PREPOSITIONS

Annie Antony
Shalini Bharadwaj
What is Preposition?
•Preposition is a linking word or a grammatical element that shows the
relationship a noun/pronoun or a phrase has with the rest of the sentence. In
short, preposition is the linking word that gives meaning to the sentence.

•Simple: At, by, for, from, out, through, to

•Compound: About, above, beyond, inside, within
•Phrase: In case of, with reference to, by way of
Do Prepositions Puzzle You?

Prepositions are often tiny, just two letters long! But they pose some
gigantic problems. Should it be ‘at’ or ‘in’? Is ‘from’ right or ‘since’?
Let us first understand how to use some common prepositions right
before plunge into the examples.
IN ON
• The fish is in the bowl. • The books are on the table.
IN ON
AT
• PLACE
Address: at
Road/lane: on
Larger area: in
• TIME ON
• AT ON
ON ON
Exact time: at
Day/date: on
Week/month/year: in
PLACE

• The conference is held at the hall on 5th floor in Hotel

Regal.
• We attended the flag off ceremony at the stadium on
Bypass road in Mangalore.
TIME

• India got independence on 15th August in 1947 at 12

midnight.
• The meeting is scheduled on next Monday.
• He moved to Dubai in 2005.
• The party is expected to begin at 5 pm
IN ON BY

• Means of transportation
IN- small and closed vehicles
ON- Public transport / open vehicles
BY- Mode of movement
IN- CLOSED AND SMALL VEHICLES

• She got in the taxi.

• I am already in the car.
• The boxes are loaded in the van.
ON- PUBLIC TRANSPORT/ OPEN VEHICLES

• The passengers are on the plane.

• We need to get on this bus.
• Manuel is waiting for us on the boat.
• I enjoyed the ride through the valley on the horse.
• We crossed the river on a raft.
IN and INTO
IN INTO
A state when the object is or seems To express a movement of the
to be covered or enclosed by object resulting in the enclosure of
another object. that object by a particular area.

Refers to being inside something Means movement toward the inside

of something

Indicates the position of something. Indicates an action or movement.

Example I am living in Milk is
Dubai. converted into
curd.
In 1947, India The child fell
got into the
independence. pothole.
He works in Nine into nine
Microsoft. goes eighty
one.
BY- MODE OF MOVEMENT
If by a vehicle don’t use:
•A
• AN
• THE
• MY

• I came early by a bike.

• We reached the spot by my car.
BY- MODE OF MOVEMENT

• We reached the theatre by walking.

• The thieves breached into the compound by jumping the
gate.
• We crossed the river by wading through the fast-flowing
water.
BY- PLACE( NEAR)

He stood by the tree.

He sat by my side.
We play in the lawn by the bus stop.
BY- APPROXIMATE TIME

• The meeting will start by 10 am.

• We plan to conclude the project by next
month.
• The recruitment is expected to be
completed by coming week.
BY -

• She passed her test by studying hard.

• I got into the house by using my key.

• I defeated my opponent by careful moves.

BY- HOW MUCH?

• He is taller than me by 3 feet.

• We sell tomatoes by kilo.

• The price of petrol went up by Rs 2 per litre.

AT Vs BY
AT- SPECIFIC
BY- NEAR

I got inside the bus at town square

by the metro station.

He stopped the car at the bus stop

by the traffic signal.
Let’s practice

1. Bruce did not fare well __ his examination. (in/at)

2. My brother’s anniversary is __ 5th November. (on/in)
3. She came out of the station and got ____ a taxi (in/on)
4. The police officer is __ the station. (at/on)
5. I will have completed my task __ Friday. (till/by)
6. The police officer is __ the station. (at/on)
7. The boy __ the store is quite young. (at/on)
[Link] can travel from London to Paris ___a train, ___ a plane or ___ a car.
(in/on).
9. I have been ___a plane, but I haven’t been ___a helicopter.(in/on).
SINCE and FROM
SINCE: Used with a point of time, in the perfect tense, and as an adverb and
conjunction.
• I have lived here since 1952.
• He left school in 1989, I haven’t seen him since. (Adverb)
• He has worked for us ever since he left school. (Conjunctions)

FROM: Used with starting point of time that is unknown or in the past and to
denote place. Usually followed by to, till or until.
• They ran from the scene of the crime.
• Where do you come from?

AFTER: Used to denote end of time in the past

• He returned the book after a week.
FROM TO

FROM- STARTING POINT

TO- ENDING POINT

FROM TO

• I started from Mysore to Bangalore.

• We left to Chennai for a vacation.
• The shop runs from 10 am to 11 pm.
• The business starts from morning.
TO - RELATION

• I am close to my father.
• He is related to me by the family tree.
• We went to the supermarket to buy groceries.
• I left for Mumbai to take part in the conference.
• They arranged some funds to help the poor.
FOR- WHY?

• I baked cake for his birthday.

• We burned crackers for celebrating the victory.
• They waited eagerly for Diwali.
• She booked tickets for a movie.
FOR- TIME DURATION

• Last year, I traveled for a month.

• I'm travelling for three weeks.
• Next year, I will travel for a couple of
days.
OF/ APOSTROPHE
OF: Used in fixed expressions with the sense of from, belonging to (showing
ownership)
Die of, made of, ask of, expect of.

Sneha’s hat= The hat of Sneha

Rahul’s trainer= The trainer of Rahul

Birds’s feathers
Birds’ feathers= feathers of the birds.

NSS’ s student
NSS’ student

Chair’s leg
Leg of the chair
OF - COMPARISON

• He is the strongest of all boys.

• She is the prettiest of all sisters.
• They are the smartest of all employees.
WITH

With means ‘accompanied by’ something or someone

Cut with a knife
Lady with a black handbag.
She arrived with her boyfriend.
I don’t like tea with milk.
With- using
• They opened the package with a knife.

• I’ll tie it with some tape to keep it closed.

• He cleaned the table with a cloth he found in the kitchen.

Let’s practice
1. I’m on holiday ……………………….. 5th January.
2. You should consume two pills………..meals.
3. He was blind ………………………. birth.
4. He died ………………………… overwork.
5. It’s a machine …………………………. cutting wood.
6. I draw pictures ……………………….. pleasure.
7. We knelt ………………………….. the shrine.
8. This tea is………..Chinese origin
9. Your name comes …………………………….. mine on the list.
[Link] car is made up………..metal parts and computers.
[Link] has cut his finger …………………………… a knife
[Link] decided to stay indoors…………..it was raining.
[Link] pass ……………………… the tunnel.
[Link] has been absent from work……….Monday due to illness

(After, Before, From, For , of, Since, With, Through)

Answers
1. from
2. after
3. from
4. From
5. for
6. for
7. before
8. of
9. Before
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
ONTO:
Used to denote movement involving a change of level.
• People climbed onto their roofs.
• We lifted him onto the table.

WITHIN
Used before the end of a specific period of time and place.
• They will come back within two days.
• I threw the ball within range.
• We’ve always lived within ten miles of the coast.

UPON
Used for motion.
• The cat jumped upon the rat .
BELOW BESIDE
Used to denote lower level in position, Used for something that is near
status and expectation.
or next.
• It is below my dignity to talk to her.
• There was a big clock below the • We camped beside a lake.
painting • She sat beside her mother.
• The company’s profits in 2008
were below what they had hoped for
BESIDES
Used to mean in addition or as
BENEATH well as.
Used to denote under, physically or • I speak Hindi besides English.
figuratively.
• They rested beneath the tree.
• The metro station is right beneath the
airport.
OVER OFF
Used to convey many things. Used to mean the surface of and also down from
• Take the book off the table.
• At noon the sun is over our heads. (Above) • He fell off his horse.
• I cannot get over my disappointment.(Beyond)
• It is all over with me. (Conclusion)
DURING
During is used with known periods of time.
ABOVE During the middle ages, during the summer, during
Used to mean higher than childhood, during this week.
• It rained the whole day but stopped during the
• The helicopter hovered above us. night.
• She saw the mountains towering above them.
WHICH PREPOSITION TO USE WHEN

(1) In, At
In is used with the names of continents, countries, states, sizeable territories and
large cities. At is used with towns, villages, small areas or specific places etc.
• He is not at home. He lives in Punjab.
• He lives at Chandannagar in Bengal.
But when we speak of very large places, we usually say :
• He lives in London in England. (not at London)
• He died in Paris in France. (not at Paris)

(2) At, On
• He sat at the table. (At means that he sat with his chair drawn up to the table)
• He sat on the table. (On means that he sat on top of the table)
(3) Between, Among
Between is used in speaking of two persons or things: among in speaking of more than
two persons or things:
• The cat sat between Mohan and Rohan.
• He sat among the boys.
Between can also relate to more than two persons or things, if we have a definite number
in mind.
• Switzerland lies between France, Germany, Italy and Austria.

(4) Beside, Besides

Beside means at or by the side of; besides means in addition to or other than:
• I live beside the stream.
• Besides all this, the corn must be cut.
• Nobody, besides Mohan, could have done it.
(5) In, Within
In means at the end of; within means before the end of:
• He will return in a week. (at the end of a week)
• He will return within a week. (before the end of a week)
(6) At, About
At is used with a fixed movement; about indicates proximity to a certain time:
• He left work at four o’ clock.
• It is about four now.
Expressions like ‘At about four o’ clock’, ‘at about the time he left work’, are
therefore wrong.
(7) Till, By
Till means not earlier than; by means not later than:
• I was kept waiting till 3 o’ clock. (up to 3 o’ clock)
• I shall return home by 3 o’ clock. (not later than 3 o’ clock)
(8) Since, For
Since as a preposition is used before a noun or phrase denoting some point of
time; for is used to denote a period of time; as,
• He has been working since morning.
• I have been doing nothing for two hours.
• I have been living in Bombay since 1980.
Note :- Since is preceded by a verb in some perfect tense.
(9) From
Used before noun or phrase denoting some points of time, but unlike
since, is used with all the tenses; as,
• Ram Swarup works from morning to evening.
• I shall join office from Monday.
(10) Before, For
Before is used to denote a point of future time; for is used in negative
sentences to denote a period of future time; as,
• I shall finish my work before next month. (during this month)
• I am not resuming duty for a week yet. (until a week has passed)

(11) On, Over

On denotes actual contact with some object; over does not do so:
• Put the pen on the table.
• Thick mist hung over the forest.
Let’s practice
1. She stood ……………………….. me.
2. The post office is ……………………. our house.
3. He knows nothing ………………………….. the topic.
4. He was brought ……………………… the police officer.
5. The man ran ……………………….. the house.
6. One man will be selected …………………. them.
7. The men are standing ……………………… the awning.
8. He is walking ………………….. the road.
9. The road is …………………………. the river.
10. The policeman is running ………………………… him.
11. …………………… you, there were nine other passengers there.
12. They've got a lovely house ____ the sea.
13. There was a long discussion ………………………. the professor and the student.
14. Who was that sitting ____ you in the lecture?

(About, Across, Along, Among, Beside, Besides, Behind, Between, before, about, into, under)
Answers

1. Behind/ beside
2. behind
3. about
4. before
5. into
6. from among
7. under
8. Across/ along
9. along
10. Behind
11. Besides
12. Beside
13. Between
14. Beside
List 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
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