PREPOSITION GRAMMAR NOTES
preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to show its relation with some
other word in the sentence.
EXAMPLES
He works hard in the hope of standing first.
We met at night.
The book is on the table.
We stay at home during the holidays.
The Prepositions generally serve three important purposes :
(a) Indication of Time
(b) Indication of Place
(c) As a part of the Verb
The Preposition
(a) Indicating Time
Time is indicated mainly by at, on, in, during, by, and for.
1. At
(i) At is used for a point in time :
We shall meet at 6 O’clock.
He came at midnight.
Similarly, at dawn, at sunset, at the end, at the beginning etc. (uj At it used before festivals :
We have a holiday at Dewali.
Similarly, at Holi, at Christmas, at New year etc.
. On
(i) On is used for a particular day, whether it is a date (e.g. 5 June, Feb. 14th), a day {e.g.
Monday, or a special day in a year (e.g. Dewali Day, Holi Day etc).
I will come on your birthday.
They go to church on Sunday.
(ii) On is used for a particular part of such days as described above.
I will come on the night of 10th July.
We will meet on Friday afternoon.
. In
(i) In is used before a period of time : in the winter, in July, in the year 2005, in the morning, in
the evening.
I first met him in 2005.
Cricket is played in India in winter.
(ii) In is also used to show the total length of time taken to complete an activity or operation.
This train will get you from Delhi to Chandigarh in four hours.
During
When an action or a situation continues for sometime, during is used before that specified
period.
We enjoyed ourselves during the vacation.
People work during the day.
5. By
(i) By is used to denote the ultimate point by which something was or is to be completed.
I have to complete the work by Monday.
The applications should reach by 14 February.
(ii) By is used with day and night where it means during.
He travelled by day and slept by night.
6. For
For is used before a time phrase to denote that so much time has passed during which an
action or a situation continued.
I have not seen him for two years.
We waited for an hour but he didn’t turn up.
Since
is used before a noun or phrase denoting some point of time; in the past, for is used to denote
a period of time in the present, past or future as: I have been waiting for Ramesh since four
o'clock. I have eaten nothing since morning. He has been sleeping for two hours
Exercise 1
Fill in the blank spaces in the following sentences :
1. Diwali is …………. 10 November.
2. Gandhiji lived …………. the English rule.
3. They finished work …………. sunset.
4. Gandhiji was born …………. 1869 and died …………. 1948.
5. I will call at your house sometime …………. the evening.
6. Shankar’s birthday is …………. 3 March.
7. The train leaves Delhi …………. 3.00 pm and reaches Chandigarh …………. 7.00 pm.
. He should be here …………. now.
9. Please come to my office at 11.00 am …………. Tuesday after noon.
10. Parmod will see you …………. Monday …………. 11.00 am.
(b) Indicating Place :
1. Residence (Countries, towns etc.)
(i) When the reference is general, use in
Many people live in cities/villages/suburbs/deserts/countries/towns
But
He lives at the seaside.
He lives on an island.
Note. 1. Village, suburb, desert, country and town are imagined as closed entities and hence the
preposition in (i.e., inside).
On the other hand seaside means near the sea and hence the preposition at; Island is imagined
as something open
Island is imagined as something open and so the preposition on.
2. Residence (Houses etc.)
(i) For the general reference use in :
I live in a small house.
She lives in a bungalow.
Do you live in a flat or in a mansion ?
(ii) For a house with a name or address use at:
Mrs Gandhi lives at 10 Janpath.
(iii) For the names of streets and roads use in :
He lives in Mayur Vihar.
I live in Sector-14.
3. Place of Work
(i) If it is a building, use in :
His father works in a bank.
But
In case the place of work is not a
building use on :
Ram works on a farm.
(ii) If the name of the place of work is given, use at:
He works at the Public Library.
(iii) For a particular department, use in :
He is a teacher in the Department of English.
Choose the correct option :
Question 1.
(i) will get across the exams
(ii) I will get through the exams
(iii) I will get among the exams
(iv) I will get between the exams
Question 2
(i) Tears ran under her cheeks
(ii) Tears ran above her cheeks
(iii) Tears ran down her cheeks
(iv) Tears ran on her cheeks
Question 3
(i) He stayed at Bombay
(ii) He stayed on Bombay
(iii) He stayed by Bombay
(iv) He stayed in Bombay
Question 4
(i) She sits beside me
(ii) She sits besides me
(iii) She sits across me
(iv) She sits beyond me
Preposition may be divided into the following categories:
(a) Simple Prepositions:
e.g. at, by, for, from, in, of, off, on, out, through, till, to, up, with.
(b) Compound Prepositions:
e.g. about, above, across, along, amidst, among, around, before, behind, below, beneath,
beside, between, beyond, inside, outside, underneath within, without.
(c) Phrasal Prepositions:
These are groups of words used with the force of single preposition: e.g. according to; along
with; away from; because of; by means of; by way of; for the sake of; with regard to; in
accordance with; in addition to; on behalf of; in favour of; in order to; in place of; in spite of;
instead of; on account of; owing to; with reference to etc.
Fill in the blanks with until / since / for:
1)Mr. and Mrs. Khanna have been married …………………. 1995.
2)I was tired this morning. I stayed in bed …………………. 9 o’clock.
3)We waited for Sarika …………………. half an hour but she did not come.
4)Have you just arrived?’ ‘No, I have been here …………………. half past six’.
5)‘How long did you stay at the party last night?’ …………………. midnight’.
6)Mohan and I are good friends. We have known each other …………………. five years.
7)I’m tired. I’m going to lie down …………………. a few minutes.
8)Don’t open the door of the train …………………. the train stops.
9)This is my house. I’ve lived here …………………. I was seven years old.
10)Vikas has gone away. He’ll be away …………………. Friday.
Complete the sentences using opposite, beside, by, under, above, below, on, in front of
and behind:
1)The cat is …………………. the table.
2)There is a big tree …………………. the house.
3)The plane is flying …………………. the clouds.
4)She is standing …………………. the piano.
5)The cinema is …………………. the right.
6)She is sitting …………………. the phone.
7)The switch is …………………. the window. .
8)The cupboard is …………………. the sink.
9)There are some shoes …………………. the bed.
10)The plant is …………………. the piano.
