What's IN a Preposition?

by Josef Essberger

Prepositions can be divided into:

one-word prepositions (eg at, into, on)
complex prepositions (eg according to, in spite of)

The name "preposition" (pre + position) means "place before". Prepositions usually come *before* another word, usually a noun or noun phrase:

noun (I will meet you IN *London*.)
pronoun (Give it TO *her*.)
noun phrase (I'm tired OF *all this work*.)
gerund (verb in -ing form) (It crashed ON *landing*.)

If a preposition does not come before another word, it is still closely associated with another word:

*Who* did you talk TO?
TO *whom* did you talk?
I talked TO *Jane*.

Notice that many prepositions can also be adverbs:

He walked DOWN the hill. (preposition)
Please sit DOWN. (adverb)

A few prepositions can also be conjunctions:

Everyone came BUT Tara. (preposition)
I asked her BUT she didn't answer. (conjunction)

How many prepositions are there in English? It is not possible to give a definite answer, partly because complex prepositions are "open class", which means that new ones could be invented at any time. But for a list of almost all the one-word and complex prepositions in common use, see English Prepositions Listed which includes 370 example sentences.

Many words are associated with a particular preposition. When you learn a new word, try to learn the preposition associated with it. A good dictionary usually gives you examples.

Here are some common verbs that are associated with a particular preposition:

to agree WITH somebody
to agree ABOUT a subject
to agree ON a decision
to agree TO a proposal
to arrive AT/IN a place
to ask FOR something (but to ask a question/the time/directions etc)
to borrow something FROM somebody
to depend ON somebody/something
to explain something TO somebody
to insist ON -ing
to laugh AT somebody/something
to listen TO somebody/something
to participate IN something
to pay FOR something
to be rude TO somebody
to shoot AT somebody/something
to smile AT somebody
to succeed IN something
to talk TO somebody
to talk WITH somebody (US)
to worry ABOUT something
to write TO somebody

Here are a few common expressions with particular prepositions:

to be afraid OF somebody/something
to be angry WITH somebody
to be angry ABOUT something
to be bad AT something
to be clever AT something
to be good AT something
to be interested IN something
to be kind TO somebody
to be nice TO somebody