Prepositions
How to indicate the
positions of fragments
in a sentence
(02)
Mohammad Hossain
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Prepositions (Phase 02)
#Prepositions of Place and Direction:
Prepositions of place show the relationship of place between the nouns to the other parts of a
sentence. On, at, in, by, from, to, towards, up, down, across, between, among, through, in front
of, behind, above, over, under, below etc. are the most common prepositions of place/direction.
1. In -
Position: present in a place or enclosure,
Example: Your shirt is in the closet.
2. At -
Position: indicates an exact place.
Example: I am standing at 13/4 Banani.
** If two locations are mention in a sentence so the smaller place will be denoted with at
and the larger one with in.
Example: He lives at Dhaka in Bangladesh.
3. On -
Position: indicates a position above but touching the object.
Example: The phone is on the table. (Phone is touching with the table)
4. Above -
Position: indicates a much higher position than the preposition on does. It also indicates
something out of reach.
Example: The sky is above my head.
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5. Over -
Position: means a position between on and above which is not touching.
Example: There are clouds over the hills.
6. Under -
Position: the opposite of on and means ‘below the surface of’ something.
Example: The cat is under the table.
7. Below -
Position: indicates something at a slightly lower position than what under indicates.
Example: I have a scar just below my right eye.
8. To -
Position: indicates a motion in the direction of a place, indicates the destined place if
someone is going to one place from another.
Example: He went to college.
From Dhaka, he is going to Sylhet.
9. From -
Position: indicates the point of place at which a motion, journey, or action starts.
Example: He came to Barisal from England.
10. Into -
Position: indicates a motion towards/going inside something. It has many uses.
Example: He came into the house.
11. Out of -
Position: means the opposite of into. It indicates a motion towards outside of something.
Example: He is going out of the town.
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12. Through -
Position: indicates a motion in the middle of something.
Example: We drove through the tunnel.
13. Across -
Position: means going to the other side of a river or road or something straight.
Example: He went across the river.
14. Beside -
Beside means at the side of/ next to something.
Example: The car beside the cycle is mine.
15. In front of -
Position: means a position facing someone/something.
Example: He parked his car in front of my house.
16. Behind -
Position: at the far side of something (might be out of sight). It is opposite of in front of
Example: I have a pool behind my house.
17. Towards -
Position: a motion in the direction of something literary or metaphorically.
Example: They moved towards the Labour Party.
18. By -
Position: means ‘near to or next to’ something or someone.
Example: He has a house by the river.
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19. Between -
Position: indicates something/someone to be in the middle of two other things or
persons.
Example: This matter is between you and him.
20. Among -
Position: indicates something/someone to be in the middle of three or more other things
or persons.
Example: Alex is sitting among the patients.
#Prepositions of Agents or Things:
Prepositions of agents or things indicate a normal relationship between nouns and other parts
of the sentence. Of, for, to, by, with, about, etc. are the most used and common prepositions of
agents or things.
1. Of -
Position: used for belonging to, relating to, or connected with
Example: Most of the guests have already left.
Position: used to indicate reference
Example: I got a discount of 10 percent on the purchase.
Position: used to indicate an amount or number
Example: A large number of people gathered to protest.
2. To -
Position: used to indicate a limit or an ending point
Example: The snow was piled up to the roof.
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Position: used to indicate relationship
Example: My answer to your question is in this envelop.
3. For -
Position: used to indicate the use of something
Example: She has been studying hard for the final exam.
Position: used to mean because of
Example: I am so happy for you.
4. By -
Position: The way something is done.
Example: We will contact you by phone or by email.
Position: In passive sentences we use by to show who or what did an action
Example: She was astonished by his request.
Position: The way someone travels.
Example: We will go there by bus.
** do not use ‘the’, ‘my’ or ‘a’ when you use ‘by’. Instead use:
'on the plane.', 'in my car.', 'on a boat.’, ‘on a bicycle etc.’
5. With -
Position: used to indicate being together or being involved
Example: He was with his friend when he saw me.
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Position: Used to indicate, "having"
Example: People with a lot of money are not always happy.
Position: used to indicate, "using"
Example: I wrote a letter with the pen you gave me.
Position: Used to indicate feeling
Example: He came to the front stage with confidence.
Position: Used to indicate agreement or understanding
Example: She agrees with me.
6. About -
Position: can mean in connection with
Example: I don’t know anything about it.
Position: can be used to make a rough estimate of something
Example: There were about twenty boys in the class. (It is a rough estimate of the
number of students in the class. The actual figure could be slightly higher or lower.)
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