“In charge of” means responsible for something, managing it or being the person in control. We use it about someone who makes decisions and looks after a task, a department or a group of people: “be in charge of a project”.
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be in charge of + noun/-ing; put someone in charge of + noun; the person in charge
- Maria is in charge of the marketing team while the director is on holiday.
- At summer camp, each student was in charge of cooking dinner once a week.
- At the hotel, I asked for the person in charge because my room had no hot water.
What changed
First versionAnna is in charge for the conference budget this year.
RevisionAnna is in charge of the conference budget this year.
The similar phrase “responsible for” makes “for” look natural here. But when you say what someone is in charge of, the preposition after “in charge” is “of”. Only the preposition has changed in the corrected sentence.
“Responsible for” is close in meaning, but it often points to blame or duty: “Who is responsible for this mistake?” “In charge of” stresses authority and control: “She is in charge of the sales team.” And “the person in charge” is the boss or the most senior person there: “Can I speak to the person in charge?”
Your turn
Please ask Tom about the timetable. He is ___ planning all the lessons this term.
Show the answer
in charge of — After “in charge” you need the preposition “of”: “in charge of planning”. “For” comes in by analogy with “responsible for”, but “in charge for” is not an English combination.
Write about a task or area of work that you or someone you know is in charge of. Say who is in charge and what exactly they are responsible for.
My sister is in charge of customer support at a small online bookshop.
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