He had conspired ______ me.
2022
He had conspired ______ me.
- A.
about
- B.
against
- C.
in
- D.
before
Attempted by 20 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Concept
Many verbs pair with a fixed preposition (a collocation), and the verb conspire — to secretly plan with others to do something harmful — takes against when naming the person or thing the plotting is aimed at: one conspires against a target. (It takes with only to name a fellow plotter.)
Application
Here the blank is followed by me — the person the secret plotting is directed at — so the slot needs the preposition that marks a target: “He had conspired against me.”
Why the others fail
about: “conspire about” is not an English collocation; about introduces a topic of talk, not the victim of a plot.
in: one may “conspire in” a scheme (take part in an activity), but with a person as object it cannot mark the one being plotted against.
before: this is a time/place word and carries no plotting sense at all.