Fill in the blank with the correct word from the options given below:-
The prisoner was acquitted ------ all charges.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → of
Fixed preposition with "acquit":
- Acquit means to declare in a court that a person is not guilty of a crime.
- It takes the preposition of: a person is acquitted of a charge, just as one is accused of or convicted of a crime.
- This sentence: the court found the prisoner not guilty of every charge, so he was "acquitted of all charges".
- Complete sentence: The prisoner was acquitted of all charges.
Example: The driver was acquitted of causing the accident.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: off — Incorrect. Off shows separation or removal from a surface or place; "acquitted off" is a common slip, not standard English.
Example: He jumped off the wall.
Option 3: from — Incorrect. From shows a starting point or a release (freed from, released from), but "acquit" does not take "from".
Example: He was released from prison last year.
Option 4: with — Incorrect. With shows company or the instrument used; "acquitted with all charges" has no meaning.
Example: She cut the cake with a knife.