PREPOSITIONS

Prepared by:
Mrs. Edlyn L. Joven
English Teacher
Our Goal:
INCREASETHE NAT
PERCENTAGE!
Lesson Objectives:
To define preposition and prepositional phrase
To identify the types and kinds of prepositions
To determine the uses and examples of each
preposition
To use preposition/prepositional phrase in a
sentence correctly
Materials needed for this session:

Pen
Paper- ½ lengthwise
Introduction
A Preposition is an essential part
in the English language and there
are different kinds of prepositions.
Preposition is a subject that many of the
learners of English language struggle
with. This is because, the rules regarding
prepositions have a number of
exceptions and thus making it hard for
many of us to use the appropriate
preposition at the correct place. This
difficulty, however, does not lessen the
value prepositions have.
Without prepositions we cannot finish
a good piece of writing or make a
comprehensive and beautiful speech.
So, it becomes very necessary to
understand the types and kinds of
prepositions in order to use them
appropriately.
What is a preposition?

Prepositions are those words which are

used to connect nouns, pronouns and
phrases in any sentence. Usually
preposition indicates the relationship
between nouns that how they are
connected to each other. It shows that
whether words are connected through
time, space and place.
Here are some
examples:
 Subject + Verb Preposition Noun
The cat was sleeping on table.
He lives in Paris.
She looked at The
stranger.
He will come in January.
Wedding ceremony will be held on 20th
December.
I was waiting for you
Someone is knocking at the door.
She came by bus.
Here are other examples:
I found the pen on the table.
Here the preposition is “on” because it is
showing a relationship between pen and the table.
 Meghan went to sleep late.
Here the preposition is “to” because it shows a
state in which Meghan is going into.
I am watching cricket match in the bedroom.
Here the preposition is “in” because it shows my
place where I am sitting. -
Types of Preposition
1. Preposition for Time
2. Preposition for Place
3. Preposition for Direction
4. Preposition for Agent
5. Preposition for Instrument
6. Prepositional Phrase
Prepositions for Time.
(in, on, at)
Prepositions used for time
of different natures are in,
on at etc.
Preposition Time Nature
In 1. Month or Year.
e.g. in January, in 1985
2. Particular time of day or
month or year
e.g. in morning, in evening, in first
week of January, in summer, in
winter
3. Century or specific time in
past etc
e.g. in 21st century, in stone age, in
past, in future, in present
On 1. Day
e.g. on Monday
2. Date
e.g. on 5th of March,
March 5
3. Particular day
e.g. on Independence
Day, on my birthday,
At 1. Time of clock
e.g. at 5 O’clock, at 7:30 PM
2. Short and precise time
e.g. at noon, at sunset, at
lunch time, at bed time, at
the moment, at the same
time
Examples:

He was born in 1945.

She will go to New York on 25th of March.
The concert will begin at 7 O’clock.
He gets up early in the morning.
Exercise 1. Choose the correct preposition to complete
the sentence. Write your answer in your notebook.

1. We enjoyed a lot (in, on, at) the summer.

2. She received a lot gifts (in, on, at) her
birthday.
3. Where were you (in, on, at) the lunchtime?
4. I will call you (in, on, at) 12 A.M
5. The president will deliver speech to public (in,
on, at) Independence Day.
 These are the answers.
1. We enjoyed a lot in the summer.
2. She received a lot gifts on her
birthday.
3. Where were you at the lunchtime?
4. I will call you at 12 A.M
5. The president will deliver speech to
public on Independence Day.
Preposition for Place.
(in, on, at)
 Prepositions “in, on or at” are usually
used for different places.
 “In” is usually used for place which
have some boundary (boundary may
physical or virtual).
 “On” is used for surface
 “At” is used for specific place.
Preposition Place Nature
In Place having some boundary
(physical or virtual boundary)
Examples.
In hall
In school
In a building
In a box
In a car
In library
In garden
In America
In room
In cupboard
On Surface of something.
Examples.
On a table
On blackboard
On a page
On the wall
On the roof
On a map
At Specific Place.
Examples.
At the entrance
At the bottom of glass
At front of the chair
At bus stop
At the edge of roof
Examples:

She lives in New York.

The wedding ceremony will be held in the hall.
The teacher wrote a sentence on blackboard.
His house is at the end of street.
 Exercise 2. Choose the correct preposition to complete
the sentence. Write your answer in your notebook.

1. Students study (in, on, at) library.

2. There are some books (in, on, at) the
table.
3. He was flying kite (in, on, at) the roof.
4. There was a huge gathering (in, on, at)
bus stop.
5. Her parents were waiting for her (in, on,
at) the entrance of school.
 These are the answers.
1. Students study in library.
2. There are some books on the table.
3. He was flying kite on the roof.
4. There was a huge gathering at bus stop.
5. Her parents were waiting for her at the
entrance of school
Preposition for Direction.
(to, toward, through, into)
 Prepositions like to, towards, through, into are
used to describe the direction. Following examples
will help in better understanding.
 Examples.
She went to the library.
He jumped into the river.
He ran away when he felt that someone was
coming toward him.
Preposition for Agent. (by)
 Prepositionfor agent is used for a thing which is cause
of another thing in the sentence. Such prepositions
are by, with etc.
 Examples.
This book is written by Shakespeare.
The work was completed by him.
Preposition for device,
instrument or machine.
Different preposition are used by different
devices, instruments or machines. e.g. by,
with, on etc.
Examples.
She comes by bus daily.
He opened the lock with key.
Exercise 3. Choose the correct
preposition to complete the sentence.
Write your answer in your notebook.
 in to toward onto into
by with without
1. The waitress noticed that there was no more
Diet Pepsi _____ Marty's glass.
2. Lee and Sarah took the bus that was heading
_______ the university.
3. Mary Sue jumped _____the stage and danced.
4. Pat drove Mike _____the airport.
5. Glenn almost fell _______the river.
 in to toward onto into
by with without
6. The room was decorated ______ her.
7. The tub is filled ______ water.
8. This poem was written ______Walt Whitman.
9. That man opened the door ______the key.
10. You can’t play soccer ________a ball.
These are the answers.
1. The waitress noticed that there was no
more Diet Pepsi in Marty's glass.
2. Lee and Sarah took the bus that was
heading toward the university.
3. Mary Sue jumped onto the stage and
danced.
4. Pat drove Mike to the airport.
5. Glenn almost fell into the river.
6. The room was decorated by her.
7. The tub is filled with water.
8. This poem was written by Walt
Whitman.
9. That man opened the door with the
key.
10. You can’t play soccer without a ball.
Prepositional Phrase
Every prepositional phrase is a
series of words made up of a
preposition and its object. The
object may be a noun, pronoun,
gerund or clause. A prepositional
phrase functions as an adjective
or adverb.
 Examples of
Prepositional Phrases
 to the store
 He went to the store.
 after dinner
 After dinner, I will go out.
 when it rains
 When it rains, it pours.
 around the corner
 Around the corner is my house.
 at 10 tonight
 At 10 tonight, we will see fireworks.
 The boy walked the dog down the busy street.
 The prepositional phrase down the busy street tells
where they walked.
 The word down is the preposition.
 The word the is an article.
 The word busy is an adjective describing the street.
 The word street is the object of the preposition.
 Commonly Used Prepositional Phrases

 According to the weather forecast  Like a beautiful swan

 Across many deserts  Near the ocean
 After many tries  Of my boss
 Amid the confusion  Off the top
 Around the world  Out the door
 Before we start the meeting  Through the looking glass
 Between a rock and a hard place  Throughout the thick forest
 By the light of the moon  To the amusement park
Prepositional Phrases that Function as an
Adjective

 The book with the tattered cover has been read many
times.
 All the passengers aboard the runaway train were
frightened.
 The present inside the big box is mine.
 Our boss put out a memo regarding the new rule.
 The clues within the first few chapters will lead to
the murderer.
Prepositional Phrases that Function
as Adverbs
 Racing toward the finish line, Sarah realized
she just might win.
 My shopping list needs to be put into my
purse.
 Without a GPS, we will lose our way.
 Until today, I had never heard that.
 The balloon drifted up the stairs.
Prepositional Phrases in Quotes
 “Once we accept our limits, we go beyond them.” - Albert
Einstein
 “We keep moving forward, opening new doors, and doing new
things, because we're curious and curiosity keeps leading us
down new paths.” - Walt Disney
 “There has to be evil so that good can prove its purity above it.”
- Buddha
 “I've had tendonitis since college.” - Michael Jordan
 “Never put off till tomorrow what you can do the day after
tomorrow.” - Mark Twain
Exercise 4. Draw two columns.
Write the preposition used in
each sentence in the first
column then write the
prepositional phrase in the
second column.
Example:

Angelique came to visit from France.

 Answer:

PREPOSITION PREPOSITONAL
PHRASE
from From France
1) The strange man parked his car next to the tall
trees.
2) The confused foreign exchange student walked
through the school halls.
3) My cousin Jesse wore a bandage on his nose to
cover the wound.
4) Our crazy dog escaped and wandered all around
the neighbourhood.
5) Your little brother had surgery and must stay in the
hospital.
These are the answers.
PREPOSITION PREPOSITIONAL
PHRASE
1. next to Next to the tall trees
2. through Though the school halls
3. on On his nose
4. around Around the
neighbourhood
5. in In the hospital
 Kinds of
Prepositions
Prepositions are of five different kinds:
1. Simple prepositions
2. Compound prepositions
3. Double prepositions
4. Participle prepositions
5. Phrase prepositions
 Simple Prepositions
 Simple prepositions are words like in, on, at,
about, over, under, off, of, for, to etc.
 She sat on the sofa.
He is going to the market.
He fell off the ladder.
There is some water in the bottle.
She is about seven.
They sat around the table.
The cat was hiding under the bed.
Compound prepositions
Compound prepositions are words
like without, within, inside, outside, into,
beneath, below, behind, between etc.
He fell into the river.
She sat between her kids.
He sat beside her.
There is nothing inside the jar.
The teacher stood behind the desk.
The boy ran across the road.
Double prepositions
Double prepositions are words
like outside of, out of, from behind,
from beneath etc.
Suddenly he emerged from behind the
curtain.
He walked out of the compound.
Participle prepositions
Participle prepositions are words
like concerning, notwithstanding, pending,
considering etc.
There was little chance of success,
notwithstanding they decided to go ahead.
You did the job well, considering your age
and inexperience.
 Phrase prepositions
Phrase prepositions are phrases like because of,
by means of, with regard to, on behalf of,
instead of, on account of, in opposition to, for
the sake of etc.
 I am standing here on behalf of my friends and
colleagues.
The match was cancelled because of the rain.
He succeeded by means of perseverance.
Preposition Meaning Examples
higher than, or
above The sun is above the clouds.
over
from one side to It's dangerous to run across
across
the other the road.
- following
- The boy ran after the ball.
after something
- I'll phone you after lunch.
- later than

- in opposition to - Stealing is against the law.

against
- in contact with - The sofa is against the wall.
 from one end They are walking along
along
to the other the street.
Peter was among the
among surrounded by
spectators.
- in a circle - He walked around the
around - near, table.
approximately - It costs around 50 euros.
- The day before
- earlier than yesterday.
before
- in front of - He bowed before the
king.
 Passengers sit behind
behind at the back of
the driver.
His shorts are below
below lower than
his knees.
The pen was beneath
beneath under
the books.
The bank is beside the
beside next to
cinema.
in the space
Mary sat between Tom
between separating two
and Jane.
things
 The restaurant is by
by near, at the side of
the river.
The school is near
close to near
the church.
She pulled down the
down from higher to lower
blind.
where something
The wind is blowing
from starts or
from the north.
originates
at a point within an The pen is in the
in
area drawer.
 The child ran out in
in front of directly before
front of the bus.

The bird is inside the

inside on the inner part of
cage.
enter a closed He went into the
into
space shop.
The school is near the
near close to
church.
The bank is next to
next to beside
the cinema.
 down or away
off He fell off the horse.
from
in a position The plate is on the
on
touching a surface table.
move to a position The cat jumped onto
onto
on a surface the roof of the car.
facing, on the Eva sat opposite Tom at
opposite
other side the table.
- move from a
- He got out of the taxi.
out of closed space
- She's out of work.
- without
 opposite of inside, The garden is outside the
outside
on the outer side house.
- The plane flew over the
- above/across Atlantic.
over
- on the surface of - She put a sheet over the
furniture.
She drove past the
past beyond
supermarket.
in a circular The earth moves round the
round
movement sun.
from one side to the
through The Seine flows through Paris.
other
 The virus spread throughout
throughout in every part of the
country.
in the direct of /
to On the way to the station.
towards
The child ran towards her
towards in the direction of
father.
Water flows under the
under beneath, below
bridge.
There was dust underneath
underneath beneath
the rug.
towards or in a higher
up She walked up the stairs.
position
 Summary:
A preposition placed before a noun or pronoun connects it
to another noun, adjective or verb. The types of
prepositions are Preposition for Time, Preposition for Place,
Preposition for Direction, Preposition for Agent, Preposition
for Instrument and Prepositional Phrase. The kinds of
prepositions are Simple Prepositions, Compound
Prepositions, Double Prepositions, Participle Prepositions
and Phrase Prepositions. A prepositional phrase is a group
of words that lacks either a verb or a subject, and that
functions as a unified part of speech. It normally consists of
a preposition and a noun or a preposition and a pronoun.