Preclude Someone From Doing vs. Preclude Someone To Do

Key details

Confusion Familygrammar-and-usage distinction

Rule Familypreposition and verb-complement pattern

TermsPreclude Someone From Doing, Preclude Someone To Do

Choose the right form

Decision table for Preclude Someone From Doing vs. Preclude Someone To Do
Meaning / situation	Form / construction	Decision
prevent a person from an action	preclude + person + from + -ing	Use the documented prevention construction.
exclude a possibility or outcome	preclude + noun phrase	A noun phrase is also possible in a different complement pattern.
person + to-infinitive as the prevention complement	not the supported equivalent	Do not substitute “preclude someone to do.”

Quick tests

Meaning / construction test

Are you saying that something prevents a person from performing an action?

If yes: Use “preclude someone from doing something.”

If no: Use another documented “preclude” construction if you are naming a possibility or noun phrase rather than a person’s action.

Examples

Example

The restriction precluded us from entering early.

“From” plus -ing expresses the prevented action.

Example

The evidence does not preclude another explanation.

A noun phrase can follow “preclude” in a different construction.

Example

The delay precluded the team from finishing on time.

The person/group plus “from” + -ing pattern expresses prevention.

Further guidance

Boundary

Preclude can also take a noun phrase or expressions such as “preclude the possibility”; those patterns do not create a person + to-infinitive complement.

Construction

Cambridge directly records “preclude someone from doing something” for preventing a person from an action.

Decision

Use “preclude someone from doing something” for the documented prevention construction; do not use “preclude someone to do” as its equivalent.

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.

preclude someone from doing something — Cambridge Dictionary (opens in a new tab)Cambridge University Press & Assessment · Cambridge construction evidence for preclude someone from doing something

Related guides

English Usage

Accuse Someone Of Doing vs. Accuse Someone To Do

Cambridge records “accuse someone of something” and specifically “accuse someone of doing something.” That supports of + -ing when the action is the alleged wrongdoing.

English Usage

Accustomed To Doing vs. Accustomed To Do

Cambridge records accustomed to something and gives -ing examples such as being accustomed to working or being treated in a particular way. Do not interpret the “to” after accustomed as an infinitive marker in this construction.

English Usage

Adapt To Doing vs. Adapt To Do

Cambridge distinguishes adapt to a situation or activity from transitive patterns such as adapting plans to fit new circumstances. The surface sequence “adapt … to + verb” therefore needs its grammatical structure identified before choosing an -ing form or infinitive.

English Usage

Apologize For Doing vs. Apologize To Do

Cambridge distinguishes “apologize to someone” from “apologize for something/doing something.” You can combine the two roles, as in “apologize to someone for doing something”; “to” marks the recipient while “for” marks the reason.

English Usage

Approve Of Doing vs. Approve To Do

Cambridge distinguishes intransitive “approve of” for a favorable opinion from transitive “approve something” for official acceptance or authorization. The official-authorization sense uses transitive “approve” with an object; do not collapse that separate sense into the “approve of doing” judgment pattern.

English Usage

Ban Someone From Doing vs. Ban Someone To Do

Oxford documents the person-action pattern as be banned + from + -ing and separately documents direct-object uses of ban. The cited evidence does not support person + to-infinitive as the equivalent prohibition construction.

Explore the topic

Grammar Verb Forms