Prepositions in a sentence are part of a prepositional phrase, where they take the first position. A prepositional phrase necessarily requires a noun after the preposition. A phrase can be completed either by a single noun or by a group of dependent words. This nominal part is called the prepositional complement. In addition, prepositions can act as a particle in a phrasal verb.
The use of prepositions in English in the table
A prepositional phrase can play the role of an adverb of time and place, object, complement of a verb or adjective, and even the role of a subject. Sometimes prepositions act as a subordinating union for a bunch of main and secondary sentences. For competent speech (and writing), the correct use of prepositions in English is very important. The rules below describe how prepositions and prepositional phrases behave in different situations.
Howplace circumstance
Prepositions can show physical or abstract direction (location).
- at/ at dot;
- in/ within some area;
- on/ on the surface;
- in front of/
- near/ near;
- on top of/
- across/ through;
- down/ down etc.
As the circumstance of time
Prepositions can be used to limit time intervals ('for', 'during', from … to/till/until …) and define points in time relative to each other ('ago', 'before', 'since', 'at', 'after', 'in').
- He is here for a month.
- There was two big victories during the war/ There were two big victories during the war.
- They have lunchtime from one o'clock till two o'clock/
- His frog died a month ago.
- We met even before lunch/ We met before lunch.
- He've been living on the seaside since he broke up with it/
- He finished at five o'clock/ He finished at five o'clock.
- We must be there after ten thirty/ We must be there after 10:30.
- We'll find out in the next three days.
Using prepositions in English with dates: 'at' is used with various religious festivals, 'in' is used with years, 'on' is used with days of the week, special events and regular dates.
- at Christmas/ at Christmas; at Easter/ at Easter;
- in the year 2015/ in the year 2015; in 2015/ in 2015; in the twenty first sentury/ in the twenty-first century;
- on Saturday/ on Saturday; on her wedding anniversary/ on her wedding anniversary; on the twenty fourth of October/ on the twenty fourth of October.
Use of prepositions in English with months and seasons: 'in', but with dates where the month comes first, 'on' is put, as with regular dates, for example, 'on October 24th'. In October; in November/ in October; In November; in autumn/ autumn.
As subject
A prepositional phrase can function as a subject: Out of memory was the safest place of all to keep this information.
As the complement of a nominal predicate
In a compound nominal predicate, where the nominal part is expressed by a feature or state, some adjectives following the linking verb can be used with or without a preposition, and some are not used on their own.
- He was afraid.
- He was afraid of his enemies/ He was afraid of his enemies.
1. However, they may require some specific preposition, such as: /aware of, accustomed to, used to/.
- Jeremy used to live in the merchant's house/ Jeremy used to live in the merchant's house.
- He is unaccustomed to the heat.
2. Some adjectives may be alone or accompanieddifferent prepositions depending on the type of information they reveal. For example, with /cruel, friendly, unkind/, 'of': is used to link an impersonal subject and a logical subject
It was rude of him to leave so suddenly/ It was rude of him to leave so suddenly
To connect personal subject and object, put’to’:
She was rude to him for no reason/ She was rude to him for no reason
Also used alone or with the preposition 'about' to characterize a thing or 'with' to characterize a character: /angry, furious, happy/.
- She was still angry about the result.
- Are you happy with that stinky guy?
3. Other adjectives can be used alone or with specific prepositions.
For example, with 'of' to:
1) describe the reason for the feeling expressed by the adjectives /convinced, suspicious, terrified/;
- Isn't it a bit suspicious of him?- It was terrified of her.
2) name a character that has a quality (such as /clever, polite, stupid/).
- That was clever of you!- I turned the job down, which was stupid of me.
With ‘to’ to say aboutdegree of similarity (close, related, similar), marriage (married, engaged), loy alty (dedicated, devoted, loyal), rank (junior, senior) in relation to something:
- My problems are very similar to yours.- He was dedicated to his job.
With ‘with’, adjectives such as /bored, pleased, satisfied/, as well as to say the reason for the expressed feeling:
- Gave to him a glorious glance she was satisfied with the effect.- He was pleased with her.
With ‘at’, talking about a strong reaction to something (amazed, astonished, surprised) or potential (bad, good, useless):
- He had been astonished at this point.- He was not bad at dancing.
With the preposition ‘for’ to say about the character or thing to which the given characteristic refers (common, easy, unusual):
- It's common for them.- Oh, nothing is easier for me.
A small number of adjectives ending in 'ed', which are used exclusively after linking verbs such as 'be', 'become' or 'feel', share a commonality with transitive verbs and are often followed by a prepositional phrase:
- The Brasilians are pleased with the result.
As an addition to a simple or verbal predicate
1. The use of prepositions in English is natural for many verbs that are used without direct objects. To say:
- about the subject of what is happening, 'about' fits,
- about the direction of action – ‘at’,
- root cause or purpose – ‘for’,
- engagement – ‘into’,
- facts and information – ‘of’,
- about what you can rely on - 'on',
- about the receiver of information –‘to’,
- about who agrees/disagrees – ‘with’.
- I've heard about the intrusion plans.
- Look at me.
- They asked for hep.
- A sheap run into the doorway.
- To think of it…
- It depends on him.
- Explain to me.- I argue with nobody.
It should be taken into account that with some verbs, prepositions appear in standard tandem, and with some they can replace each other depending on the meaning and situation.
As a complement to a noun
The use of prepositions in English makes it possible to form phrases with nouns that reveal their meaning in more detail. Some words are undemanding to the preposition that follows them, and some always attach some specific one. In general, the prepositional phrase comes after the noun.
- Two girls on weekends were having fun in a poolgirls who had weekends were having fun in the pool.- A wisper behind her made her turn/ A whisper behind her made her turn around.
Often 'of' is used after a noun to convey various kinds of information, in particular to say:
what something is made of or consists of;
- …a wall of stone.- A heeling of panic was rising in him.
about what is the subject of conversation, text, or image;
- There was an image of a lion in the magazine.
about the belonging of a character or object or its connection;
- He was the son of a good man.- Girls sat on the back seat of the car.
about the qualities inherent in a character or object
- She was a woman of enegry and ambition.- They faced problems of great compexity.
After action nouns, 'of' is used to indicate the subject or object of the action.
- …the arrival of the police.- …the destruction of their city.
Following nouns that represent people doing a specific action, a prepositional phrase beginning with 'of' communicates what the action involves or its goals.
- supporters of the hunger strike- …a student of English.
This sounds more natural with two nouns than with a noun and a prepositional phrase, e.g. ‘bank robbers’ instead of ‘robbers of the bank’.
Following measurement words, the preposition ‘of’ helps to share specific indicators:
- …temperature in the pot of 108 degrees.- …a part of 30 percent.
Also 'of' can be used after a noun to tell someone's age:
- The most dangerous it is in the edge of eight.
The preposition ‘with’ is used to express some distinctive feature, detail, belonging inherent in an object or character:
-…a girl with red hair.- …the man with the gun.
The preposition ‘in’ after the noun allows you to talk about who is wearing/wearing what:
- …a pale child in a raincoat.- …the man in dark suit.
Some nouns are always accompanied by specific prepositions. For example,
'to' follows the words: answer, introduction, reaction, return:
- it happened on the return to Poland/ It happened on the way back to Poland.
'for' follows:reason, respect, taste:
- His need for food was permanently growing up.
‘on’ for: agreement, comment, effect:
- She fad a dreadful effect on me.
'with' or 'between' for: connection, contact, link:
- The link between them was so hard to see.
'in' follows the words: difficulty, fall, increase:
- They had not been prepared to difficulties on that side.
As a verb complement
The use of prepositions in English as part of prepositional phrases is permissible, in addition, in a nominal predicate as a nominal part:
- It's in her bag.
- He was in danger.- It was against his will.
Like a particle of a phrasal verb
Prepositions can be presented as inseparable particles of a verb phrase in four combinations:
- particle verb,
- verb-particle-object,
- verb-object-particle,
- verb-particle-preposition-object,
- verb-object-particle-prepositional phrase.
- Storm broke up at midnight.
- His faith grow on wrong beliefs.
- 'Call me back' said Lucy / "Call me back," Lucy said.
- They ran awaywith all our food.- Don’t try to talk them out of it.
As a complement to an adjective
Although the sign usually comes before the noun, in some cases the use of prepositions in English allows the adjective to be placed after it, usually accompanied by a circumstance, 'to'-infinitive minor clause or - a prepositional phrase.
- This is a warning to people eager for a quick profit.
After the superlative degree of adjectives, a prepositional phrase can be used to indicate the group from which the subject stands out:
- Henry was the biggest of them.
- Cakes probably are the best in the world. - He was the most dangerous man in the country.
As a conjunction in a complex sentence
Some prepositions have the same form as conjunctions used to attach secondary clauses, eg /'since', 'till', 'until', 'after', 'before'/.
- I’ve been looking for the new opportunity since I knew that/
