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Prepositions after adjectives

Prone to, in or on?

Prone normally takes to when describing a tendency or risk. In and on usually add separate information such as location or situation.

Quick answer

Which preposition follows prone?

Use prone to for habits, risks, or tendencies. Prone in and prone on are not standard complements after the adjective, though in and on can appear separately in a sentence.

He is prone to headaches.
The area is prone to flooding.

Choose the pattern by meaning

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

1
prone to + noun

Tendency or susceptibility

Use to with problems, behaviours, or conditions.

She is prone to anxiety.
2
prone to + verb-ing

Likely to do something

Use to before an -ing form for repeated behaviour.

He is prone to overreacting.

See the difference in context

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

Construction
Example
Meaning
prone to
Children are prone to colds.
Likely to experience something.
prone in
The plants are prone to disease in wet weather.
In wet weather is a time or condition adjunct, not the adjective's complement.
prone on
The statue lay prone on the ground.
On the ground describes position, not the adjective pattern.

Common mistakes

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

Using in after prone

Prone normally takes to for tendencies or risks.

✕ He is prone in mistakes. ✓ He is prone to mistakes.

Using on for susceptibility

On does not express tendency after prone.

✕ The region is prone on earthquakes. ✓ The region is prone to earthquakes.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. She is prone ___ allergies.
2. They are prone ___ forgetting deadlines.
3. Which sentence uses on as a location adjunct?

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Frequently asked questions

Is prone to always correct?

It is the standard pattern for tendencies, risks, and susceptibility.

Can prone describe physical position?

Yes. Prone can also mean lying face down.

Why do I sometimes see prone in or prone on?

In and on may introduce location, time, or condition information, but they are not the adjective's normal complement.

packed-with-to-in-on, into "paid for" or "paid up"? painful for, to, in, at or of? "palatable to" or "palatable for"? "pale in" or "pale of"? "pandemic of" or "pandemic in"? "paramount to" or "paramount in"? paranoid about, of, in, with or over? partial to, of, in, towards or for? participating in, of, on, at or for? "particular about" or "particular to"? part-time at, in, for, as or with?

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