Meanings of prepositions.

Plan

Introduction

Morphological structure of prepositions

Meanings of prepositions

Prepositions of time

Prepositions of place (location)

Introdution

A preposition is a word which shows relationships among other words in the sentence. The relationships include direction, place, time, cause, manner and amount. In the sentence She went to the shore to is a preposition which shows direction. In the sentence He came by bus by is a preposition which shows manner. In the sentence They will be here at three o’clock at is a preposition which shows time. And in the sentence It is under the table under is a preposition which shows time place.

A preposition always goes with a noun or pronoun which is called the object of the preposition. The preposition is almost always before the noun or pronoun and that is why it is called a PREposition. The preposition and the object of the preposition together are called a prepositional phrase. A verb can't be the object of a preposition.

For example:

The bone was for the dog. This is correct- the preposition for is followed by the noun "dog."

The bone was for walked. This is not correct. The preposition for is followed by a verb "walked." Walked can't be the object of a preposition.

Morphological structure of prepositions.

As to their morphological structure prepositions fall under the following groups:

1. simple (in, on, at, for, with, etc.)

2. derivative (behind, below, across, along, etc.)

3. compound (inside, outside, within, without, etc.)

4. composite (because of, in front of, in accordance with, etc.)

Meanings of prepositions.

A preposition is a word that links a noun, pronoun or gerund to other words. They can have a variety of meanings:

Direction – He is going TO the shop.

Location – It is IN the box.

Time – He left AFTER the lesson had finished.

Possession – The Government OF Italy.

A preposition is a word that explains the time, space or logical relationship between the other parts of the sentence. In other words, it links all the other words together, so the reader can understand how the pieces of the sentence fit.

There are hundreds of prepositions in the English language. One easy way to remember prepositions is that they are words that tell you everywhere a bunny can run; for example, a bunny can run

Up, down, near, far, by, at, around, close, always

All of these words, and many more, are prepositions.

There are 2 major rules when it comes to the use of prepositions.

1. The first major rule deals with preposition choice. Certain prepositions must follow certain words, and the correct preposition must be used to make relationships between words in the sentences clear.

2. The second major rule deals with the prepositions place in the sentence. Prepositions must be followed by nouns, and prepositions can only go on the end of the sentence in certain situations.

Determining the correct preposition to use can be a tricky proposition. This can be especially difficult when dealing with idioms- expressions in the English language that require the use of a certain word, simply because that is the word we have chosen to use. Idiomatic expressions are expressions you just have to memorize, and when errors are made, they are almost always preposition errors.

Here are some examples of idioms, along with the correct prepositions:

Able to

Capable of

Preoccupied with

Concerned by

Prohibited from

Each of the italicized words are the only acceptable prepositions to follow these words. It would not be grammatically correct to say "able with " or "capable to"

Using Prepositions at the End of Sentences

As prepositions must be followed by a noun and have an object, they usually can't be used at the end of a sentence. For example, it is not correct to say:

The table is where I put my books on.

However, there are certain circumstances where it is acceptable to end a sentence with a preposition. These exceptions exist where the preposition is not extraneous. In other words, the preposition needs to be there, and if it wasn't, the meaning of the sentence would change.

In the above example, "The table is where I put my books on." the use of the preposition "on" isn't necessary. We could take the "on" out of the sentence and the meaning would be the same. So, the use of the preposition was extraneous or unnecessary and we don't need it.

However, here is an example where it is perfectly acceptable to use a preposition to end a sentence:

"I turned the TV on."

If you removed the "on" from the end of this sentence, it would change the meaning. Instead of switching on the set, you would be saying that you turned the TV itself.

4. Prepositions of time

Compare at, on and in:

* They arrived at 5 o'clock.

* They arrived on Friday.

* They arrived in October./They arrived in 1968.

1. We use:

at for the time of day: at 5 o'clock, at 11.45, at midnight, at lunchtime, at sunset etc.

on for days and dates: on Friday/on Fridays, on 12 March 1991, on Christmas Day, on my birthday

in for longer periods (for example, months/years/seasons): in October, in 1968, in the 18th century, in the past, in (the) winter, in the 1970s, in the Middle Ages, in (the) future

2. We use at in these expressions:

at night: I don't like going out at night.

at the weekend/at weekends: Will you be here at the weekend?

at Christmas/at Easter(but on Christmas Day): Do you give each other presents at Christmas?

at the moment/at present: Mr Benn is busy at the moment/at present.

at the same time: Liz and I arrived at the same time.

Note that we usually ask 'What time...?' (not usually 'At what time...?):

* What time are you going out this evening?

3.We say:

in the morning(s), in the afternoon(s), in the evening(s)

* I'll see you in the morning.

* Do you work in the evenings?

but:

on Friday morning(s), on Sunday afternoon(s), on Monday evening(s) etc.

* I'll be at home on Friday morning.

* Do you usually go out on Saturday evenings?

D. We do not use at/on/in before last/next/this/every:

* I'll see you next Friday. (not 'on next Friday')

* They got married last March.

In a few minutes/in six months etc. = a time in the future

* The train will be leaving in a few minutes. (= a few minutes from now)

* Jack has gone away. He'll be back in a week. (= a week from now)

* She'll be here in a moment. (= a moment from now)

You can also say 'in six months' time', 'in a week's time' etc.:

* They're getting married in six months' time. (or... in six months.)

4. We also use in... to say how long it takes to do something:

* I learnt to drive in four weeks. it took me four weeks to learn)

5. Prepositions of place (location):

We use AT for a point: at the window - at the entrance - at the door; at the end of the street - at the station - at the top;

e.g. Bill is waiting for you at the bus stop.

We use ON for a surface: on the wall - on the ceiling - on the floor - on a page; on a cover;

e.g. Have you seen the picture on the notice board?

We use IN for an enclosed space: in the garden - in the house - in London - in the water; in her bag - in a row - in a town;

e.g. There is nobody in the room. She lives in a small village.

1. We say that someone is at an event: at a party - at a pop concert - at a conference - at a meeting.

e.g. Tom is at the party.

2. We say at with buildings when we say where the event (film, concert,...) takes place: Where were you yesterday? At the cinema.

The meeting took place at the headquarters.

We say at someone's house: We were at Bill's house last Thursday.

3. We say at for a place which is a part of our journey: We stopped at a very nice village.

We use ON with small islands: She spent her holiday on a small island.

We say that a place is on the coast / on a river / on a road: London is on the river Thames.

We say in when we talk about a building itself: The rooms of Tom's house are small.

We usually say in with towns and villages: His parents live in York.

Note these expressions:

AT

at home - at work - at school - at university - at college - at the station - at an airport - at the seaside - at sea (on a voyage) - at reception - at the corner of a street - at the back / front of a building / cinema / group of people, etc. - arrive at with other places or events

IN

in the newspaper - in bed - in hospital - in prison - in the street - in the sky - in an armchair (sit) - in a photograph - in a picture - in a mirror - in the corner of a room - in the back / front of a car - arrive in a country or town

ON

on a farm - on the left - on the right - on the ground floor - on the first, second,... floor - on the way - on the chair (sit) - on the radio - on television - on a horse - on the corner of a street - on the back / front of a letter / piece of paper etc.

APPENDIX

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