Bài giảng về Preposition


KINDS OF PREPOSITIONS

Prepositions of place and position

Prepositions of movement

Other uses of prepositions

PROBLEMS OF USE
PREPOSITIONS
I. Prepositions of place and
position:
* Prepositions show position

Ex:
Ted was sitting
next to
Janet.
The bank is
opposite
the cinema.
* Prepositions also show place

Ex:
I’m sitting
in
the room.
Sue lives
on

an island.
II. Prepositions of movement:
* Prepositions used with verbs of motion
(come, go, run, …) to show the direction of the
movement.

Ex:
Jan ran
out of
the room.
* Other examples: to, into, across, around, up,
down, …
III. Other Uses:
III. Other Uses:
1. Prepositions are also used in time
expressions:
Prepositions also used in time expressions: at, on, in,
before, after, during, till, for, …

Ex: During
my absence, they have done so many evils.


Notes:
FOR and DURING indicate duration of time.

2. Prepositions also cover a wide range
of meanings:

Ex:

This book is
about
Napoleon.
I cannot drink tea
without
sugar.
I. AT and TO:
 TO is often used with verbs of motion.

Ex:
- That airplane flies
to
Japan.
- We decide to go
to
the museum.
- They moved the table
to
the corner.


 AT cannot be used with verbs of motion.

Ex:
- The train will stop
at
Manchester.
- They arrived
at

the cinema at last.
- He will meet his friends
at
the party.
II. NEAR and NEXT TO:
 NEXT TO: means “beside”

Ex:
- John is the boy who stands
next to
the door.
- The bookshop is
next to
the supermarket.
 N
E T
X O
T

 NEAR : + means “not far away from”
+ can be a matter of opinion
+ relies on each person’s view

Ex:
- My birthday is very
near
Christmas.
- The supermarket is very
near
the station.


III. ABOVE and OVER:
Both mean “higher than”

Ex:
- There is something written
above / over
the door.
- They built a new room
above / over
the tree.
 ABOVE is used in comparison with a stable object.

Ex:
There is a plane
above
the clouds.

The bridge is 160 feet
above
the sea level.

 OVER is used to suggest closeness or touching.

Ex:
He put a blanket
over
the sleeping child.

They spread the map

over
the table.
IV. IN and AT: Places
 IN refers to towns, countries and the “inside” of
places.

Ex:
- They live
in
England.

- Yesterday she was
in
the city.

- My sister is
in
the garden now.
 AT refers to points with a particular purpose rather than
“inside”.

Ex:
- She lives
at
home.
- He met her
at
the park.
V. Prepositions at the end of a sentence:


Ex:
What are you seeking
for
?

It’s quite a hard problem to deal
with
!

That‘s the man whom I am waiting
for
.

- Can be found in
questions, infinitive clauses, relative clauses,
…
- Usually go with verb.
Question
Infinitive
Relative Clause
VI. Other uses:
1. Some prepositions can be used as adverbs without an
object.
Ex:
- There's a man with a dog sitting
opposite
.

- I can't see anyone
around.

2. There are many fixed phrases containing prepositions,
such as:
by mistake
,
on purpose
,
out of order
, …

Ex:
- Your guitar sounds awful! It seems to be
out of tune
.
- My Ferrari crashed into the lamp-post
by mistake
.