Prepositions are words that show relationships between other words in a sentence. Put another way, a preposition links two nearby words to indicate how they relate to each other. For example:
The rat is in the corner.
(The preposition "in" shows the relationship between "corner" and "rat.")
Her party was on Saturday.
(The preposition "on" shows the relationship between "Saturday" and "party.")
Examples of Prepositions
There are lots of prepositions. Here are some common ones:
above, about, below, for, from, in, inside, into, of, to, until, with
Lots of prepositions precede words to tell us where or when things are.
Examples of prepositions that tell us where:
The cat on the table is called Toby.
(The preposition "on" precedes "table" to tell us where the cat is.)
Our lorry is stuck at the traffic lights.
(The preposition "at" precedes "lights" to tells us where the lorry is.)
Examples of prepositions that tell us when:
The meeting on Saturday
(This time, the preposition "on" precedes Saturday to tell us when the meeting is.)
The bell will ring at 7 o'clock.
(The preposition "at" precedes "7 o'clock" to tell us when the bell will ring.)
More On Prepositions
Try these exercises to improve your understanding of these small words.
You will see a drop-down menu in the reading text. Choose the correct preposition from the list.
After you finish each activity, you get a score out of 100 and the chance to try it again.
phrase is a group of words working together that does not have both a subject and a verb. Phrases usually act as a single part of speech. (We will get to that part later.)
Prepositions can never be alone, so it makes sense to learn about prepositions in their phrases. Any lone preposition is actually an adverb.
A preposition is a word that shows the relationship between a word in the sentence and the word that is the object of the preposition.
In the previous examples:
In shows the relationship between the flower and the vase.
With shows the relationship between the umbrella and the polka-dots.
To shows the relationship between where we are going and the movies.
After shows the relationship between our lunch and science class.
On shows the relationship between how we are walking and our tiptoes.
Definition: The object of the preposition is the noun following the preposition that the preposition is relating to something in the sentence.
In the previous examples, the objects are vase, polka-dots, movies, science class, and tiptoes.
Hint: To find the object of the preposition ask "What?" after the preposition.
The flower in the vase is a peony.
You found in - ask "In what?" Answer - vase. Try it with the other exam
You can do them at home, on the train or in class.
After you finish, try some of the activities below:
blogpay
