In, On, or At? 5 Common Preposition Mistakes in Business English

Imagine saying during a high-stakes business meeting: "We need to discuss about this project" or "I'm responsible of the marketing budget". While your international partners will certainly understand what you mean, these small grammatical slips instantly signal a lack of full language fluency.

Prepositions—tiny words like in, on, at, of, about—are among the biggest hurdles for non-native business professionals. Why? Because they rarely follow strict logical rules, and we often translate them directly from our native languages.

In this article, I will break down 5 of the most common preposition mistakes in Business English that I hear during my Executive English Coaching sessions. You will learn once and for all how to avoid them and sound like a seasoned professional.

---

Mistake 1: Discuss about

This is by far the most widespread error in international offices. Because many European languages translate this action as "to talk/discuss about something," professionals instinctively add the preposition about after the verb discuss.

• Wrong: We need to discuss about the budget.
• Right: We need to discuss the budget.

💡 The Rule:

The verb discuss is transitive and does not require any preposition. It connects directly to the object you are discussing. If you absolutely want to use about, switch to the verb talk or the noun discussion.

• Correct: We need to talk about the budget.
• Correct: We need to have a discussion about the budget.

---

Mistake 2: Depend from

In several European languages, things depend "from" someone or something. In English, the only correct preposition to pair with depend in this context is on (or sometimes upon).

• Wrong: The success of the campaign depends from our partner.
• Right: The success of the campaign depends on our partner.

💡 The Rule:

Always pair depend with on. A good way to remember this is to visualize "depending" on something as leaning or relying on it physically.

---

Mistake 3: Responsible of

Another classic found in business emails and job descriptions. Many professionals write: "I am responsible of...". In English, the adjective responsible strictly requires the preposition for.

• Wrong: Who is responsible of this task?
• Right: Who is responsible for this task?

💡 The Rule:

Memorize the entire chunk: to be responsible for something/doing something. Importantly, if you follow the preposition with a verb, it must take the gerund (-ing) form:

• Correct: I am responsible for preparing the monthly reports.

---

Mistake 4: Congratulate with

When congratulating a colleague on a promotion, you might be tempted to say: "I want to congratulate you with your promotion". However, in English, we congratulate someone "on" their achievements.

• Wrong: Let me congratulate you with your success.
• Right: Let me congratulate you on your success.

💡 The Rule:

Both the verb congratulate and the noun congratulations pair with the preposition on.

• Correct: Congratulations on your new role!

---

Mistake 5: On the meeting

If you want to say that you discussed something during a meeting or that you are currently attending one, you might instinctively use on. However, physical or virtual attendance at events and meetings is expressed using at.

• Wrong: We discussed this on the meeting yesterday.
• Right: We discussed this at the meeting yesterday.

💡 The Rule:

Meetings, conferences, and presentations are treated as specific events or points in time/space, which is why we use at the meeting, at the conference, and at the presentation.

• Note: If you want to say you are actively in the middle of a meeting right now, use: I am in a meeting right now.

---

Quick Reference Guide (Common Mistakes vs. Correct Phrasing)

Bookmark this table or save a screenshot to keep it handy when drafting your next business email:

What to AVOID	What to USE	Example
discuss about	discuss [something]	Let's discuss the contract.
depend from	depend on	It depends on the client's decision.
responsible of	responsible for	She is responsible for recruitment.
congratulate with	congratulate on	I congratulated him on his promotion.
on the meeting	at the meeting	See you at the meeting.
divide on	divide into	The project was divided into three stages.

---

How to Master English Prepositions Effectively

The worst way to learn prepositions is by memorizing list of single words. Instead, try these strategies:

1. Learn in chunks: Never learn responsible on its own. Learn the entire phrase: responsible for.
2. Create personalized examples: Write down 3 sentences describing your actual work responsibilities using the correct prepositions (e.g., “I am responsible for managing our team”).
3. Read actively: When reading emails from native speakers or industry articles, pay close attention to the prepositions following key verbs.

Mastering these five structures will immediately make your Business English sound more natural, polished, and professional.

If you want to eliminate other common language interferences and speak English with total confidence in front of international clients and partners, I invite you to join my individual coaching program. Contact me today, and let's take your professional communication to the next level!