Prepositions and prepositional phrases are important components of the English language because they provide important information about the relationship between two or more elements in a sentence.
After going through this lesson, you will be able to understand what prepositions and prepositional phrases are and how they work in the English language.
Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases
A preposition is a word placed before a noun or noun equivalent to show its relation to another word in the sentence.
Daily Grammar Test - Attempt Now
In the sentence “The girl placed her hand on the desk,” the word on shows the relation between the hand and the desk. If the word on is omitted, there is no sense.
Whereas, When a phrase begins and ends with a Preposition (of, at. by. with, from, over etc.) it is called a Prepositional Phrase.
- As to,
- By way of,
- In quest of,
- By dint of,
- On the eve of,
- In consequence of,
- In the place of,
- In company with,
- At enmity with,
- In keeping with,
- In prospect of,
- Because of,
- By force of,
- In pursuit of,
- With an eye to,
- By the side of,
- By means of,
- In search of,
- In the face of,
- In the hope of,
- In defiance of,
- In honour of,
- In opposition to,
- In unison with,
- At variance with,
- To the surprise of,
- In exchange of,
- At home in,
- In course of,
- In the name of,
- At par with,
- At the cost of,
- In respect of,
- In sight of,
- In the wake of,
- In the middle of,
- As a token of,
- On behalf of,
- For fear of (life), In fear of (danger),
- In connection with,
- At the instance of,
- In view of,
- On account of
Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases Used in Sentences
- He left the room in the middle of the discussion.
- In comparison with her previous job, her new position had better benefits.
- In connection with the investigation, the police questioned several witnesses.
- He always worked in the interest of the entire family.
- In order to succeed you have to work hard.
- In keeping with his beliefs, he refused to eat meat.
- On account of the bad weather, the flight was delayed.
- On the verge of tears, she told him the heartbreaking news.
- You will get books in lieu of the medal.