What Is a Preposition?

A preposition is a short word that is employed in sentences to show the relationship

nouns, pronouns or phrases have with other parts within the respective sentences.
Prepositions are normally found positioned in the latter part of the sentence, but
before a noun or pronoun.

Uses of Prepositions
Prepositions are seen to show some key characteristics and perform some vital
functions when used in sentences. Let us look at the various uses of prepositions in
English.

 They are used to show the direction of something.

 They can refer to the time of something happening.
 They can be used to denote the position or location of an object in the
sentence.
 They are also used to represent spatial relationships.
 Prepositional phrases, in particular, can be used to do all of these when used
in sentences.

Types of Prepositions
Based on the different uses and functions of prepositions, they can be divided into
four main types. They are as follows:

1. Prepositions of Time – used to show when something is happening.

There are several prepositions of time such as at, in, on, before, during and after.

 We will be meeting on Friday.

 The supermarket will be closed from 9 p.m. to 9 a.m.
 Can you come after some time?
 We have been asked to work from home until the end of May.
 The whole country was asked to stay home during the pandemic to
ensure safety and well-being.

Note: There are some rules that will help you place the right preposition in the right
place when it comes to time.

Rule 1: Use in when you refer to years, months, seasons, centuries and time of day.

For example: It is always hot in January.

Rule 2: Use on when you refer to days, dates and specific holidays.

For example: We go to church on Sunday.

Rule 3: Use at when you refer to time exceptions and festivals.

For example: I work best at night.

2. Prepositions of Place – indicate the place or position of something.

There are several prepositions of time such as under, over, near, behind, outside,
inside and between.

 I have kept the book I borrowed from you on the table.

 Henry hid behind the door.
 The dog jumped over the fence.
 Can you place the red roses in between the white daisies?
 He was waiting in front of the EB office.

Note: There are some rules that will help you identify the right preposition to use for
location.

Rule 1: When you refer to something with a surface, use on.

 The clock hangs on the wall.

 The books are on the desk in the study.
 The writing on the wall has to be removed.

Rule 2: When you refer to something inside or confined, use in.

 The manual is in the cupboard in the shed.

 The girls are in the shopping mall buying Christmas presents.
 The bolts are in the jar in the kitchen.
 David left the book in the car.

Rule 3: When you refer to a specific point, use at.

 Rebecca is at work at the moment.

 Candace will meet David at 8:00 pm at the restaurant.
 The students will meet at the library for their group study.

3. Prepositions of Direction/Movement – used to denote the direction in which

something travels or moves.

 The girl ran toward her father the moment she saw him.
 Jerry jumped into the river to help his sister.
 Veena passed the book to Priya.
 When will Salvia be returning from London?
 Neena lives across the street.

Other prepositions of movement add specific context to movement, auch as across,

through, into, over, down, up, past and around
Rule 1: When referring to movement from one side to the other, use the
preposition across.

 The ball rolled across the field very quickly.

 The dog ran across the oval without its owner while the game was
in action.
 Billy and Bailey swam across the lake in record time during the
holidays.

Rule 2: When referring to movement from inside to outside or outside to inside, use
the preposition through.

 The car past through the tunnel on its way to the airport.
 The baseball through the window when the children were playing
in the backyard.
 During the storm, the large hail went through the roof and
destroyed the home.

Rule 3: When referring to movement that enters or looks inside, use the
preposition into.

 Jonathan went into the shed to get his carpenter's tools.

 The crowd looked into the night sky to spot the shooting star.
 The car drove into the fence when the driver lost control.

Rule 4: When referring to a specific direction of movement, use the prepositions

over, down, up, past and around.

 The car traveled over the slippery road during the rain storm.
 The men ran down the road to avoid capture.
 The man climbed up the mountain during the Christmas holidays.
 Candace ran past David to reach the finish line in record time.
 The lost driver drove around the block several times before finding
the route to his friend's place.

4. Prepositions of Location – employed to denote the location of a particular object.

 Kenny would be staying at his cousin’s place for the weekend.

 Make sure you keep all the toys back in its place after you play.
 I lay on the floor for a really long time.

5. Prepositions of Spatial Relationship – used to denote an object’s movement away

from the source and towards a source.

 Navya sat leaning against the wall.

 The circus was stationed opposite the children’s park.
 Lakshmi sat beneath the trees.
  Shankar sat beside the stairs.
 We spent the evening walking around the lake.

6. Prepositions of Manner - describe the way things happen or the means by which
things happen. These prepositions include by, in, like, with and on.

 The children go to school by bus.

 Jane went to the shopping mall in a taxi.
 The young girl sang like a professional,
 The man reacted with anger when confronted by the police.
 They traveled on foot due to the rough road.

7. Prepositions of Agent or Instrument - indicate action conducted on somehting or

someone by something or someone. These prepositions include by and with.

 The movie script was written by Jeremy and Scarlett.

 Jasmine is writing the movie script with her black pen.
 The house was constructed by Amir.
 John is cutting the timber with his electric saw.

8. Prepositions of Measure - indicate the quantity of something with someone or

something. These prepositions include by and of.

 The fabric sells the material by meter.

 Riah bought a kilogram of tomatoes for the salad.
 One-third of the world was destroyed by the meteor.

9. Prepositions of Source - indicate that something or someone originated from

something or someone. These prepositions include from and by.

 Rachel receives money from her father in order to live comfortably.

 This note was written by my wife.
 He gave donations to charity from a grateful heart.

10. Prepositions of Possession - indicate something or someone is owned by

someone or something. These prepositions include of, with and to

 This is the property of my late husband.

 Jem met the boy with the dark sunglasses at the football game.
 The antique clock belongs to my mother.
 He is the friend of my classmate.
 I saw a girl with a pink dress.

11. Prepositional Phrase – a combination of a preposition and a noun (the object it

is affecting).

 See to it that you reach the venue on time.

  The medicines you asked for are out of stock.
 Why don’t we try taking classes outside for a change.
 Make sure you fill in all the forms at once.
 Salmaan was able to finish it only with the help of his friends.

Examples of Prepositions Used in Sentences

To know how exactly prepositions can be used in sentences, check out the following
sentences.

 I will be going to church in the morning.

 She placed the plates on the dining table.
 Baskar found the cat hiding under the bed.
 Will you be with Raimy or Mazeeka?
 I love sitting on the beach at night.
 Rachel met Phoebe by the lake.
 Finn stood opposite Lisa.
 The grocery store is right in front of the bus stop.
 My brother climbed onto the roof.
 It feels great to sit beneath the trees and read.

List of Most Popular Prepositions for Everyday Communication

Given below is an extensive list of prepositions that you can make use of in your daily
communication.

Examples of Prepositions

On At In Over

Around Through Opposite to In front of

Behind Beneath Beside Above

Below Under Underneath Down

Up Out With Into

Onto Across After Before

Near Among Along Between

Toward Away From To

Next to By Until About

Commonly Confused Prepositions

With the huge number of prepositions in the English language, it almost seems
impossible to have no confusion at all. Here is a list of prepositions that cause
confusion among the users of the language.

 In/On/At
These three prepositions can be used to depict both time and position. Take a look
at the table below to have a better understanding of how it works.

Prepositions of Place

In On At

Can be used to show general Can be used to refer to Can be used to

locations like neighbourhoods, more specific locations like refer to very
cities, countries and places with streets, avenues, islands, specific locations
a boundary surfaces and large vehicles

For example: I live in India. For example: Latha For example:

We will be staying in a hotel stays on the fourth floor. You can find
tonight. The book you are looking for us at the park.
is on the rack. She is at home
now.

Prepositions of Time

In On At

Can be used to depict Can be used to refer to Can be used to denote very
general timings like dates, days of the week, specific time, times of the
months, years, days of the month and day and holidays without
centuries and parts of holidays with ‘day’ (for ‘day’ (for example – Easter)
days example – Republic day)

For example: Dan was For example: There is a For example: We decided to
born in 2000. national parade every meet at 4 p.m.
Technological year on Republic day. I wished my
development in the All of us will be at brother at midnight.
field of science and home on Christmas day.
medicine reached its
zenith in the 21st
century.

 To/From
To and from are two other prepositions that create confusion.
To From

Used to denote the end location Used to denote the starting location

For example: We went to Sri Lanka with For example: Have you
my family. started from Bangalore?
I gave my coat to Sandra. I received a letter from my father.

 By/With
The prepositions by and with have various meanings. They sometimes appear to be
confusing for a second language learner of English

By With

Near or next to. In the company of

For example: Is the post office by the For example: Glint went to
bus stop? Chennai with his friends.

A given time or not later than In addition to

For example: See that you reach the For example: would you like to have
exam hall by 8:30 a.m. tea with breakfast?

Denotes the doer of the action By means of

mentioned in a sentence For example: I cut my birthday
For example: The poem was cake with a fruit knife.
written by my brother.