- \r\n \t
- The woods behind<\/strong>\u00a0my house<\/em>\u00a0are creepy at<\/strong> night<\/em>.<\/li>\r\n \t
- She studied\u00a0until<\/strong> three in the morning<\/em>.<\/li>\r\n \t
- He was\u00a0happy for<\/strong> them<\/em>.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nPrepositions generally\u00a0come before their complements (e.g., in <\/strong>England, under<\/strong> the table, of<\/strong> Jane).\u00a0However, there are a small handful of exceptions, including\u00a0notwithstanding<\/strong> and\u00a0ago<\/strong>:\r\n
- \r\n \t
- Financial limitations<\/em> notwithstanding<\/strong>, Phil paid back his debts.<\/li>\r\n \t
- He was released three days<\/em> ago<\/strong>.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nPrepositions of location are pretty easily defined (near<\/em>, far<\/em>,\u00a0over<\/em>, under<\/em>, etc.), and prepositions about time are\u00a0as well (before<\/em>, after<\/em>, at<\/em>, during<\/em>, etc.). Prepositions of\u00a0\"more abstract relationships,\" however, are a little more nebulous in their definition. The video below gives a good overview of this category of prepositions:\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/RPiAT-Nm3JY\r\n
\r\n\r\nNote:<\/strong> The video said that prepositions are a closed group, but it never actually explained\u00a0what a closed group\u00a0is. Perhaps the easiest way to define a closed group is to define its opposite: an open group. An open group is a part of speech that allows new words\u00a0to be added. For example, nouns are an open group; new nouns, like\u00a0selfie\u00a0<\/em>and\u00a0blog<\/em>, enter the language all the time (verbs, adjectives, and adverbs are open groups as well).\r\n\r\nThus a\u00a0closed group simply\u00a0refers to a part of speech that doesn't allow in new words. All of the word types in this section\u2014prepositions, articles, and conjunctions\u2014are closed groups.\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\nSo far, all of the prepositions we've looked at have been one word (and most of them have been one syllable). The most common prepositions\u00a0are one-syllable words. According to one\u00a0ranking, the most common English prepositions are on<\/i>, in<\/i>, to<\/i>, by<\/i>, for<\/i>, with<\/i>, at<\/i>, of<\/i>, from<\/i>, as.<\/i>\r\n\r\nThere are also some prepositions that have more than one word:\r\n- \r\n \t
- in spite of<\/em> (She\u00a0won the election in spite of gerrymandering.)<\/li>\r\n \t
- by means of<\/em> (They filtered the water by means of porous membranes.)<\/li>\r\n \t
- except for<\/em> (The prices of all commodities spiked except for\u00a0oil.)<\/li>\r\n \t
- next to<\/em> (The cell phone tower is next to a busy mall.)<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
\r\nPractice<\/h3>\r\nIdentify the\u00a0prepositions in the following sentences:\r\n
- \r\n \t
- I love every painting by\u00a0Vermeer except for\u00a0The Girl with the Pearl Earring.<\/em><\/li>\r\n \t
- In spite of their cheaper price, batteries were still considered undesirable before the company arranged a safe disposal method.<\/li>\r\n \t
- The 1933 Banditry bill was\u00a0about\u00a0combating\u00a0the developing technology of getaways.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n[reveal-answer q=\"478512\"]Show Answer[\/reveal-answer]\r\n[hidden-answer a=\"478512\"]\r\n\r\nThe prepositions have been bolded in the sentences below:\r\n
- \r\n \t
- I love every painting by<\/strong> Vermeer except for<\/strong> The Girl with<\/strong> the Pearl Earring.<\/em><\/li>\r\n \t
- In spite of<\/strong> their cheaper price, batteries were still considered undesirable before<\/strong> the company arranged a safe disposal method.<\/li>\r\n \t
- The 1933 Banditry bill was\u00a0about<\/strong>\u00a0combating the developing technology of<\/strong>\u00a0getaways.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n[\/hidden-answer]\r\n\r\n<\/div>\r\n
Using Prepositions<\/h2>\r\nA lot of struggles with prepositions come from trying to use the correct preposition. Some verbs require specific prepositions. Here's a table of some of the most commonly misused preposition\/verb pairs:\r\n
\r\n\r\n
\r\n different from<\/td>\r\n comply with<\/td>\r\n dependent on<\/td>\r\n think of or about<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n \r\n need of<\/td>\r\n profit by<\/td>\r\n glad of<\/td>\r\n bestow upon<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\nSome verbs take a different preposition, depending on the object of the sentence:\r\n \r\n\r\n
\r\n agree with a person<\/td>\r\n agree to a proposition<\/td>\r\n part from (a person)<\/td>\r\n part with (a thing)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n \r\n differ from (person or thing)<\/td>\r\n differ from or with an opinion<\/td>\r\n confide in (to trust in)<\/td>\r\n confide to (to entrust to)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n \r\n reconcile with\u00a0(a person)<\/td>\r\n reconcile to\u00a0(a statement or idea)<\/td>\r\n confer on (to give)<\/td>\r\n confer with (to talk with)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n \r\n compare with (to determine value)<\/td>\r\n compare to (because of similarity)<\/td>\r\n convenient to (a place)<\/td>\r\n convenient for (a purpose)<\/td>\r\n<\/tr>\r\n<\/tbody>\r\n<\/table>\r\nWhen multiple objects take the same preposition, you don't need to repeat the preposition. For example, in the sentence \"I'll read any book by J. K. Rowling or R. L. Stine,\" both\u00a0J. K. Rowling<\/em> and\u00a0R. L. Stine<\/em> are objects of the preposition\u00a0by<\/em>,\u00a0so it only needs to appear once in the sentence. However, you can't do this when you have\u00a0different prepositions, as in the common phrase \"We fell out of the frying pan and into the fire.\" If you leave out one of the prepositions, as in\u00a0\"We fell out of the frying pan and the fire,\" the sentence is saying that we fell out of the frying pan\u00a0and<\/em> out of the fire, which would be a preferable fate, but isn't\u00a0the point of\u00a0this idiom.\r\n Prepositions in Sentences<\/h2>\r\nYou'll often hear about prepositional phrases<\/strong> (especially if you and your friends like to read grammar guides). A prepositional phrase includes a\u00a0preposition and its\u00a0complement (e.g., \"behind<\/strong> the house<\/em>\" or \"a long time ago<\/strong><\/em>\").\u00a0These phrases can appear at the beginning or end of sentences. When they appear at the beginning of a sentence, they typically\u00a0need a comma afterwards:\r\n
- \r\n \t
- You can drop that off behind the house. Behind the house, there's a covered porch.<\/li>\r\n \t
- A\u00a0long time ago, dinosaurs roamed the earth. Pterodactyls ruled the air a long time ago.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n
Ending a Sentence with a Preposition<\/h2>\r\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/NhGQYjXMgsY\r\n\r\nAs we just learned, it is totally okay to end a sentence with a preposition. And, as we saw, it can often make your writing smoother and more concise to do so.\r\n\r\nHowever, it's still best to avoid doing it unnecessarily. If your sentence ends with a preposition and would still mean the same thing without the preposition, take it out. Consider:\r\n
- \r\n \t
- Where are you at?<\/li>\r\n \t
- That's not what it's used for.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nIf you remove\u00a0at<\/em>, the sentence becomes \"Where are you?\" This means the same thing, so removing\u00a0at<\/em> is a good idea. Not only is the preposition redundant, but it also changes the register of the sentence to colloquial; you might say \"Where are you at?\" but you shouldn't write it in the fairly formal register of standard English.\r\n\r\nOn the other hand, if you remove\u00a0for<\/em>, the next sentence becomes \"That's not what it's used,\" which doesn't make sense.\r\n\r\nAnother common issue with prepositions is piling too many into a sentence, often including an additional one at the end: \"With which acid\u00a0am I supposed to mix the water with?\" Again, this unconventional use in standardized English tends to occur when students are out of their comfort zone: here, the relationship between the water and some acid isn't clear, or the student is unclear on the instructions, or the student is nervous that something is about to explode, and the language is reflecting that unease.\r\n\r\n
Practice<\/h3>\r\nRead each sentence and determine if the prepositions are being used correctly. If they are not, re-write the sentence.\r\n
- \r\n \t
- Do you have any idea why Olivia keeps calling for?<\/li>\r\n \t
- You have no idea how much trouble you're in.<\/li>\r\n \t
- Luiz\u00a0agreed with hand his credit card over to the cashier.<\/li>\r\n \t
- Last week Ngozi reconciled herself to the new\u00a0prices and the co-worker she had argued with.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n[practice-area rows=\"4\"][\/practice-area]\r\n[reveal-answer q=\"196326\"]Show Answer[\/reveal-answer]\r\n[hidden-answer a=\"196326\"]\r\n
- \r\n \t
- Incorrect. The preposition\u00a0for<\/em> does not work with the preposition\u00a0why<\/em>. There are two potential revisions for this sentence:\r\n
- \r\n \t
- Do you have any idea why<\/em> Olivia keeps calling?<\/li>\r\n \t
- Do you have any idea what<\/strong>\u00a0Olivia keeps calling for<\/strong>?<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t
- Correct. The preposition\u00a0in<\/strong> at the end of the sentence is necessary. \"You have no idea how much trouble you are\" means something different than the sentence's original intent.<\/li>\r\n \t
- Incorrect. The preposition is\u00a0with<\/strong>.\u00a0You agree with<\/em> a person or an idea, but you agree to<\/em> do something:\r\n
- \r\n \t
- Luiz agreed to<\/strong>\u00a0hand his credit card to the cashier.<\/li>\r\n \t
- Luiz agreed with<\/strong>\u00a0handing his credit card to the cashier.\r\n
- \r\n \t
- This sentence is still awkward; the first revision is the best choice.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t
- Incorrect. There's a missing preposition in the sentence. It should read: \"Last week Ngozi reconciled herself to the new prices and with the\u00a0co-worker she had argued with.\" You reconcile to<\/em> a fact and\u00a0with<\/em> a person. You need both with<\/em>s in this sentence because reconcile with<\/em> and argue with<\/em> both need a preposition; it just happens to be the same preposition in both cases.<\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n[\/hidden-answer]\r\n\r\n<\/div>","rendered":"
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Prepositions\u00a0are relation words;\u00a0they\u00a0can indicate location, time, or other more abstract relationships. Prepositions are noted in bold in these examples:<\/p>\n- \n
- The woods\u00a0behind<\/strong>\u00a0my house\u00a0are creepy at<\/strong> night.<\/li>\n
- She studied\u00a0until<\/strong> three in the morning.<\/li>\n
- He was\u00a0happy for<\/strong> them.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
A preposition combines with another word (usually a noun or pronoun) called the complement<\/em>. Prepositions are still in bold, and their complements are in italics:<\/p>\n
- \n
- The woods behind<\/strong>\u00a0my house<\/em>\u00a0are creepy at<\/strong> night<\/em>.<\/li>\n
- She studied\u00a0until<\/strong> three in the morning<\/em>.<\/li>\n
- He was\u00a0happy for<\/strong> them<\/em>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Prepositions generally\u00a0come before their complements (e.g., in <\/strong>England, under<\/strong> the table, of<\/strong> Jane).\u00a0However, there are a small handful of exceptions, including\u00a0notwithstanding<\/strong> and\u00a0ago<\/strong>:<\/p>\n
- \n
- Financial limitations<\/em> notwithstanding<\/strong>, Phil paid back his debts.<\/li>\n
- He was released three days<\/em> ago<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Prepositions of location are pretty easily defined (near<\/em>, far<\/em>,\u00a0over<\/em>, under<\/em>, etc.), and prepositions about time are\u00a0as well (before<\/em>, after<\/em>, at<\/em>, during<\/em>, etc.). Prepositions of\u00a0“more abstract relationships,” however, are a little more nebulous in their definition. The video below gives a good overview of this category of prepositions:<\/p>\n
- He was released three days<\/em> ago<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
- She studied\u00a0until<\/strong> three in the morning<\/em>.<\/li>\n
- She studied\u00a0until<\/strong> three in the morning.<\/li>\n
- The woods\u00a0behind<\/strong>\u00a0my house\u00a0are creepy at<\/strong> night.<\/li>\n
- Luiz agreed with<\/strong>\u00a0handing his credit card to the cashier.\r\n
- Do you have any idea what<\/strong>\u00a0Olivia keeps calling for<\/strong>?<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/li>\r\n \t
- Do you have any idea why<\/em> Olivia keeps calling?<\/li>\r\n \t
- Incorrect. The preposition\u00a0for<\/em> does not work with the preposition\u00a0why<\/em>. There are two potential revisions for this sentence:\r\n
- In spite of<\/strong> their cheaper price, batteries were still considered undesirable before<\/strong> the company arranged a safe disposal method.<\/li>\r\n \t
- by means of<\/em> (They filtered the water by means of porous membranes.)<\/li>\r\n \t
- He was released three days<\/em> ago<\/strong>.<\/li>\r\n<\/ul>\r\nPrepositions of location are pretty easily defined (near<\/em>, far<\/em>,\u00a0over<\/em>, under<\/em>, etc.), and prepositions about time are\u00a0as well (before<\/em>, after<\/em>, at<\/em>, during<\/em>, etc.). Prepositions of\u00a0\"more abstract relationships,\" however, are a little more nebulous in their definition. The video below gives a good overview of this category of prepositions:\r\n\r\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/RPiAT-Nm3JY\r\n
- She studied\u00a0until<\/strong> three in the morning<\/em>.<\/li>\r\n \t