Verb + Preposition: depend on, comes from, lead to
Noun + Preposition: example of, possibility of, reason for
Preposition + Noun: examples: at the theater, of culture, in the room
Adjective/Participle + Preposition: surprised at, famous for
Prepositions of Location, Place and Time: at school; in White House, in the Museum of Modern Art;
in the last day, in January
Different Combinations of Prepositions
A preposition links a noun or a pronoun following it to another word in the sentence. A noun or pronoun always follows a preposition. Below, you will find most common prepositions.
Prepositions |
|||||
about | above | across | after | against | along |
amid | around | as | at | before | behind |
below | beneath | beside | between | beyond | but |
by | despite | down | during | except | for |
from | in | inside | into | like | near |
on | onto | of | off | opposite | out |
outside | over | past | since | through | to |
toward | under | underneath | until | upon | with |
Although not necessarily that all languages have prepositions, in English without prepositions we would not make sense. Imagine the passage below without prepositions, the meaning would get lost.
The brain where your memories is stored. Everyday the brain loses thousands of cells. These cells are not replaced, but we still keep our memories. Do you know that the brain doesn't feel pain. During the brain surgery, we feel no pain at all.
As you see in this passage, the pronouns 'of', but', 'during' are followed by nouns Prepositions connect nouns that describe an object. In this passage, the noun thousand and cells are connected with the preposition of that describes the noun cell. A prepositional phrase can be more than one word:
under the sun
in the room
Here are some much longer prepositions:
under the sullenly blinking sun
a story of dazzling glamour in the riches
Prepositions can be used with verb, nouns, and adjectives in phrases. The most important group of prepositions are:
1. Verb + Preposition: depend on, comes from, lead to
2. Noun + Preposition: example of, possibility of, reason for
3. Adjective/Participle + Preposition: surprised at, famous for
4. Prepositions of Location, Place and Time: at school; in White House, in the Museum of Modern Art;
in the last day, in January
Attention: Prepositions are meaningful when they are used together with nouns and pronouns. So, always learn prepositions with words they go together. Do not try to translate prepositional verbs to your own language; they will not make sense.
cause of | equivalent of | influence on | result of | evidence of |
need for | use of | danger of | example of | cost of |
solution to | possibility of | effect on | reason for | supply of |
accustomed to | different from | necessary for | responsible for |
expert at | opposes to | based on | surprised at |
free from | compared to | famous for | related to |
afraid of | typical of | critical of | patient with |
Adjective/Participle + Preposition
accustomed to | different from | necessary for | responsible for |
expert at | opposes to | based on | surprised at |
free from | compared to | famous for | related to |
afraid of | typical of | critical of | patient with |
account for | contribute to | insist on | plan on | |
depend on | lead to | rely on | belong to | result in |
overcome by | limited to | fight for | separate from | |
withdraw from | believe in | occur to | look for | carry on |
look into | take off | get on | get off | get in |
Different Combinations of Prepositions
according to | in the process of |
as a consequence | in view of |
as a result of | on account of |
because of | on behalf of |
by means of | on the basis of |
in addition to | prior to |
in spite of | in terms of |
with the exception of | in need of |
in front of | in stead of |
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