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The Preposition

  As we know a preposition is an important part of speech which is defined as a word that connects the object of the preposition to some other element in the sentence, or it is a connecting word that shows the relationship between a noun and a pronoun and some other element in the sentence.  We well-know that a preposition never changes form, unlike nouns, verbs and modifiers, which may change form according to their meaning and use in a sentence.

  In addition, we are aware that a preposition is always followed by a noun or a pronoun, and that the preposition and its object, together with any modifiers, are named a prepositional phrase. Nevertheless, do we really know how to use correctly a preposition in sentences? Do we know how to use appropriately a prepositional phrase in sentences?

  The aim of this blog is to explain and provide useful information about what a preposition is, about the types of prepositions, and about what a prepositional phrase is, and how to use them all correctly in a sentence. But first we will see a brief explanation about the parts of speech, and then, we will study about the preposition.

What is part of Speech?
A part of speech is a classification of words according to how they are used in a sentence and the types of ideas they convey. There are 8 parts of speech which are:

• Noun
• Pronoun
• Verb
• Adverb
• Adjective (including the articles)
• Preposition (which will be studied in this blog)
• Conjunction
• Interjection

What is a Preposition?
A preposition is a word that connects the object of the preposition (a noun or a pronoun) to other element in the sentence in order to describe their relationship.  It is important also to know that a preposition is always followed by a noun or a pronoun. Here we have some examples about the use of prepositions in sentences:

     -The dog is behind the postman.

       Preposition of place                      (Postman is the object of the preposition “behind”)

     -Someone is at the door.                      

       Preposition of place                      (Door is the object of the preposition “at”)

     -I used to live in Quito.                           

      Preposition of place                        (Quito is the object of the preposition “in”)

     -I bought a nice gift for her.                 

                 Preposition              (her is the object of the preposition “for”

    -The dog jumped at my face and really scared me.      

                     Preposition of Direction       (Face is the object of the preposition “at”)

  We use many prepositions with great frequency, but the entire list is relatively short. Here are the most common ones. 

About	Behind	During	On	To
Above	Beneath	Except	Onto	Toward
Across	Below	For	Out	Under
After	Beside	From	Outside	Underneath
Against	Besides	In	Over	Unlike
Along	Beyond	Inside	Past	Until
Among	But (except)	Into	Regarding	Up
Around	By	Like	Round	Upon
As	Concerning	Near	Since	With
At	Despite	Of	through	Within
Before	Down	Off	Throughout	without

Types of Prepositions

  Actually, there is not a limit set of types of Prepositions, but the most common ones are the following:

• Prepositions of Time
• Prepositions of Place
• Prepositions of Direction
• Prepositions of Manner
• Prepositions of Agent or Instrument

Prepositions of Time

A preposition of time helps to link the noun, or pronoun with a time value. Here we have a list of the common prepositions of time:

Preposition “in”

      Month or year:

           -He was born in January.

           -The Second World War ended in 1945.

     Particular time of day or moth, or year:

          -He gets up early in the morning.

          -He is going to New York in this summer.

      Century or specific time in past, in future, etc:

          -The Smartphone was developed in the 21^st century.

Preposition “on”

           Days of week:

-I will take the final exam on Monday.

 Date:

-She will go to New York on 25th of March.

Particular Days:

-He enjoyed a lot on his birthday.

            -The president will deliver speech to public on Independence Day.

Preposition “at”

                     Time of clock:

           -The concert will start at 8 o’ clock.

Short and precise time: at noon, at bed time, at lunch time, etc.

          -Where were you at the lunch time?

          -I like to read the newspaper at noon.

More examples with some other prepositions of time:

         -will finish his work by 6:00 p.m.

         -I went to London last June.

         -Brazil has not got another World Cup since 2002.

         -I have been living here for 22 years.

         -I fell asleep during the film.

         -I always take a break after having lunch.

         -Last Sunday we watched TV from 3 to 8 o’ clock.

         -I lost my friend to Cancer two years ago.

         -They promised to love each other until the end of their lives.

         -It is ten past nine.

Prepositions of Place

A preposition of place, as the name suggests, link the noun/pronoun with a particular place or spot. These are also called prepositions of location or position.

In	Below	Near	Behind	Onto	Into	Around
On	Above	Far	In front of	Off	Out of	Among
At	Next to	Under	Between	Across	To	From
By	Beside	Over	Opposite	Through	Towards

It is important to know about prepositions “in, on or at” that are usually used for different places.

Preposition “in

It is usually used for place which have some limit or boundary (boundary may physical or virtual).         In… area or volume

  The preposition “in” is used for:   rooms, buildings, streets, towns, countries, books, paper, car, taxi, pictures, world, etc.

• Examples:

-My girlfriend lives in London.

-Students study in libraries.

-A face appeared in the window.

-My shoes are not in the kitchen.

-Jamie’s article was printed in the newspaper.

Preposition “On”

It is used for surface of something.      On… surface

The preposition “on” is used for: a place with a river, meaning attached, for being on a surface, for a certain side (left, right), for a floor in a house, for public transportation (bus, plane, train, ship), for television, etc.

• Examples

-Cuenca lies on the Tomebamba River.

-My mother likes to hang pictures on the wall.

-There are some books on the table.

-The Administration office is on the first floor.

-I am afraid about traveling on a plane.

Preposition “at"

It is used for specific place.        At…  point

The preposition “at” is used for: table, events, meaning next to, meaning by an object, and for places where you are to do something typical (watch a film, study, work).

• Examples:

-That man is waiting for his sister at the bank.

-Alejandro is not at home.

-The secretary was sitting at her desk.

-I used to live at Gran Colombia Street.

Furthermore, we should consider the correct use of some other prepositions for places such as:

-I enjoy being among my friends.

-We left the car behind the Bank.

-The prisoner sat between the two policemen.

-The teacher stands in front of the class.

-In my English class I always sit next to Karen.

-I enjoy watching the planes fly above me.

-That cat lives under the bridge.

-The chess players sat opposite each other before starting their game.

-Alejandro walked beside me as we went down the street.

-The Mall is near a subway station.

-We couldn't park the car close to the store.

-Miners work below the surface of the Earth.