How to Use Prepositions

The English language uses prepositions to demonstrate the connection between two components of a sentence. Prepositional phrases contain a preposition and a noun or pronoun (it, him, her, them) which act as the object of the prepositional phrase, just as they world act as the subject of a sentence. The difference between a sentence and a prepositional phrase is that a prepositional phrase has no verb. Prepositions illustrate spatial relationship, the relationship between the subject and something else, direction, and relationship with time.

Spatial Location

Spatial location prepositions show the relationship between a stationary object to everything around it. In the picture below, the hot air balloon floated just above the ground (the stationary object) just before the basket dragged to a halt on the grass below it. Spatial location prepositions include: above, below, at, in, on, over, under and underneath.

Relation to Something Else

Prepositions show the relationship of the sentence’s subject to other objects or people in the sentence. In the picture below you could say that the tree was out in the yard, but that doesn’t give a clear indication of the exact location of the tree. Instead, the tree grew in the yard near the dirt road, between the fence and the house. Prepositions showing relationship to other things are: among, behind, between, beside, in front of, in the middle of, next to, and with.

Showing Direction

In this category, prepositions are used to indicate the direction in which the subject of the sentence is moving from one location to another. In the picture below, you might say “the children are playing on the playground equipment,” but to be more explicit, you could add a preposition and restate it as: “the children are climbing toward the top of climbing tower. The list of prepositions here include: by, onto, into, over, past, to, toward, and under.

Locating Something in Time; When Something Happened

Locating things in time require another set of prepositions that compares those items to other objects and events in another time. Take the movie listing below. It shows the start times for the same movie. One showing starts at 10:50 am and the showing after that begins at 1:30 pm. This list of prepositions include: after, at, before, between, beyond, for, from, from…to (as in the movie runs from 10:50 am to 12:20 pm), in, on, since, until, and use.

References

University of Redlands: Prepositions

http://newton.uor.edu/facultyfolder/rider/prepositions.htm

Townson University: Prepositions

http://www.towson.edu/ows/prepositions.htm

Capitol Community College: Prepositions ---Locators in Time and Space

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/prepositions.htm

Your Dictionary: Rules for Prepositions

http://www.yourdictionary.com/grammar/rules-for-prepositions.html

Resources of Communications: Using Prepositions Correctly

http://allaboutcommunication.com/Prepositions.html

English Club: English Preposition List

http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/prepositions-list.htm

Chomp Chomp: The Preposition by Robin L. Simmons, 2011

http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/preposition.htm