Preposition

Eliminate grammar errors and improve your writing with our free AI-powered grammar checker. Try for free What Are Prepositions? | List, Examples & How to Use Published on May 15, 2019 by Prepositions are words that show the relationship between elements in a sentence. They can express relationships of place, time, direction, and other abstract or logical connections. A preposition is usually located directly before the word or phrase that it relates to – the object of the preposition. • We walked to the shop. • I’ve been unwell since last Wednesday. • That gift is for him. Prepositions are flexible words that are often central to the meaning of a sentence, and it can be tricky to choose the right one. The best way to master them is by reading and practice. • • • • Using prepositions Prepositions are often used to describe where, when, or how something happens. Relationship expressed Examples How Accuracy was increased by repeating the test. I fixed the light with a screwdriver. When Jeremy has wanted to be a musician since childhood. The meeting resumes at 10:30 a.m. Where The conference room is through that door. The crushing machine is located in the mechanics lab. However, prepositions are easy to confuse and misuse. The same preposition can often be used in different ways, and the meaning can only be deduced from the context. • Dangerous chemicals should be used behind the safety screen. • Every team member is behind the proposed changes. • The company is behind its co...

search our site What Are Prepositions? A preposition is a word that shows the relationship between two nearby words. Put another way, a preposition links two words to express how they relate to each other. For example: • The rat is in the corner. (The preposition "in" shows the relationship between "the corner" and "the rat.") • Her party was on Saturday. (The preposition "on" shows the relationship between "Saturday" and "her party.") Examples of Prepositions There are lots of prepositions. Here are some common ones: • above, about, below, for, from, in, inside, into, of, to, until, with Lots of prepositions precede words to tell us where or when things are. Examples of prepositions that tell us where: • The cat on the table is called Toby. (The preposition "on" precedes "table" to tell us where the cat is.) • Our lorry is stuck at the traffic lights. (The preposition "at" precedes "lights" to tells us where the lorry is.) Examples of prepositions that tell us when: • The meeting on Saturday (This time, the preposition "on" precedes Saturday to tell us when the meeting is.) • The bell will ring at 7 o'clock. (The preposition "at" precedes "7 o'clock" to tell us when the bell will ring.) Not all prepositions tell us where or when things are. Prepositions have other roles too. For example, they might show possession (e.g., collar of the dog) or purpose (e.g., a tool for digging). We will discuss this later. Table of Contents • Find the Preposition Test • More Examples of Pr...

Looking for a list of prepositions? Look no further. You've definitely encountered prepositions before, even if you didn't know that that's what they were called. They are connector words that are very frequently used in the English language. Some students learn a preposition song (to the tune of "Yankee Doodle") to memorize many of the prepositions, but there are more than you might expect. You can find a comprehensive preposition list at the end of this article. First, let's learn more about these useful words. What is a preposition? • aboard • along • amid • as • beneath • beyond • but • concerning • considering • despite • except • following • like • minus • next • onto • opposite • outside • past • per • plus • regarding • round • save • since • than • till • underneath • unlike • until • upon • versus • via • within • without 3. Prepositional phrases • aboard • about • above • across • after • against • along • amid • among • around • as • at • before • behind • below • beneath • beside • between • beyond • but • by • concerning • considering • despite • down • during • except • following • for • from • in • inside • into • like • minus • near • next • of • off • on • onto • opposite • out • outside • over • past • per • plus • regarding • round • save • since • than • through • till • to • toward • under • underneath • unlike • until • up • upon • versus • via • with • within • without

A preposition is a word—and almost always a very small, very common word—that shows direction, location, or time, or that introduces an object. I sent a letter to you. ( To is a preposition showing direction) Someone is at the door. ( At is a preposition showing location) We will arrive by noon. ( By is a preposition showing time) She brought a basket of apples. ( Of is a preposition introducing the object, apples) Prepositions are typically followed by an object, which can be a noun ( noon), a noun phrase ( the door), or a pronoun ( you). There is nothing wrong with ending a sentence in a preposition like to, with, for, or at. English speakers have been doing so since the days of Old English. The people who claim that a terminal preposition is wrong are clinging to an idea born in the 17th century and that has been largely abandoned by grammar and usage experts for more than a hundred years. Here are some examples of a sentence written with a preposition ( about) at the end, and with the preposition moved to the middle. Read them out loud and you can hear how the preposition works better at the end of the sentence. This is the fake grammar rule I was telling you about. This is the fake grammar rule about which I was telling you. Other parts of speech:

Can you end a sentence with a preposition? There is nothing wrong with to, with, for, or at. English speakers have been doing so since the days of Old English. The people who claim that a terminal preposition is wrong are clinging to an idea born in the 17th century and largely abandoned by grammar and usage experts in the early 20th. What exactly is a preposition? A preposition is a word—and almost always a very small, very common word—that shows direction ( to in "a letter to you"), location ( at in "at the door"), or time ( by in "by noon"), or that introduces an object ( of in "a basket of apples"). Prepositions are typically followed by an object, which can be a noun ( noon), a noun phrase ( the door), or a pronoun ( you). What is an example of a preposition? The most common prepositions are at, by, for, from, in, of, on, to, and with. Other common prepositions are about, above, across, after, against, along, among, around, because of, before, behind, below, beneath, beside, between, close to, down, during, except, inside, instead of, into, like, near, off, on top of, onto, out of, outside, over, past, since, through, toward, under, until, up, upon, within, without. Recent Examples on the Web For objects of verbs and prepositions, use me, you, him, her, it, us, and them. — Richard Lederer, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 May 2023 People usually talk at me, near me, over me, against me—pretty much every preposition except after I’m finished talking. — Meghana Indurti, The ...

What is a preposition? A preposition is a word used to link nouns , pronouns , or phrases to other words within a sentence. They act to connect the people, objects, time and locations of a sentence. Prepositions are usually short words, and they are normally placed directly in front of nouns. In some cases, you’ll find prepositions in front of gerund verbs . A nice way to think about prepositions is as the words that help glue a sentence together. They do this by expressing position and movement, possession, time and how an action is completed. Indeed, several of the most frequently used words in all of English, such as of, to, for, with, on and at, are prepositions. Explaining prepositions can seem complicated, but they are a common part of language and most of us use them naturally without even thinking about it. In fact, it’s interesting to note that prepositions are regarded as a ‘closed class’ of words in the English language. This means, unlike verbs and nouns, no new words are added to this group over time. In a way, it reflects their role as the functional workhorse of the sentence. They are unassuming and subtle, yet vitally important to the meaning of language. Write better and faster Ginger helps you write confidently. There are two very important rules to remember when using prepositions. Because they are somewhat vague, learning about prepositions and using them correctly in sentences takes practice. Because 1:1 translation is often impossible when dealing wit...

Struggling with prepositions? These small words can be one of the trickiest parts of speech to understand. However, looking at examples often makes things clearer, which is why we've compiled a list of 49 common preposition examples for you. After recapping what prepositions are, we dive into our list of prepositions, each of which includes a sample sentence. Then we wrap up by giving tips on how to identify different types of prepositions. What Is a Preposition? Before we go over our list of prepositions, let's review the preposition definition. A preposition is a word that describes the relationship between a word/phrase before it and a word/phrase that follows it. For example, in the sentence, "The truck drove over the river." the preposition is "over" and it explains the relationship between "truck" and "river." Where was the truck in relation to the river? It was over it. By switching the preposition, we can get sentences with slightly different meanings, such as "The truck drove near the river" or "The truck drove around the river." The word that follows the preposition, either a noun or a pronoun, is called the object of the preposition. Together the preposition and the object of the preposition make up the prepositional phrase. A prepositional phrase can function either as an adjective or an adverb, and when a preposition occurs in a sentence, it will always be part of a prepositional phrase. In the first example sentence above, "The truck drove over the river," "o...