Adept At: Standard Pattern
Adept At: Standard Pattern records a directly documented English construction and keeps guidance bounded to the evidenced pattern rather than inventing a broader prohibition.
Use “adept at” to describe someone as skilled at an activity or at doing something.
Key details
Choose the right form
| Context | Use | Decision |
|---|---|---|
| skill in an activity or task | adept at + noun | Use “at” before the activity/task noun. |
| skill in doing something | adept at + -ing form | An activity can follow “at” in -ing form. |
| another independently valid construction is intended | check that use separately | Do not turn this documented pattern into a claim that every alternative with “adept” is impossible. |
Quick tests
Decision test
Are you describing someone as skilled at the activity or task that follows?
If yes: Use “adept at,” with an -ing form when the complement is an action.
If no: Check the intended construction separately rather than treating this page as a universal ban on every other use of “adept.”
Caveat: The page establishes the directly documented “adept at” pattern and keeps its claim bounded to that evidence.
Examples
She is adept at negotiation.
A noun can name the skill area after “at.”
He is adept at finding simple solutions.
An -ing form can name the skilled activity.
The technician is adept at delicate repairs.
The task area follows the preposition “at.”
Further guidance
Construction
Use “adept at” to describe someone as skilled at an activity or at doing something.
Style Boundary
This page records the documented “adept at” complement and does not turn it into a universal restriction on every use of “adept.”
Sources and evidence
Sources are shown with the role they play in this guide. Historical or style-sensitive claims are kept within the evidence boundary described above.
- ADEPT | English meaning — Cambridge Dictionary (opens in a new tab)Cambridge University Press · Direct Cambridge learner-dictionary evidence for the adept at construction and its meaning boundary.