A preposition may be defined as a connecting word showing the relationship between a noun or a noun substitute to another word or combination of words in a sentence, for example, “The young man in the first row is an excellent student.” In this sentence, the preposition “in” shows the relationship between a noun (“the young man”) and a combination of words that illustrate location (“the first row”). Multiple effects of preposition can precisely be observed in bellow given examples.
The most commonly used prepositions include the following: in, with, to, from, at, of, by, for, and on.
Prepositions cause problems for several reasons: sometimes they can be used interchangeably (“He sat on the chair.”/“He sat in the chair.”); prepositions are often combined with verbs to create phrasal verbs (to look after someone/to look down on someone); and because a single preposition can be used to express several different ideas (“He is tall for his age.”/“I swam for an hour.”).
The most efficient method of study is to familiarize yourself with prepositions and prepositional phrases through practice and memorization. This is particularly helpful for bilingual students, who often seem to find preposition usage one of the most difficult parts of the English language.
USING PREPOSITIONS
Prepositions are used to express a number of relationships, including time, location (place or direction), means or agent, manner, state or condition, quantity or measure, and purpose or reason. Multiple effects of preposition are being given with examples.
Time
| about: | about noon (approximately) | in: | in April |
| after: | after the game | in 1987 | |
| after lunch | in six months(at the end of) | ||
| after three | in time (early enough) | ||
| at: | at five o’clock | on: | on Tuesday (day of the week) |
| at last (finally) | on May 8 (date) | ||
| by: | by midnight (no later than) | on time (punctual) | |
| for: | for an hour (duration) | past: | a quarter past three (15 minutes after) |
| in: | in the morning in the fall | to: | a quarter to three (15 minutes before) |
Place or Direction
| around: | She walked around the car. | inside: | Put it inside the house. |
| at: | They are at home. We were at the restaurant. | of: | We moved south of Montreal. |
| He smiled at her. She looked at the menu. | on: | We sat on the ocean pier. She left on the train. | |
| down: | They lived down the hall. The cat walked down the stairs. | through: | They drove through the tunnel. |
| from: | We immigrated from Peru in 1991. | to: | He went to Prague. |
| The restaurant is one mile from here. | Give it to me. | ||
| in: | He lives in a trailer. | up: | He walked up the stairs. |
| We waited in the bus. | with: | He went with me. |
Means or Agent
| by: | He was hit by a ball. | from: | His success results from careful planning. |
| She came by train. | |||
| It came by special delivery. | on: | They live on bread and water. | |
| He got there by swimming. | with: | He chased the mongoose with a stick. |
Manner
| by | By doing it yourself, you save time. | like | He looks like a hero. |
| in | He left in confusion. | on | I swear it on my word of honor. |
| The room was in turmoil. | with | He ate it with a fork. | |
| You can do it in a day. |
State or Condition
| as: | I see her as a good person. | for: | I mistook you for someone else. |
| at: | My friend is at work. | in: | He is in a state of confusion. |
| She is at home. | on: | He is on duty. (scheduled to work) | |
| by: | They are by themselves. (alone) |
Quantity or Measure
| by: | We bought them by the kilo. | for: | We drove for twenty miles. |
| We bought it for ten cents. |
Purpose or Reason
| for: | He bought it for an emergency |
| She went to the city for sightseeing. | |
| He loved her for her thoughtfulness. |
A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition and includes the object of the preposition (a noun, pronoun, or other word group) and its modifiers (in the park, on the table, under the desk, after the storm, with the group).
The president of the company reflected on the growth of domestic and global assets and the potential for continued success in the upcoming fiscal year. Multiple effects of preposition can be accessed from these examples.
In this sentence, the prepositional phrase “of the company” begins with the preposition “of” and includes the object of the preposition “company” and the modifier “the”; other prepositional phrases are “on the growth,” “of domestic and global assets,” “for continued success,” and “in the upcoming fiscal year.” Prepositions that indicate time and location and usually appear as part of a prepositional phrase are often the most problematic to use correctly, especially the prepositions on, in, at, and by, as illustrated below:
Multiple Effects of Preposition Phrases that Show Time
on on a specific day (on Wednesday) or date (on June 20)
in in a part of a particular day (in the evening), a specific month (in June), a specific year (in 1965), or a specific period of time (in two hours)
at at a particular time (at 6:30, at midnight)
by by a particular time (by the end of next week)
Prepositional Phrases that Show Location
on on a surface (on the desk), a specific street (on Seventh Avenue), or an electronic medium (on the Internet)
in in a particular space (in the apartment), a geographic location (in New York City), or a print medium (in the newspaper)
at at a particular place (at the store) or location (at the center)
by by a familiar
place (by the house)
Using Adjective and Verb + Preposition Combination
Many adjectives and verbs can be combined with prepositions to appear together in idiomatic phrases.
Adjective + Preposition Combination
He was angry with his brother-in-law. (the adjective “angry” is used with the preposition “with”)
Verb + Preposition Combination
He forgot about the appointment. (the verb “forgot” is used with the preposition “about”)
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