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Prepositions after adjectives

soaked in, with, to, for or by?

Soaked in and soaked with are both common but have different meanings. Other prepositions after soaked are usually part of separate phrases.

Quick answer

Which prepositions go with soaked?

Use soaked in for immersion or coverage in a substance or atmosphere. Use soaked with for something covered or filled with liquid. Soaked to usually appears in phrases like soaked to the skin. Soaked for and soaked by are more limited.

The bread was soaked in olive oil.
His shirt was soaked with sweat.
We were soaked to the skin.
The ground was soaked by heavy rain.

Choose the pattern by meaning

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

1
soaked in + substance

Covered or immersed in something

Use soaked in for something deeply covered, immersed, or filled with a substance or atmosphere.

The cake was soaked in syrup.
The city was soaked in sunlight.
2
soaked with + liquid

Wet because of liquid

Use soaked with for physical wetness from water, sweat, blood, or another liquid.

Her coat was soaked with rainwater.
The towel was soaked with bleach.
3
soaked to + body part

Completely wet

Soaked to appears in fixed expressions such as soaked to the skin or soaked to the bone.

After the storm, we were soaked to the bone.
He came home soaked to the skin.
4
soaked by + cause

Wet because of something

Use soaked by to identify the thing that caused the wetness.

The field was soaked by overnight rain.
The crowd was soaked by seawater.

See the difference in context

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

Construction
Example
Meaning
soaked in
The sponge was soaked in water.
immersed or deeply covered in something
soaked with
His clothes were soaked with sweat.
wet or saturated with liquid
soaked to
We were soaked to the skin.
completely wet in a fixed expression
soaked for
The beans were soaked for twelve hours.
for expresses duration, not a fixed adjective pattern
soaked by
The road was soaked by rain.
identifies the cause of wetness

Common mistakes

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

Using soaked with for immersion

Use soaked in when something is immersed in a substance.

✕ The bread was soaked with milk overnight. ✓ The bread was soaked in milk overnight.

Using soaked to without a fixed phrase

Soaked to is mainly used in expressions like to the bone or to the skin.

✕ The jacket was soaked to rain. ✓ The jacket was soaked with rain.

Confusing soaked for and duration

For usually gives a period of time.

✕ The rice was soaked for water. ✓ The rice was soaked in water.

Using by instead of with for description

By names the cause; with describes the liquid present.

✕ His shirt was soaked by sweat. ✓ His shirt was soaked with sweat.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. The cloth was soaked ___ bleach.
2. After the match, his socks were soaked ___ sweat.
3. We got soaked ___ the skin during the storm.

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Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between soaked in and soaked with?

Soaked in often means immersed or deeply covered, while soaked with usually describes physical wetness from liquid.

Can soaked by be used?

Yes. Soaked by identifies the cause, such as rain or waves.

Is soaked for correct?

Yes, but for normally expresses duration, as in soaked for two hours.

sacred-to-in-by-of, for "sad for" or "sad about"? "safe for", "safe from" or "safe in"? sanguine about, in, of, on or for? "satisfactory to" or "satisfactory for"? satisfied with, of, by, in or on? "satisfying for" or "satisfying to"? scarce in, for, at, on or of? scared of, to, about, for or by? "scary for" or "scary to"? "scathing about", "scathing in" or "scathing of"? "sceptical about" or "sceptical of"?

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