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Prepositions after verbs

Appoint to vs appoint by

Use appoint to for positions and roles. By usually introduces the person or authority making the appointment.

Quick answer

Which preposition is correct?

The standard pattern is appoint someone to a position. Appoint by is not the normal verb pattern, but by can introduce the appointing authority in passive sentences.

She was appointed to the board.
He was appointed by the president.

Choose the pattern by meaning

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

1
appoint someone to + position

Giving someone a role

Use appoint to when assigning a job or office.

They appointed her to the committee.
2
be appointed to + role

Passive form with positions

This pattern is common in formal English.

He was appointed to a senior post.
3
appointed by + authority

Who made the appointment?

By introduces the agent in a passive sentence.

She was appointed by the council.

See the difference in context

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

Construction
Example
Meaning
appoint to
The company appointed Mia to the role.
assign someone to a position
appoint by
The director was appointed by the board.
by names the appointing authority, not the role
appoint as
They appointed him as chairperson.
alternative structure naming the role

Common mistakes

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

Using appoint by for positions

Use appoint to before a role or office.

✕ They appointed her by manager. ✓ They appointed her to manager.

Confusing by and to

To introduces the position; by introduces the authority.

✕ He was appointed to the governor. ✓ He was appointed by the governor.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. She was appointed ___ the finance committee.
2. The judge was appointed ___ the king.
3. They appointed him ___ director.

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Frequently asked questions

Is appoint by correct?

Not as the main pattern for roles. It appears in passive sentences such as 'appointed by the committee'.

Can I say appoint as?

Yes, especially before a role noun: 'They appointed her as treasurer.'

What follows appoint to?

Usually a job title, committee, board, or official position.

abandon, by, abandon, in "abduct by", "abduct in" or "abduct from"? abide by, in, with, to or on? "abolish in" or "abolish by"? "abound in" or "abound with"? "absorb by", "absorb into" or "absorb in"? "accelerate by", "accelerate to" or "accelerate in"? accentuate by, with, in or under? accept by, in, as, for or into? "accommodate in", "accommodate for" or "accommodate to"? "accomplish by" or "accomplish in"? "accord to" or "accord with"?

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