Prepositions

Prepositions of time

On Sunday.

At 9 O’clock.

In July.

Prepositions of place

On the  fridge.

In my bedroom.

Behind the lotus flower.

Prepositions of place are words that indicate the location or position of an object, person, or event in relation to another element in a sentence

Here are some common prepositions of place:

In:

The cat is in the basket.

We live in a small town.

On:

The book is on the table.

The plane is on the runway.

At:

We met at the coffee shop.

She is sitting at her desk.

Under:

The keys are under the mat.

The dog is under the table.

Between:

The restaurant is between the bank and the pharmacy.

He stood between his two friends.

Next to / Beside:

The school is next to the park.

She sat beside her sister.

Behind:

The car is parked behind the house.

The cat hid behind the curtains.

In front of:

The store is in front of the mall.

She stood in front of the mirror.

Across:

The bridge extends across the river.

He swam across the pool.

Through:

The path leads through the forest.

They walked through the tunnel.

Prepositions Of Place:

Describing Locations:

The cat is under the table.

The coffee mug is on the kitchen counter.

The park is between the school and the library.

Giving Directions:

Turn left at the traffic signal.

Walk towards the main entrance.

Step onto the platform at the train station.

Discussing Spatial Relationships:

Prepositions also contribute to expressing relationships between objects or individuals in space. This is particularly important in scenarios where proximity, orientation, or relative positions need to be communicated.

The bookstore is next to the movie theater.

She stood in front of the classroom.

The park is across the street from the cafe.

What Are The Different Types Of Prepositions In English?

There are many different types of prepositions, including prepositions of time, place, movement and direction, agency and instrumentality, and purpose:

Prepositions of time:

at, on, in, by, until, during, for, since, ago, from, to, past, through

Prepositions of place and direction:

to, from, towards, across, over, under, through, around, beside, behind, in front of, inside, outside, onto, off, out of, into

Prepositions of agency and instrumentality:

with, by

Prepositions of purpose:

for, to, in order to, so as to

At

Use at with times of day, including mealtimes, bedtime, etc.

at 3 o’clock, at 10.30 am, at noon, at dinnertime, at bedtime, at sunrise, at sunset, at the moment

Use at in the following common expressions:

at the weekend: I don’t usually work at the weekend.

at Christmas/Easter: I stay with my family at Christmas.

at the same time: We finished the test at the same time.

at present/at the moment: He’s not home at present. Try later.

In

Use in with months, seasons, years, decades, centuries and long periods of time in general.

in May, in the summer, in 1990, in the 1990s, in the 20th century, in the Ice Age, in the past/future

On

Use on followed by days and dates.

on Sunday, on Tuesday mornings, on 6 March, on 25 December 2010, on Christmas Day, on Independence Day, on my birthday, on New Year’s Eve

Parts of the day:

in the morning

in the afternoon

in the evening

at night

Last, next, every and this

When we say last, next, every, this, we do not use at, in, on.

We also use in for areas that have limits or boundaries, like continents, countries, cities, regions, etc.