This document provides examples and definitions of prepositions in English. It discusses single-word and compound prepositions, the role of prepositions in constructing sentences, ending sentences with prepositions, and prepositions used for time, place and introducing objects. It also covers the object of a preposition, verbs that take unnecessary prepositions, and the use of who and whom as the subjective and objective forms.

1. PREPOSITION – is a word used to relate nouns or pronouns to other words in a sentence PREPOSITION – followed by a noun or pronoun called the object of a preposition

2. SINGLE WORD PREPOSITION EXAMPLES Aboard amid between About among betwix Above astride beyond Absent atop but Across barring by Afore before concerning After behind despite Against below during Along beneath except Alongside beside excluding

3. SINGLE WORD PREPOSITION EXAMPLES following next regarding for of round from off since given on than in onto through including opposite thru inside out throughout Into outside towards midst over under near past underneath

4. SINGLE WORD PREPOSITION EXAMPLES unlike until up upon versus vice inside Into midst near

5. COMPOUND WORD PREPOSITION EXAMPLES  instead of  left of  near to  next to  on to (contracted as onto)  out from  out of  outside of  owing to  prior to  pursuant to  regardless of  right of  subsequent to  thanks to  that of  where as Two words according to  ahead of  apart from  as for  as of  as per  as regards  aside from  because of  close to  due to  except for  far from  in to (contracted as into)  inside of (note that inside out

6. COMPOUND WORD PREPOSITION EXAMPLES Three words preposition  as far as  as well as  by means of  in accordance with  in addition to  in case of  in front of  in lieu of  in place of  in point of  in spite of  on account of  on behalf of  on top of  with regard to  with respect to

7. Role of a Preposition Prepositions are important when constructing sentences. A preposition sits before a noun and pronoun to show the nounand pronoun’srelationship to another word in the sentence. Examples: It is a container for butter.(The preposition "for" shows the relationship between "butter" and "container".) The eagle soared above the clouds.(The preposition "above" shows the relationship between "clouds" and "soared".)

8. Ending a Sentence with a Preposition As a rule, a sentence should not end in a preposition. (However, there are several factors to consider.) Examples:a. That is a situation I have not thought of. (The word "of" is a preposition. Writers should avoid ending sentences in prepositions. This is because, a preposition should sit before a noun.) b. She is a person I cannot cope with. (The word "with" is a preposition.)c. It is behavior I will not put up with. (This example ends in two prepositions: "up" and "with".)

9. Not a Serious Error Where possible, you should avoid ending a sentence in a preposition. However, after shuffling the words so that the preposition is not at the end, the re-structured version often sounds contrived and unnatural. Examples:a. That is a situation of which I have not thought. (This version is grammatically more pure than the one above. In this example, the word "of" sits before "which").b. She is a person with whom I cannot cope. c. It is behavior up with which I will not put. (This example sounds extremely contrived.)

10. Reword to Avoid Often, the best solution is to re-word the sentence: Examples:a. That is a situation I have not considered. (There are no prepositions in this sentence, and it has the same meaning.)b. It is behavior I will not tolerate.

11. Leave the Preposition at the End If the sentence sounds too contrived after it has been reworded, another option is to leave the preposition at the end of the sentence. Ex.: There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about. (This is an example of a sentence that should be left with the preposition at the end.)

15. The days are long in August.

16. The book was published in 1999.

18. I'm going to Paris for two weeks. (I will spend two weeks there.)

19. The movie showed from August to October. (Beginning in August and ending in October.)

20. The decorations were up from spring until fall. (Beginning in spring and ending in fall.

21. I watch TV during the evening. (For some period of time in the evening.)

23. Put the present inside the box.

24. I left your keys on the table.

27. The child hid underneath the blanket.

28. We relaxed in the shade beneath the branches.The valley is below sea-level

30. There is an ice cream shop by the store.

31. An oak tree grows next to my house

32. The house is between Elm Street and Maple Street.

33. I found my pen lying among the books.

35. I'm looking at the computer monitor.

36. We rejoiced at his safe rescue.

38. My contribution to the article consists of many pages.

40. He hopes for a raise in salary next year.

41. I'm looking for my keys.

42. We'll wait for her here.

43. You go buy the tickets and I'll watch for the train.

45. c. Heat the soup up. / Heat the soup. d. Give up the chase. / Give the chase. (Often, the preposition is required. These two versions have different meanings.)e. She will not stand for shoddy work. / She will not stand shoddy work. d. Where are you going to? / Where are you going?

46. Object of a Preposition The words after a preposition are said to be the 'object of the preposition'.Examples:a. The cat ran under the car.(The words "the car" are the object of the preposition "under".)b. Can you give this parcel to him tomorrow?(The word "him" is the object of the preposition "to".)

47. As covered in the first lesson for preposition, a preposition usually sits before a noun (i.e., a word like dog, man, house, Alan). However, a preposition can also sit before a pronoun (i.e., a word like him, her, which, it, them). This is important because the object of a preposition is always in the 'objective case', and pronouns change in this case. (In general, native English speakers have little trouble forming the objective case.)

48. Examples:a. Can you give the parcel to him?("He" changes to "him" in the objective case.)b. I went to the cinema with them.("They" changes to "them" in the objective case.)

49. Who and Whom The word 'whom' is the objective case of 'who', and this pairing causes some confusion. (This is covered more in the lesson Who and Whom.)Examples:a. Andy saw the scouts, at least one of whom was armed, through the mist. ("Whom" - objective case after the preposition "of")b. Against whom did you protest if there was nobody present? ("Whom" - objective case after the preposition "against")