do something.

Is liable for only legal English?

No. It is common in both legal and everyday contexts when discussing responsibility.

Can I use liable with an infinitive?

Yes. Use liable to plus base verb: liable to fail, liable to change.

labour-in-for-with-on, to "large in" or "large of"? "late in" or "late for"? lawful for, to, in, unto or under? "lax in", "lax on" or "lax about"? lazy in, about, with, to or for? "leading to" or "leading of"? leery of, about or over? left in, for, over, with or to? leftover from, of, for, in or after? "legal in" or "legal for"? "legitimate for" or "legitimate in"?

Write with confidence in Linguix

Create a free account to check complete texts, apply suggestions, and save your documents.

Create a free account