I have a preposition for you...: Prepositions 101

Without prepositions, we would be confused and afraid. We wouldn't know where we were, when we were or where we were going. Prepositions tell us where and when things (nouns) are in relation to each other.

Prepositions can be grouped into 8 different kinds:

1. Prepositions of Time: Mr. Jack will meet his colleagues at 3 PM.

2. Prepositions of Place: Mr. Jack left his briefcase under the table in the meeting room.

3. Prepositions of Movement: Mr. Jack walked to the office with a smile on his face.

4. Prepositions of Manner: Mr. Jack completed the project with great attention to detail.

5. Prepositions of Source: The new idea originated from Mr. Jack's creative mind.

6. Prepositions of Measure: Mr. Jack completed the task within five minutes.

7. Prepositions of Possession: The success of the project belongs to Mr. Jack.

8. Agentive Prepositions: The report was completed by Mr. Jack with the help of his team.

This table will help to make these clear:

Common Mistakes

For/to - In my experience, students mix up these two a fair bit.

"I said for you that I would not be able to do my homework." X

"I said to you that I would not be able to do my homework." - Correct

"I bought a gift to my sister." X

"I bought a gift for my sister." - Correct

Misuse of 'of' - this one is made even by native speakers!

This comes about because phrases such as 'should have' are often shortened to 'should've'. The 've sounds a bit like 'of' and so learners often end up saying or writing 'should of' or 'would of' or 'could of'. This is a mistake.

I should of listened when my teacher taught me about prepositions. X

I should have listened when my teacher taught me about prepositions. - Correct

At, On, and In

When referring to a time or date, we use different prepositions depending on the situation.

If you’re talking about a time of day, the correct term is “at”: English class starts at 9pm.

For a specific day or date, meanwhile, we use “on”: I have an English class on Saturday.

And for a month or year, the correct preposition is “in”: English classes start in April.

Have a go at putting the correct word in the gaps: (answers below)

1. I could _______ saved it for later, but I wanted to eat it now.

2. I am going to a party ____ Saturday.

3. The party starts ______ 7:30pm.

4. I don't normally go to parties _____ January.

5. I gave a gift _______ my teacher.

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Answers

1. I could have saved it for later, but I wanted to eat it now.

2. I am going to a party on Saturday.

3. The party starts at 7:30pm.

4. I don't normally go to parties in January.

5. I gave a gift to my teacher.