A preposition is a word which precedes a noun (or a pronoun) to show the noun's (or the pronoun's) relationship to another word in a sentence. The word preposition means positioned before. A preposition almost always precedes a noun or a pronoun.
across, against, along, around, at, before, behind, below, beneath, beside, between, beyond, by, down, during, except, for, from, in, into, like, near, of, off, up, upon, with and within are some examples of prepositions.
2. Short words (on, in, to)
Usually stand in front of nouns (sometimes
also in front of gerund verbs)
Prepositions of Time and Place (Position and
Direction)
Arundathie Abeysinghe
2
3. for
over a certain period of time (past till now)
for 2 years
ago
a certain time in the past
2 years ago
before
earlier than a certain point of time
before 2004
Arundathie Abeysinghe 3
4. to
telling the time
ten to six (5:50)
to / till / until
marking the beginning and end of a period of time
from Sunday to/till Monday
till / until
how long something is going to last
He is on holiday until next month.
Arundathie Abeysinghe 4
5. by
at the latest
up to a certain time
She will be back by 9 o’clock.
By 10 o'clock, I had read two chapter of the
book.
Arundathie Abeysinghe
5
6. in
building, country, street, town, village
news paper, book, magazine
plane, car, , train, taxi
picture, world
e.g.: in the house, in Sydney
in the news paper
in the plane
in the world
Arundathie Abeysinghe
6
7. at
■meaning next to, by an object
■for table
■for events
■place where you are to do something typical
(watch a film, study, work)
■at the door, at the station
■at the table
■at a concert, at the party
■at the cinema, at school, at work
Arundathie Abeysinghe
7
8. on
attached
a floor in a house
public transport
television, radio
a place with a river
a surface
a certain side (left, right)
Arundathie Abeysinghe 8
9. by, next to, beside
left or right of somebody or something
Jane is standing by / next to / beside the car.
under
■on the ground, lower than (or covered by)
something else
■the bag is under the table
Arundathie Abeysinghe 9
10. below
lower than something else but above ground
the fish are below the surface
over
covered by something else
meaning more than
getting to the other side (also across)
overcoming an obstacle
put a jacket over your shirt
over 16 years of age
walk over the bridge
climb over the wall
Arundathie Abeysinghe 10
11. above
higher than something else, but not directly over it
a path above the lake
across
getting to the other side (also over)
getting to the other side
walk across the bridge
swim across the lake
Arundathie Abeysinghe 11
12. through
something with limits on top, bottom and the
sides
e.g. drive through the tunnel
to
movement - person or building
movement to a place/country
e.g. go to the cinema/restaurant/museum
go to Sydney / New Zealand
Arundathie Abeysinghe 12
13. into
enter a room / a building
go into the kitchen / into the house
towards
movement - in the direction of something (yet,
not directly to it)
go several steps towards the office
Arundathie Abeysinghe 13
14. onto
movement to the top of something
jump onto the table
from
in the sense of where from
a flower from the garden
Arundathie Abeysinghe 14
15. in
entering a car / Taxi
get in the car
by car, by bus
by
rise or fall of something
travelling (other than walking or horseriding)
prices have risen by 10 percent
by car, by bus
Arundathie Abeysinghe 15
16. at
age
she learned French at 15
about
for topics - what about
They were talking about her
Arundathie Abeysinghe 16
17. off
leaving a public transport
e.g. get off the train
out of
leaving a car / taxi
get out of the car
by
rise or fall of something
prices have risen by 50 percent
Arundathie Abeysinghe 17
18. by
■who made it
■a book by Mark Twain
on
■walking or riding on horseback
■entering a public transport vehicle
■on foot, on horseback
■get on the bus
Arundathie Abeysinghe 18