5.1 What Are Prepositions?

A preposition is a word that shows the relationship between a noun or pronoun and another word in a sentence. It indicates time, place, direction, manner, cause, or possession.

Examples:

• The book is on the table. (on shows the relationship between “book” and “table”)
• We met after lunch. (after shows a time relationship between “met” and “lunch”)
• She walked towards the park. (towards shows the direction of movement)

5.2 Types of Prepositions

1. Prepositions of Place (Where?)

These prepositions indicate position or location.

Preposition	Meaning	Example
In	Inside a space	She is in the room.
On	On the surface	The phone is on the table.
At	A specific point	We met at the bus stop.
Under	Beneath	The cat is under the chair.
Over	Above without touching	The plane flew over the city.
Between	In the middle of two things	The park is between the school and the mall.
Behind	At the back	He is behind the door.
Next to	Beside	She sat next to me.

Examples in sentences:

• The books are on the shelf.
• The dog is sleeping under the bed.
• My school is near the hospital.

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2. Prepositions of Time (When?)

These prepositions indicate time relationships.

Preposition	Meaning	Example
In	Months, years, centuries, long periods	We were born in July.
On	Days, dates, specific occasions	She arrived on Monday.
At	Specific times	The train leaves at 5 PM.
By	Before a deadline	Finish your homework by 8 PM.
Before	Earlier than something	We met before the show.
After	Later than something	They left after dinner.
Since	From a point in time until now	I have lived here since 2015.
For	Duration of time	She stayed for two weeks.

Examples in sentences:

• We will meet at 6 PM.
• My birthday is on January 10.
• He has been working here since 2020.

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3. Prepositions of Direction or Movement (Where to?)

These show the direction of movement.

Preposition	Meaning	Example
To	Towards a destination	She is going to school.
Into	Movement inside	He went into the room.
Onto	Movement onto a surface	The cat jumped onto the table.
From	Starting point	We came from London.
Towards	In the direction of	He ran towards me.
Out of	Leaving a place	She walked out of the house.

Examples in sentences:

• He ran towards the exit.
• She got into the car.
• The ball rolled onto the road.

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4. Prepositions of Manner (How?)

These show the way something happens.

Examples:

• He solved the problem with ease.
• She looked at him in anger.
• They traveled by car.

Common Prepositions of Manner:

• By (by train, by car)
• With (with a knife, with care)
• In (in fear, in silence)

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5. Prepositions of Cause, Reason, and Purpose

These show why something happens.

Examples:

• He was absent because of illness.
• She got a reward for her hard work.
• The flight was delayed due to bad weather.

Common Prepositions for Cause:

• Because of
• Due to
• Owing to
• For

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6. Prepositions of Possession

These show ownership or relationship.

Examples:

• The keys of the house are missing.
• He is a friend of mine.

Common Prepositions of Possession:

• Of
• With
• To

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7. Prepositions in Phrasal Verbs

Prepositions are often part of phrasal verbs (verb + preposition).

Examples:

• Look after (take care of) → She looks after her brother.
• Get over (recover from) → He got over his illness.
• Give up (quit) → He gave up smoking.

Exercises

A. Fill in the blanks with the correct preposition of place:

1. The keys are ___ the table.
2. She is waiting ___ the bus stop.
3. The cat is hiding ___ the couch.
4. There is a beautiful park ___ my house.
5. The boy sat ___ the chair.

B. Fill in the blanks with the correct preposition of time:

1. My birthday is ___ July.
2. We will meet ___ 6 PM.
3. She was born ___ 2002.
4. The concert is ___ Friday.
5. He has lived here ___ five years.

C. Fill in the blanks with the correct preposition of movement:

1. We are going ___ school.
2. She walked ___ the door.
3. The ball rolled ___ the hill.
4. He jumped ___ the river.
5. The bird flew ___ the tree.

D. Identify the prepositions in these sentences:

1. She is sitting between her two friends.
2. The book is on the table.
3. He was absent because of illness.
4. They ran towards the exit.
5. The bus arrives at 9 AM.

Answers

A. Prepositions of Place:

1. on
2. at
3. under
4. near
5. on

B. Prepositions of Time:

1. in
2. at
3. in
4. on
5. for

C. Prepositions of Movement:

1. to
2. through
3. down
4. into
5. over

D. Identifying Prepositions:

1. between
2. on
3. because of
4. towards
5. at