PREPOSITIONS

A word that is used before a noun, pronoun, or gerund to show place, time, direction etc. In the phrase
‘the trees in the park’, ‘in’ is a preposition.

Types of Prepositions

There are five types of prepositions. They are simple, double, compound, participle, and phrase
prepositions

Simple : in ,over, from by ,etc .

Double: into ,inside, within,etc

Compound: , on behalf of, subsequent to, according to ,etc.

Participle : containing, considering , including, not withstanding,

Phrase Preposition: With a view to, Look forward to, etc.

Transitive Verbs

Transitive verbs are the verbs that

take direct object after them can be changed into passive voice due to presence of an object in the
sentence..

It Is altogether wrong to use preposition with a transitive verb.

For Example

She scolds her child for his misbehavior.

The child is scolded for his misbehavior by her daily.( P.V)

Note:

If a verb is a noun or adjective too in his same form( zero conversion),a preposition may be used when it
comes as a noun or adjective.

For Example:

His enemy attacked( transitive verb) him in the battlefield.

There have been several attacks (plural countable noun) on foreigners these days.

Intransitive Verbs

Intransitive verbs don’t take a direct object after them. They may take a preposition/ or adverb or
nothing after them

For Example:
He listens to the music.

Here listen is an Intransitive verb that takes preposition ‘to’ after it.

He laughs(Intransitive verb) heartily. (adverb)

He smiles. (Intransitive verb)

Note:

Be careful in the use of a preposition with a transitive verb.

Ambitransitive Verbs

These verbs can behave both transtiviely and intransitively.

For Example

1a.She walked in the park (Intransitive)

1b. He walked his horse. (Transitive)

1.He teaches Economics.(Transitive)

b. He teaches in a private school. (Intransitive)

Some important points to remember

# Never use a preposition before a that- Clause. e.g

I am certain of that you will achieve your goal.

We can change this sentence in two ways:

-I am certain of your achieving your goal.

I am certain that you will achieve your goal.

# If two words take same preposition ,we add preposition with the last word.

He is sure and confident of his success .

But

He is fond of and interested in book reading .

# If the word ‘home’ is preceded by a dynamic word of movement, we don’t use preposition before it.

For Example

We took to home a mess of fox squirrels. (UHS Test) We took home a mess of fox squirrels.

He arrived home late.

# Go+ Gerund (some sporty activity /activity of exertion) takes no preposition after ‘go’.
We go to school daily.

But

We go hitch- hiking on week ends.

He went hunting with his friends.

Here ‘hitch-hiking ‘and ‘hunting’ are sporty activities ;so we don’t use preposition (for/on / or any other
preposition) before them.

# Latin Adjectives ending on ‘ior’ take preposition ‘to’ after them.

For Example

My car is superior to your car.

He is junior to me.

Note:

#Use objective case of a pronoun after a preposition.

I got gifts for her. (Objective case of pronoun)

# Some fixed phrases have prepositions with them

For Example:Look forward to,with a view to,

Used to

I looked forward to a period of permanent felicity.

I visited the shop with a view to buying something.

He used to hunt for squirrels last year.

There are certain phrases with fixed prepositions in them

For Example

After all, in general, at last,above all, at large,at risk, in the morning at night in the future in the past.

Their structures are unchangeable.

# When a preposition is sandwiched between the same noun, noun remains singular.

Day by day, town after town, page by page, door to door ,etc.

Preposition at the end of a sentence

1. Wh-Questions: What are you waiting for?

Where does this road lead to?
2. Relative Clauses: This is the house (that) I told you about.
3. Passive Voice: Children like to be looked after.
 Last night Jim had been operated upon .
4. Infinitive Structures:Give me a pen to write with.

One day this world will become a better place to live in

Their house is not easy to get to.

COMBINATION OF PREPOSITIONS
Noun +Preposition
demand/need FOR.

The company went out of business. There was no demand for its product any more.

There’s no excuse for behavior like that. There’s no need for it.

reason FOR

The train was late, but nobody knew the reason for the delay. (not reason of)

noun+of

cause OF

The cause of the explosion is unknown.

A picture/a photo/a photograph/a map/a drawing OF

An advantage/a disadvantage OF

The advantage of living alone is that you can do what you like.

But there is an advantage IN doing something or TO doing something There are many advantages in
living alone. Or… many advantages to living alone.

Noun+in

An increase/a decrease/arise/a fall IN (prices etc.) There has been an increase in the number of road
accidents recently. Last year was a bad one for the company. There was a big fall in sales.

Noun+to

Damage TO…
The accident was my fault, so I had to pay for the damage to the other cat

-An invitation TO (a party/a wedding etc.)

A solution TO a problem/ a key TO a door/an answer TO a question/a reply TO a letter/ a reaction TO

something

I hope we find a solution to the problem, (not a solution of the problem) I was surprised at her reaction
to my suggestion.

An attitude TO or an attitude TOWARDS sth

Noun with…/between

A relationship/aconnection/contact WITH sth /sb

A relationship/aconnection/contact/a difference BETWEEN two things or people.

cure For

There is no easy cure for loneliness .

But

She was cured of cancer.

ADJECTIVES+PREPOSITION
Adjectives+ of

Afraid/scared/frightened/terrified OF

Are you afraid of spiders?

But Afraid for ( worried) sth

She is afraid for her future .

Fond/proud/ashamed/jealous/envious OF… Why is he so jealous of other people?

Suspicious/critical/tolerant OF They didn’t trust me. They were suspicious of my motives.

Aware/conscious OF ‘Did you know he was married? No, I wasn’t aware of that.”
Capable/incapable OF I’m sure you are capable of doing the job well.

Full/short OF

Amy is a very active person she’s always full of energy.

I’m a bit short of money.

Typical OF…

He’s late again. It’s typical of him to keep everybody waiting

Certain/sure OF or ABOUT…

I think she’s arriving this evening, but I’m not sure of that or not sure about that.

Adjective+at/to/from/in/on/with/for

Good/bad/brilliant/better/hopeless etc. AT

Married/engaged TO

Louise is married to an American, (not married with)

but Louise is married with three children. (she is married and has three children)

Similar TO

Your handwriting is similar to mine.

Different FROM or different TO

The film was different from what I’d expected. Or different to what I’d expected.

Interested IN

Are you interested in art?

Keen ON

We stayed at home. Chris wasn’t keen on going out.

But

Keen to do sth

Dependent On/Upon (but independent OF…) I don’t want to be dependent on anybody.

Crowded WITH (people etc.) The streets were crowded with tourists. (but… full of tourists)

Famous FOR

The Italian city of Florence is famous for its art treasures.

Responsible FOR

Who was responsible for all that noise last night?

Indispensable to somebody/something:She made herself indispensable to the department.

Indispensable for something/for doing something: A good dictionary is indispensable for learning a
foreign language.

VERB + Preposition

Talk/speak TO somebody (talk/speak with is also possible) Who were you talking to?

Listen TO…

When I’m driving, I like to listen to the radio. (not listen the radio)

Apologise TO somebody (for…)

They apologized to me for their mistake( not

They apologized me )

Explain something TO somebody

Explain/describe (to somebody) what/how/why… explained to them why I was worried, (not I
explained them) Let me describe to you what I saw. (not Let me describe you)

Phone somebody, ask somebody etc. (without to)

Phone/call/email/text somebody

I called the airline to cancel my flight. (not )

But we say reply to (an email/a letter etc.).

Ask somebody (a question)

If there’s anything you want to know, you can ask me. (not ask to me)

Thank somebody (for…)

Verb+at

He thanked me for helping him. (not He thanked to me)

Look/stare/glance AT have a look/take a look AT…

Why are you looking at me like that?

Laugh AT

I look stupid with this haircut. Everybody will laugh at me.

Aim/point (something) AT… shoot/fire (a gun) AT…

Don’t point that knife at me. It’s dangerous. We saw someone with a gun shooting at birds, but he didn’t
hit any.

Some verbs can be followed by at or to, with a difference in meaning, For example:

Shout AT somebody (when you are angry or aggressive)

He got very angry and started shouting at me shout TO somebody (so that they can hear you) He
shouted to me from the other side of the street.

Throw something AT somebody/something (to hit them) Somebody threw an egg at the politician.
Throw something TO somebody (for somebody to catch)

Lisa shouted ‘Catch and threw the keys to me from the window.

Apologise for/thank sb for sth

Hear ABOUT… be told about something

Did you hear about the fire at the hotel?

Hear OF… know that somebody/something exists

A: Who is Tom Hart?

B: I have no idea. I’ve never heard of him. (not heard from him)

Hear FROM… be in contact with somebody

A: Have you heard from Jane recently?

B: Yes, she called me a few days ago

Think ABOUT something consider it, concentrate your mind on it. I’ve thought about what you said and
I’ve decided to take your advice
Think OF something produce an idea:

It was my idea. I thought of it first. (not thought about it) I felt embarrassed. I couldn’t think of anything
to say. (not think about anything)

We also use think of when we ask for or give an opinion:

What did you think of the movie?

You can say think of or think about doing something (for possible future actions): My sister is thinking
of going to Canada, or thinking about going…

Dream ABOUT… (when you are asleep) dreamt about you last night.

Dream OF/ABOUT being something/doing something-imagine

Do you dream of being rich and famous? Or… dream about being rich….

Complain (TO somebody) ABOUT…

Complain OF a pain, an illness etc. say that you have a pain etc .

We called the doctor because George was complaining of a pain in his stomach.

Remind somebody ABOUT… tell somebody not to forget It’s good you reminded me about the
meeting. I’d completely forgotten about it.

Remind somebody OF ( some past event) cause somebody to remember .

This house reminds me of the one I lived in when I was a child.

Consist in ( to be based / depend / lie on sth)Not used in progressive form.

Happiness doesn’t consist in how many possessions you have.

Consist of /be composed of/ be made up of ( to be formed of one / two persons / things)

The audience consisted mainly of teenagers.

My family consists of / is made up of/ is composed of five people.

Write in (coloured ink)

Write with sth( instrument)

He wrote the assignment in blue ink.

He wrote with a pencil.

But

He draws in pencil.( Referring image / font)

He draws with a pencil. ( Referring instrument)

Part from sb :A child doesn’t want to part from his parents.

Part with: She doesn’t want to part with her belongings.

Belong to: (be a member of)He belongs to a local athletics club.

Belong in/on,etc: ( fit in/on a place) Those glasses belong on the top shelf.

The chair belongs in this room.

SOME IMPORTANT PREPOSITIONS:

Agree with a person / opinion / policy: If she felt he was right, she would agree with him.

Mr.Chips didn’t agree with the new pronunciation.

Agree on/about a subject of discussion:We don’t agree on everything, of course.

Agree to a suggestion / demand :My sister won’t agree to our mother going into a nursing home.

Agree on a matter of decision:hey managed to agree on a date for the wedding.

Agree to do something: We agreed to meet again the following Monday.

Arrive at: What time do we arrive at Rawalpindi station?

Also

Arrive at a solution/ conclusion/compromise

Arrive in: (bigger place) When did you arrive in England?

To be in lacking of sth: Your mother is lacking in tact. Or

She lacks tact. ( Used transtively)

Deal in : He deals in clothes.

Deals with : This lesson deals with how the use of scientific method has improved our lives .

He doesn’t know how to deal with this difficult situation.

Some Confusning Prepositions

Among vs between

Among

1 in or through the middle of a group of people or things (having sameness)

The girl quickly disappeared among the crowd.

We walked among the chestnut woods on the mountain slopes.

Between

1 (also in between) in or through the space that separates two things, people, or places

I sat down between Sue and Jane.

A house and stables, with a yard in between

The ball rolled between his feet.

2 (also in between) in the time that separates two times or events

Are there any public holidays between Christmas and Easter?

But

Don’t eat between meals.

I’ve had a few jobs, with long periods of unemployment in between.

Within a range of amounts, numbers, distances etc

In or into the space separating two or more points, objects, people, etc.

Q comes between P and R in the English alphabet.

I sat down between Jo and Diana.

Switzerland lies between France, Germany, Austria and Italy.

The paper had fallen down between the desk and the wall.

Over Vs Above
above
resting on the surface of somebody/something and partly or completely covering them/it

She put a blanket over the sleeping child.

He wore an overcoat over his suit.

In or to a position higher than but not touching somebody/something; above somebody/something

They held a large umbrella over her.

From one side of something to the other; across something

A bridge over the river.

During something

We’ll discuss it over lunch.

Above

At or to a higher place or position than something/somebody

The water came above our knees.

We were flying above the clouds.

Of greater importance or of higher quality than somebody/something

I wilI rate her above most other players of her age.

Under Vs Below

In to or through a position that is below something

Have you looked under the bed?

She placed the ladder under (= just lower than) the window.

According to an agreement, a law or a system

A man was detained under the Mental Health Act.

At or to a lower level, position or place

They live on the floor below.

I could still see the airport buildings far below.

Of temperature

The thermometer had dropped to a record 40 below.

Across vs Through vs Along

From one side to the other side of something

He walked across the field.

On the other side of something

There’s a bank right across the street.

Through

From one end or side of something/somebody to the other

The burglar got in through the window.

The bullet went straight through him.

The doctor pushed his way through the crowd.

The Charles River flows through Boston.

Along

In a line that follows the side of something long

Houses had been built along both sides of the river.

At a particular point on or next to something long

You’ll find his office just along the corridor.

In the corner vs At the corner

In the corner

The place inside a room or box where two walls or sides meet .

Where we place things

In the corner (of something)

There was an old piano in the corner of the living room.

At /on the corner of sth

near something

There is a small shop at the corner of the street .

I m waiting for you at / on the corner.

A beggar stands on the corner every morning.

At the end /beginning Vs In the end / beginning

At the end / beginning of sth = when sth ends

At the end/ beginning of the film/match/course / January / game concert

I am going away at the beginning of January

In the end = finally

Final result of a situation

We had a lot of problems with our car . We sold it in the end( finally)

He got more and more angry . In the end he just walked out of the room

On the way Vs In the way Vs By the way

On the way = in the course of a journey

I met an old student on the way back home .

On the way = coming

Summer is on the way

By the way

Used when saying something that is not related to the main subject you were talking about before

By the way, have you seen my keys anywhere?

Happy Learning☺