English Grammar - Incorrect Usage 1

'Graduated' or 'Graduated from':

Correct Usage: 'Graduated from'.

It is a common error to use 'graduated college'. It should be 'graduated from college'. 'To graduate' is a verb. It can be both transitive or intransitive. A transitive verb takes an object and an intransitive verb doesn't. 

Consider the following example.

Raj graduated from University of Cincinnati.

This sentence uses an intransitive form of 'to graduate', because this verb has no object. 'from University of Cincinnati' is not an object. It is a prepositional phrase that tells you more about where Raj graduated from. But consider this sentence.

Raj graduated University of Cincinnati.

'To graduate' is turned to a transitive verb. The act of graduation is something a school does to a student and not something a student does to school. Schools graduate students. For example,

University of Cincinnati graduated 800 students this year. 

However, in the sentence 'Raj graduated University of Cincinnati', 'Raj' is the subject and 'University of Cincinnati' is the object. So, while 'Raj delighted University of Cincinnati' is gramatically correct, 'Raj' cannot graduate 'University of Cincinnati'.

So, 'graduate from' is correct.

Raj graduated from University of Cincinnati. <>

Raj graduated University of Cincinnati. <>