Prepositions

1. Prepositions

2. Prepositions • about along below during • above among beneath except • across around beside inside • Some prepositions have been formed by combining some one-syllable prepositions: • into upon without • onto within throughout Note: Look in your textbook for additional examples of prepositions.

3. Prepositional Phrases • A preposition is a word that shows the relationship between a noun or a pronoun and another word in a sentence. • Example: • The dog ran with the man. • The dog ran from the man. • The dog ran at the man. • The dog ran after the man • Note: The relationship between dog and man changes when the preposition changes.

4. Prepositional Phrase • A prepositional phrase always begins with a preposition. • A prepositional phrase always ends with a noun or a pronoun. • That noun or pronoun is identified as “the object of the preposition. • A prepositional phrase can have more than one object.

5. Prepositional Phrases • Prepositional phrases can appear anywhere in a sentence. • A sentence can have more than one prepositional phrase. • Example: • On Monday we’ll meet again. • We’ll meet again on Monday. • We’ll meet on Monday again.

6. Prepositional Phrases • Prepositions without an object can be used as an adverb: • Example: • He ran inside. • He fell down. • He turned the light on. • He worked outside. • Note: With an object the prepositions become prepositional phrases.

7. Prepositional Phrases • There can be more than prepositional phrases in a sentence: • Example: • We always have a test on the first day of the week. • In spite of the errors the team won the game. • She was standing in the middle of the parking lot.

8. Pronouns after Prepositions • Use the object pronoun form when the pronoun is the object of the preposition. • Example: • Subject Pronoun: I saw my mother at the mall. • Object Pronoun: My mother saw me at the mall.

9. Compound Objects of Prepositions • Prepositional phrases can have two objects. • If both objects are pronouns, use the object pronoun form. • I saw him and her at the dance. • If one object is a noun and the other is a pronoun, use the object pronoun form for the pronoun. • The movie was interesting to Joe and me.

10. Summary • A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition and ends with a noun or pronoun. • That noun or pronoun is identified as the object of the preposition. • Use the object pronoun form when the pronoun is the object of the preposition. • When you have a list of people that includes you, it is nice to put yourself last.

11. Functions of Prepositional Phrases • Prepositional phrases function in one of two ways: • Adverbs • Adjectives

12. Prepositions as Adjectives • Sometimes prepositional phrases will function as an adjective. • When they do, they almost always answer the question “Which One?” or “What Kind?” • Example: • Zoo animals have drawn more attention this year. • Animals from the zoo have drawn more attention this year.

13. Prepositions as Adjectives • When they do function as an adjective, they will modify the noun or pronoun to the left of the preposition. • Example: • New York City has a wealth of museums. • The sheepdog from Oregon won the first place ribbon. • The loud ringing of my alarm made me upset.

14. Prepositions as Adjectives • There may be more than one prepositional phrase in a sentence. • If there are two prepositional phrases in a sentence, the second prepositional phrase can be an adjective and it modifies the object in the first prepositional phrase. • On the first shelf of the refrigerator you will find the mustard.

15. Prepositions as Adjectives • There may be more than one prepositional phrase in a sentence. • Sometimes both prepositional phrases can modify the same word: • The new car from Germanywith morecomplex features has become popular in the United States.

16. Prepositions as Adverbs • When the prepositional phrase functions as an adverb, it will answer one of the adverb questions: • When? • Where? • Why? • How? • To What Extent?

17. Examples of Prepositions as Adverbs • When? • I’ll see you again on Wednesday. • Where? • The student body will meet in the auditorium. • Why? • We’re traveling to Germany for cultural purposes. • How? • The team is leaving by bus this morning.

18. Prepositions as Adverbs • To What Extent? • Joe missed his flight to New York by a few minutes.

19. Using Prepositions Correctly • To avoid confusion place an adjective prepositional phrase immediately after the word it modifies: • I saw a man in the store with a brown hat. • I saw a man with a brown hat in the store. • He slammed the door in a bad mood. (wrong) • In a bad mood he slammed the door.

20. Using Prepositions Correctly • Place an adverb prepositional phrase near the word it modifies or at the beginning of the sentence: • I read about local politicians with great interest. (wrong) • I read with great interest about local politicians. (correct)

21. Choosing Correct Prepositions • Between and among are prepositions that are frequently misused. • Between refers to two people or things. • Among refers to more than two. Example: • The photograph shows the man between the curb and the street light. • The photograph shows the man among four people.

22. Choosing Correct Prepositions • Beside means “next to.” • Besides means “in addition to.” • The two men were standing beside each other. • Besides the two men there were also three children.

23. Summary • Prepositional phrases always begin with a preposition and end with a noun or pronoun. • That noun or pronoun is always identified as the object of the preposition. • Prepositional phrases function either as an adverb or an adjective. • They answer questions adverb answer when they function as an adverb. (when? where? how? why? to what extent?)

24. Summary • Prepositional phrases function as adjectives when they answer questions that adjectives answer. • Those questions are usually “Which One?” or “What kind?” • When prepositional phrases function as adjectives, they normally modify or describe the noun or pronoun to the left.