do something about it (Murphy Unit 133, Verb + preposition 2)

Pattern

do something about [problem] = take action to fix/address it. The only preposition for this meaning.

Why don’t you do something about it? ✓
We need to do something about the noise.
I’ll do something about the leak.
Don’t just complain — do something about it!

Why “about” is unique here

Only about works for “take action to fix a problem”:

do something about it ✓ (fix the problem)
do something for it ✗ (wrong for this meaning)
do something after it ✗ (literal “afterwards”, no idiom)
do something of it ✗ (not a phrase)

The “something + preposition” family

Phrase	Meaning	Example
do something about X	take action to fix X	Do something about the noise.
do something for X	help / benefit X (person)	I did something for her.
do something with X	handle / deal with X	What did you do with the keys?
do something to X	affect X (often negative)	What did you do to the car?

Each preposition = its own meaning. For “fix a problem,” it’s uniquely about.

do something about it = take action (problem)
nothing to do with = unrelated — It has nothing to do with you.
have something to do with = related — He had something to do with the plan.
be something of a = fairly — She’s something of an expert.

Test application

If something is wrong, why don’t you do something ___ it?

Answer: about — the fixed idiom “do something about it” (take action to fix the problem).

Why not the others?

of ✗ — not a phrase
for ✗ — “for” = help a person, not fix a problem
after ✗ — literal “afterwards”
about ✓ — the idiom

Source

Raymond Murphy, English Grammar in Use (4th ed.), Unit 133 — Verb + preposition 2. Ebot lesson 2026-08-29: “Why don’t you do something ___ it?” → about. User asked if there’s any other preposition — no, “about” is unique for the fix-a-problem meaning.