PREPOSITIONS: I hung my coat behind the door.

Alex led, and I followed along behind.

PLACE:
BELOW: in a lower position (than), under
ABOVE: In or to a higher position than something
else From the top of the skyscraper the cars below us
looked like insects.
There's a mirror above the washbasin. The author's name was printed below the title.
He waved the letter excitedly above his head.
She's rented a room above a shop BESIDE: at the side of, next to

ACROSS: from one side to the other of something Come and sit here beside me.
with clear limits, such as an area of land, a road or Our school was built right beside a river.
river
BETWEEN: in or into the space which separates
She walked across the field/road. two places, people or objects
They're building a new bridge across the river.
When I reached the river, I simply swam across. The town lies halfway between Rome and
Florence.
ALONG: from one part of a road, river, etc. to
another Standing between the two adults was a small
child.
A romantic walk along the beach/river She squeezed between the parked cars and ran out
into the road
In a line next to something long
A row of houses along the river POSITION:
Cars were parked all along the road.
BEYOND: further away in the distance (than
AMONG: in the middle of or surrounded by other something)
things
In the distance, beyond the river, was a small
I saw a few familiar faces among the crowd. town.
Rescue teams searched among the wreckage for From the top of the hill we could see our house
survivors. and the woods beyond.
BY: near sb / sth, at the side of sb/sth, beside
sb/sth.
AT: used to show an exact position or particular
place A house by the river.

We'll meet you at the entrance. The telephone is by the window.

That bit at the beginning of the film was brilliant.
Come and sit by me.
Used to show an exact or a particular time
DOWN: in or towards a low or lower position,
There's a meeting at 2.30 this afternoon.
Are you free at lunchtime? from a higher one

Is this UK lift/ US elevator going down?

BENEATH: in or to a lower position than, under
Don't look down! You'll get dizzy.
Jeremy hid the letter beneath a pile of papers.
The sun's going down and it'll be dark soon.
We huddled together for warmth beneath the
The space capsule came down in the ocean.
blankets.
BEHIND: at the back (of)
FROM: used to show the place where someone or
Look behind you! something starts
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What time does the flight from Amsterdam arrive? I'm just going off to the shops.
The wind is coming from the north.
She sent me a postcard from Majorca. DIRECTION:
He took a handkerchief from his pocket.
ON: used to show the direction.
IN: inside or towards the inside of a container,
place or area, or surrounded or closed off by To or towards.
something On the left/right
Put the milk back in the fridge when you've Our house is the first on the left after the post
finished with it.
office.
Is Mark still in bed?
I got stuck in a traffic jam for half an hour. The attack on the village lasted all the night.
They live in a charming old cottage.
UP: towards a higher position; towards a higher
IN FRONT OF: close to the front part of value, number or level
something
Put those books up on the top shelf.
There's parking space in front of the hotel. A gravel road leads through the jungle and up into
the Andes.
Where someone can see or hear you Pushing the number of unit sales up every quarter
Please don't swear in front of the children. can't be continued indefinitely.
The water was up to /had come up to the level of
INSIDE: [C usually singular] the inner part, space the windows.
or side of something
OUT OF: no longer in a stated place or condition
Did you clean the inside of the car?
The hotel looked shabby from the street, but it An apple rolled out of the bag.
was fine on the inside. Professor Kumar is out of town this week.
the insides of people's houses The patient is now out of danger.

INTO: towards the inside or middle of something OUTSIDE: not inside a building
and about to be contained, surrounded or closed
off by it It was a lovely day outside.
Since it's such a nice day shall we eat/sit/go
Would you put the jar back into the cupboard for outside?
me, please? An outside light/toilet
Shall we go into the garden?
Stop running around and get into bed! [Before noun] coming from another place or
organization
NEAR: not far away in distance The company has called in outside experts.

Is there a train station near here?

I'd like to sit near a window, please. OVER: from one side of sth to the other.
Don't come too near me - you might catch my
cold. Across

OFF: away from a place or position, especially the A bridge over the river
present place, position or time They ran over the grass
They had a wonderful view over the park.
He drove off at the most incredible speed. They jumped over the bridge
Keep the dog on the lead or he'll just run off.
Someone's run off with (= taken) my pen.
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Above or higher than something else, sometimes She's not strong enough to go walking up
so that one thing covers the other; above mountains.
7. used after some nouns
The sign over the door said "Exit". He has this enviable ability to ignore everything
She held the umbrella over both of us. that's unpleasant in life.
Helicopters dropped leaflets over the city. This will be my second attempt to make flaky
I put my hands over my eyes/ears because I pastry.
couldn't bear to watch/listen.
TOWARDS: in the direction of, or closer to
AROUND: in a position or direction surrounding, someone or something
or in a direction going along the edge of or from
one part to another (of) She stood up and walked towards him.
He leaned towards his wife and whispered, "Can
We sat around the table. we go home soon?"
He put his arm around her. She kept glancing towards the telephone.
A crowd had gathered around the scene of the The country seems to be drifting towards war.
accident. There is a trend towards healthier eating among
all sectors of the population.
THROUGH: from one end or side of something to
the other In relation to something or someone
They've always been very friendly towards me.
They walked slowly through the woods. There has been a change in government policy
The boy waded through the water to reach his Towards energy efficiency.
boat. He feels a lot of anger hostility/ antagonism/
He struggled through the crowd till he reached the animosity towards his father.
front. A lot of people think that most newspapers are
How long the journey takes will depend on how biased towards one particular political party.
long it takes to get through the traffic.
Towards: near to, just before or around a time
TO: used before a verb to show that it is in the or place
infinitive Our seats were towards the back of the theatre.
I often get hungry towards the middle of the
2. Used after some verbs, especially when the morning.
action described in the infinitive will happen later We're getting towards winter and it's getting dark
She agreed to help. earlier.
I'll have to tell him.
Sadly she didn't live to see her grandchildren. UNDER: in or to a position below or lower than
3. used after many verbs of agreeing, needing and something else, often so that one thing covers the
wanting other
I need to eat something first.
I'd love to live in New York. He hid under the bed.
That child ought to be in bed. In AD 79 the city of Pompei was buried under a
4. used instead of repeating a verb clause layer of ash seven meters deep.
"Are you going tonight?" "I'm certainly hoping She put the thermometer under my tongue.
to." She was holding a file under her arm (= between
5. used in phrases where there are reported orders her upper arm and the side of her chest) .
and requests They stood under a tree (= below its branches) to
He told me to wait. avoid getting wet.
Did anyone ask Daniel to book the room?
6. used after some adjectives TIME:
It's not likely to happen.
Three months is too long to wait. AFTER: following in time, place or order

3
Shall we go for a walk after breakfast? Drinks will be served from seven o'clock.
Some people believe in life after death. The price of petrol will rise by 5p a gallon from
Her name came after mine on the list. tomorrow.
There's a good film on the day after tomorrow. Most of the tapestries in this room date from the
She waited until well after midnight. seventeenth century.
US It's a quarter after four. The museum is open from 9.30 to 6.00 Tuesday to
Sunday.
BEFORE: . at or during a time earlier than (the
thing mentioned) IN: during part or all of a period of time

You should always wash your hands before meals. We're going to Italy in April.
Before leaving he said goodbye to each of them. Some trees lose their leaves in (the) autumn.
She's always up before dawn. I started working here in 1991.
Before he could reach the door, she quickly closed Life in the 19th century was very different from
it. what it is now.
Before we make a decision, does anyone want to Bye, see you in the morning (= tomorrow
say anything else? morning) .
She had to give the doorman a tip before (= in She was a brilliant gymnast in her youth (= when
order that) he would help her with her suitcases. she was young) .
How many civilians died in the Vietnam War?
AT: used to show an exact or a particular time This is the first cigarette I've had in three years.
I haven't had a decent night's sleep in years/ages
There's a meeting at 2.30 this afternoon. (= for a long time) .
Are you free at lunchtime?
In theory, women can still have children at the age SINCE: from a particular time in the past until a
of 50. later time, or until now
The bells ring at regular intervals through the day.
At no time/point did the company do anything England have not won the World Cup in football
illegal. since 1966.
It was the hottest October since records began.
BY: not later than; at or before
TILL: up to (the time that); until
She had promised to be back by five o'clock.
The application must be in by the 31st to be We waited till half past six for you.
accepted. Up till 1918, women in Britain were not allowed
By the time I got to the station the train had to vote.
already gone. How long is it till your baby is due?

FOR: used to show an amount of time or distance OTHERS:

We walked for miles. OF: used to show possession, belonging or origin

She's out of the office for a few days next week.
I'm just going to bed for an hour or so. A friend of mine
I haven't played tennis for years. The president of the United States
Employees of the company
DURING: at some time between the beginning The colour of his hair
and the end of a period A habit of mine
That revolting dog of hers
I woke up several times during the night.
The programme will be shown on television Used after words or phrases expressing amount,
during the weekend. number or a particular unit
A kilo of apples
FROM: used to show the time when something Loads of food
starts or the time when it was made or first existed Hundreds of people
4
Most of them WITHOUT: not having or doing something, or
None of them lacking something
Both of us
I've come out without my umbrella.
Containing You look nice without make-up.
A bag of sweets He went without my knowledge.
A bottle of beer I couldn't have done it without you.
A book of short stories
Sacks of rubbish UNTIL: up to (the time that)
A class of idiots
I was up until three o'clock trying to get it
OUT: used to show movement away from the finished!
inside of a place or container Hadn't we better wait until Antony's here?

She opened the window and stuck her head out. WITHIN: inside or not further than an area or
The bag burst and the apples fell out. period of time
I jumped out of bed and ran downstairs.
He leaned out the window. Two-thirds of Californians live within 15 miles of
He opened the drawer and took out a pair of the coast.
socks. In 1992 cross-border controls within the EU were
Get out! dismantled.
For orders within the UK, please enclose £2.50 for
AS: used to describe the purpose or quality of post and packing.
someone or something The resort lies within easy reach of (= not far
from) the ski slopes.
She works as a waitress. We recommend that this wine should be
It could be used as evidence against him. consumed within six months.
The news came as quite a shock to us.
I meant it as a joke. AGAINST: in opposition to

LIKE: such as She spoke against the decision to close the

college.
She looks best in bright, vibrant colours, like red Fifty people voted against the new proposal.
and pink. I'm very much against the idea that it is the
ABOUT: on the subject of; connected with woman's job to bring up the child.
Germany are playing against Brazil in the cup
What's that book about? final tonight.
a film about the Spanish Civil War AMID OR AMIDST: in the middle of or
We were talking / laughing about Sophie. surrounded by; among
He's always (going) on about what a great job he's
got. On the floor, amid mounds of books, were two
I'm worried about David. small envelopes.
I really don't know what all the fuss is about. The new perfume was launched amidst a fanfare
of publicity.
WITH: In the company or presence of a person or
thing He finished his speech amid tremendous applause.

I was with Sylvia at the time. The hotel is in a beautiful position amid lemon
He lives with his grandmother. grooves.
He's impossible to work with.
I'm going to France with a couple of friends. ROUND: in a circular direction or position;

The Moon goes round the Earth.

5
We ran round (the outside of the house) to the
back, looking for the dog.
The idea has been going round and round in my
head all day (= I can't stop thinking about it) .

AROUND: in a position or direction surrounding,

or in a direction going along the edge of or from
one part to another (of)

We sat around the table.

He put his arm around her.