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Prepositions after adjectives

Using “public” with prepositions

Public commonly appears in fixed expressions such as go public with and be public about.

Quick answer

Common combinations

Use public with for revealing information and public about for openness on a topic.

The company went public with the news.
She was public about her diagnosis.

Choose the pattern by meaning

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

1
go public with + information

Announcing something openly

With introduces the information being revealed.

They went public with the complaint.
2
public about + topic

Openly discussing a subject

About introduces the topic discussed openly.

He became public about his experience.
3
public in + place/sector

Location or field

In usually describes context, not a complement selected by public.

The debate became public in several countries.

See the difference in context

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

Construction
Example
Meaning
public with
She went public with the allegations.
standard fixed expression
public about
He is public about his political views.
openly discussing a topic
public for
The report is public for everyone.
for is not natural here; available to everyone is better
public of
They made the details public.
of is not normally used directly after public

Common mistakes

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

Using for after public

For is usually unnatural after public.

✕ The records are public for citizens. ✓ The records are public to citizens.

Adding of after public

Public does not normally take of directly.

✕ The issue became public of the town. ✓ The issue became public in the town.

Confusing public with publicly

Public is an adjective; publicly is an adverb.

✕ She spoke public about it. ✓ She spoke publicly about it.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. The actor went public ___ the story.
2. She is very public ___ her opinions.
3. Which sentence is natural?

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Frequently asked questions

What does go public with mean?

It means to reveal information openly.

Can public be followed by about?

Yes. It means open or not secret about a topic.

Is public for correct?

Usually no. English more often uses public to or available to.

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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