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Innovation in Learning

A A A A ENGLISH GRAMMAR

Complex prepositions
Lesson code: L4I4-IZFB-AV2M-H INTERMEDIATE

1 Presentation 1 - Time and place

Complex prepositions are phrases of two or more words which have the same function as one-word
prepositions. Study the table below.

Complex preposition Example of use

ahead of Usain is going to win this race. He's ahead of the other runners.

away from The cat ran away from the dangerous dog.

close to I don't need to commute to work everyday. The office is very

close to my house.

in between The Irish Sea is in between Ireland and Britain.

in front of The dog ran in front of the car and was nearly killed!

near to There is a gym near to my office, which is really convenient. It's

just 5 minutes' walk.

next to Who's that man standing next to your car?

on top of I dream of standing on top of Mount Everest.

out of He took a cigarette out of the pack and smoked it.

outside of There's a large forest outside of my town.

prior to (formal) I'd never spoken to an Italian prior to meeting him.

up to The present perfect tense describes a situation that started in the

past and continues up to now.
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Complex prepositions
Innovation in Learning

A A A A ENGLISH GRAMMAR

2 Practice 1
Complete each sentence using one of the complex prepositions below.

Outside of ahead of away from in between in front of near to

next to on top of out of prior to up to

1. There's a cat sitting the garage. Can you get up there and make it leave?
2. Where's the mouse? It was the keyboard, but I don't see it anymore.
3. The police car stopped the driver to make him stop.
4. Take your hands your pockets and help me.
5. Did you learn any Italian moving to Italy?
6. I found a note the cover and the first page of the book.
7. the main cities, there's only desert.
8. You don't need to take the bus. The cafe is very my house.
9. The fire was very hot, so we tried to stand the flames.
10. At the moment, Julia is me, but I still have a chance to reach her.
11. The business was very successful 2010. After that year, profits started to fall.

3 Practice 2
Complete each sentence with a complex preposition plus one of the following:

2001 1945 a hat his competitors

me the hill two policemen your house

1. The Second World War lasted from 1939 up to 1945 .

2. He was standing right . I couldn't see a thing.
3. Kate was standing -- one to her left and one to her right. She felt very safe.
4. , you could fly to the United States without strict security checks.
5. If you stand , you can see the whole village.
6. The magician pulled a rabbit . Everybody was amazed.
7. The runner was for most of the marathon. But he lost the race in the
last 10 minutes!
8. "Who are those people who live ?" "They are my new neighbours."

4 Practice 3
Choose five complex prepositions from the table on Page 1 and make one true sentence for each
preposition.
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Review your flashcards at least 3-5 times a week for 20 minutes to keep the material fresh in your memory.
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Complex prepositions
Innovation in Learning

A A A A ENGLISH GRAMMAR

5 Presentation 2 - Other complex prepositions

Study the complex prepositions below and do the exercises on the next page.

Complex preposition Example

according to According to John, Michael is very rich. According to Elena, he
has lots of debts. You can trust Elena.

along with We needed a bigger group to enter the club, so we decided to

bring Kate along with us.

apart from Apart from the salty soup, the meal was really good.

as well as If you telephone as well as write, he'll get your message for sure.

because of Sam was dismissed from his job because of his bad behaviour.

due to Temperatures are rising due to global warming.

except for Everybody was at the party except for Dean, who was not
invited.

in addition to In addition to Russia, two countries are bigger than the United
States China and Canada.

in case of In case of fire, leave the building immediately.

in spite of In spite of their differences, Joe and Michael are good friends.

instead of Peter doesn't drink alcohol, so he ordered a juice instead of a

beer.

thanks to Thanks to Angela, we managed to find the right street.

with regard to (formal) I'd like to speak to you with regard to the work you did for me.
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Review your flashcards at least 3-5 times a week for 20 minutes to keep the material fresh in your memory.
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 lingua house
TM
Complex prepositions
Innovation in Learning

A A A A ENGLISH GRAMMAR

6 Practice 4
Complete each sentence using one of the complex prepositions below.

according to along with as well as because of

except for except for in case of in spite of
instead of thanks to with regard to

1. Tom is going to be promoted his hard work.

2. Everybody went to bed early Jenny, who decided to watch YouTube videos all night.
3. Phillip decided to go out for a walk freezing weather.
4. The teacher spoke to Jack's parents their son's performance at school.
5. I'm very good friends with your new boss you only got the job me!
6. You should use olive oil butter. It's healthier.
7. If you want to improve the taste of this dish, you should use pepper salt. The more
spices, the better!
8. The supermarket is open everyday until 8pm Sunday, when it closes at 5pm.
9. Only couples are allowed at the party, so take Emma you.
10. It's going to be a sunny day today, the weather forecast .
11. I'm travelling this week, but you can call me a problem.

7 Practice 5
Choose five complex prepositions from the table on Page 3 and make one true sentence for each
preposition.

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Review your flashcards at least 3-5 times a week for 20 minutes to keep the material fresh in your memory.
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Complex prepositions - Key
Innovation in Learning

A A A A ENGLISH GRAMMAR

1- Presentation 1 - Time and place

Go through the prepositions. Clarify meaning or translate them.

2- Practice 1

1. on top of 2. next to 3. in front of 4. out of

5. prior to 6. in between 7. Outside of 8. near to
9. away from 10. ahead of 11. up to

3- Practice 2

2. in front of me 3. in between two policemen

4. Prior to 2001 5. on top of the hill
6. out of a hat 7. ahead of his competitors
8. next to your house

5- Presentation 2 - Other complex prepositions

Go through the prepositions. Clarify meaning or translate them.

6- Practice 4

1. because of 2. except for 3. in spite of 4. with regard to

5. thanks to 6. instead of 7. as well as 8. except for
9. along with 10. according to 11. in case of

LE

You can review this worksheet online at www.linguahouse.com/ex i

AB

Review your flashcards at least 3-5 times a week for 20 minutes to keep the material fresh in your memory.
PI

O
c Linguahouse.com OC
P H OT