Among the parts of speech in English grammar, this could one of the most confusing for you. What is a preposition anyway? A preposition is a word or part of speech that relates a noun or pronoun and other words in a sentence. But to be more specific, it’s a word used to express specific location, place and time.
So to answer the question “Is at a preposition?”, yes it definitely is! Why? Because “at” expresses a specific location, time and place, and it definitely relates words in a sentence. Here are some examples where the preposition at is used:
- Louie lives at 22nd street.
- I have to finish my work at 11:00 P.M.
- Please meet me at the park by tomorrow noon.
And yet these are just a few examples of the almost endless possibility where “at” can be used in a sentence. In fact, you can use it to refer to a specific price, specific state or condition, specific plan, and so on.
More examples:
- I offer freelance web services too and my hourly rate starts at $10.
- He began to experience pain at such a young age.
- I find it rude that he always likes to point her finger at me.
So aside from “at”, what is a preposition example? Some more examples are under, across, above, at, in, off, for, the list goes on. To give you more examples of prepositions and for you to realize how important they are in grammar, we’ve provided tons of preposition examples below, usually followed by a noun.
What are examples of prepositions?
In the preposition example below, you’ll understand why prepositions are so important and how it “relates” the words in a sentence. To make things clear for you, the paragraphs with the preposition in italicized form:
James wasn’t aware that his naughty brother hid his laptop above the kitchen cabinet. James even had to look under his bed that is full of boxes, inside his gaming room, between the shelves and through his built-in closet just to search for his laptop.
He even had to lift off his blanket and comforters. But when he looked behind him, he saw his brother laughing mischievously. After he realized that his brother has played another prank on him, he got so impatient that he angrily stomped his feet out of frustration. He did this so loudly that the people in the room below theirs heard the commotion.
It’s just that he needs to finish his assignment before noon, which just adds to his pressure. His teacher wants him to submit his assignment by 12:00 noon because if he doesn’t, he knows that the teacher has a habit of shaming students during class. He usually does his weekly assignments from nine in the morning. So, if he doesn’t start doing it at around 10 A.M., it would be impossible for him to finish it, as the task gets usually done within 3 1/2 hours.
He then rushed outside, slammed the door behind him, and went down to the kitchen and kept on walking and walking around until he came across the kitchen cabinet. He then saw his brother beside him, who soon felt sorry for him. His brother then pointed above the kitchen cabinet where the laptop is and even climbed up onto it to get it for him. With a sincere apology, he then returned the laptop to James.
Preposition Phrases
As you can see in the examples above, every sentence has a preposition (above the kitchen, under his bed, inside his gaming room, etc…) and is usually followed by a noun or pronoun. The examples in the parenthesis are what we call prepositional phrases. This just shows how important it is in every sentence in English grammar.
What are the 5 prepositions?
There are a lot of prepositions, even more than the examples above. In fact, there are about 150 English prepositions, and we can’t list them all here. The following are the five most commonly mistaken English prepositions with example sentences:
- For – Use this English preposition to specify the reason. Think of this like “because of”.
Example: He bought a bouquet of flowers for Sheila.
- In – Use this word to refer to a thing that’s inside. In and on are two commonly confused words in English grammar, especially by non-native speakers.
Example: The stranger oddly invited the tourists to come in his house.
- To – Probably the most common English preposition, this is simply used to describe time or movement, among others.
Example: All three of us will go to the dentist tomorrow.
- Of – Use this when referring to a person, place or thing that belongs or relates to another.
Example: She is the only son of our school supervisor.
- On –Use this word to refer to a thing that’s on top of something.
Example: I like to add syrup on my pancakes.
What are the 10 prepositions?
We’ve handpicked ten of the commonly mistaken English prepositions/prepositional phrases for you as well! Following each one is an example sentence to make it clearer.
- By – This can be used to describe something that needs to be done or a nearby place.
Example: Please finish the project by helping each other.
- With – This can be used in sentences to indicate a thing used to do something, or when one is accompanied by someone or something.
Example: She walked her dogs in the part with her boyfriend.
- Over – Use this to refer to a thing directly upwards the object or a person. Compared to “above”, there should be no space between something and an object or a person.
Example: There is a butterfly over your head.
- Above – Use this to refer to a thing somewhere higher than an object or a person. Its difference with “over” is that there’s a space between something and an object or a person.
Example: The sky above is full of stars.
- Between – A lot of people confuse this with “among”. But “between” is used to refer to something in the middle of two.
Example: She cannot decide between working and studying.
- Among – On the other hand, use “among” if it’s more than two, or more than three.
Example: She is the best among her friends.
- Beside – Like “next to”, use this to refer to a person or an object beside another.
Example: She is sitting beside Julian at the back row.
- Besides – With s, this is not like “beside”. This actually means “apart from” or “in addition”.
Example: She felt like nothing in the world understands her, besides her mom.
- Across – This describes one side from another.
Example: Donna just ran across the street in time.
- Off – Use this to move something away.
Example: Please keep all three dogs off my bed!
Final Thoughts
We hope you’ve enjoyed our list of prepositions! Grammar and even parts of speech like nouns and pronouns aren’t easy and can be confusing. But with patience, hard work and mastering each part step by step, you’ll be a grammar pro in no time. Always make it a point to apply what you’ve learned. Make it a goal to construct every sentence and ensure proper grammar. You won’t perfect it overnight, but as they say, practice is the key.
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