hurm......... sometimes, grammar is everything..
preposition? what is prepositions??
here some notes... hehe J
Prepositions
Just 40 kilometres as the crow as the crows flies from Ipoh, Cameron Highlands nestle on a 1,500 metre plateau. It stretches from Ringlet in the south, past Tanah Rata at its heart, to Brincang and Tangkap in the nort. Ringlet Lake is at the start of the lower highlands that are home to several tea plantations. The highland’s climate is deal for tea but equally good for vegetables, flowers and fruits. The produce, from strawberries to cauliflower, find their way to the hotels of Kuala Lumpur and grocers in Singapore.
Adapted from Going Places, June 2005
The words bolded in red from the text above are known as prepositions. Many of the most common word in English are prepositions. In fact, prepositions like of, to, in, for, with, on, at and by are words which are commonly used by everyone. The Concise Oxford Dictionary considers it an ‘indeclinable words’ serving mark the relation between the noun or pronoun it governs and another word. Prepositions also have special functions as part of a verb or adverb. Like adverbs, it is difficult to recognize preposition just from the form of the words. In fact, some words can function both as preposition and as prepositions and adverbs or even conjunction.
Difference between preposition and adverbs
A preposition ‘governs’ an object, so it is always related to noun, a noun phrase, pronoun or gerund ; an adverb particle does not ‘govern’ an object, so it is more closely related to a verb.
(Alexander 1988, p.145)
Form of repositions
Classified according ü Simple preposition (one word)
ü Complex preposition (multiple word)
Simple prepositions
There are three main types:
Monosyllabic (in, on) polysyllabic (inside, without) preposition derived from participles (barring, concerning)
Examples;
| In | to | as | inside | into | despite | barring |
| On | at | for | within | without | except | concerning |
| Off | up | past | beyond | beneath | granted | opposite |
Complex prepositions
Made up of two, three or four separate words but they must be considered as one. Their meaning cannot be derived from the meaning of the parts. They consist of a simple preposition preceded by a word from another category, such as an adverb, adjective or conjunction. Sometimes, it could be a simple preposition followed by a noun and then a further simple preposition. Complex preposition are normally stressed on one of the syllables.
Examples:
| As for | Apart of | On top of | Because of | Together with | for the sake of |
| But for | Down from | In spite of | Along with | In relation to | By means of |
| Next to | Across from | In front of | Instead of | Except for |
|
Types of prepositions (functions)
The function of prepositions (meaning ‘placed before’) is to connect a noun structure to some words in the sentence. They are placed before a noun (on a table), noun phrases (near several tea plantations) or a pronoun (to them). Prepositions can also be followed by verbs (excluding but and except) but the verb must be in the gerund form (good at baking cakes)
ü Preposition of place
ü Preposition of direction
ü Preposition of time
ü Preposition of manner
ü Preposition of cause and purpose
ü Preposition of accompaniment
ü Preposition of possession
ü Preposition of concession
ü Preposition of means
ü Preposition of instrument
Preposition of place
Are used to state the approximate place of someone or something. Nearly have same meaning. When referring to place or space, we can choose from a few options. It all depends on the meaning we wish to express. ü We can consider position in space in relation to a point (i.e. a place or event),
ü A line (i.e. a place we think of in terms of length)
ü A surface (i.e. a place we think of as flat area)
ü Area or volume (i.e. a place which can ‘enclose’)
(Alexander, 1988, p.146)
Ø At – for specific addresses or general vicinity.
E.g. Wan lives at 101-14p, Circular Road
Ø On- to designate names of lanes, streets or roads.
E.g. the temple is located on Pudu Street.
On- touching the surface
E.g. there is an oil spot on my apron.
Ø In- for the names of towns, states, countries and continents
E.g. Shah Alam is situated in Selangor.
In- beneath the surface
E.g. there is a pen in the drawer.
Ø Over/under- when you want to relate things vertically
E.g. the laptop is under the conference table
Ø Among, amid, by, around- in a group
E.g. the bride was surrounded by her family
Ø Opposite- when things are facing each other
E.g. the Cineplex is opposite the shopping mall.
Ø Next to- objects are side by side
E.g. the coat hanger is next to the cupboard.
Ø Off- at a distance from the point
E.g. the ball rolled off the pool table.
Ø Near- close to the point
E.g. Mrs. Taylor was standing near the French doors.
Ø Around- surrounding an area or all round place
E.g. we sat around the conference table and discussed the drama
| by | Off | near | above | below | beneath |
| inside | On top of | throughout | on | under | Over |
| outside | along | All over | around | against | Not far from |
Prepositions of direction
These prepositions are used to show movement towards a place. They indicate where someone/something is going or moving to. A preposition takes on the idea of movement from the verb in the sentence. Examples (bring, drive, fly, move, pull, run, take, or walk) (Alexander, 1988, p.146)
The movement can be either two or three dimensions. Movement in two dimensions can be either vertical, horizontal, or planar (i.e. staying within or passing across a plane). Movements in three dimensions can be either open (unrestricted) or closed (contained) (master, 1996, p.300-302). · The dog jumped over the fence.
· The spacecraft was moving towards the satellite.
· The snatch thief ran into a policeman.
| on | By | above | across | Along | Out of | Around | below | Beyond | through |
| up | to | past | down | From | over | All over | under | towards | throughout |
Prepositions of time
Include those that describe range, starting point, duration and end point (master, 1996, p.295). Below is the list of prepositions that indicate relationship of time.
Ø To, past- used to tell the time
E.g. it is now quarter past five. It is now fifteen to six.
Ø At- used to designate specific times.
E.g. I will meet you at ten o’clock.
Ø By- not later than
E.g. I will try to be there by three o’clock.
Ø On- used to designate days and dates
E.g. the meeting will be held on Wednesday.
- On time means on schedule.
E.g. the concert began on time.
Ø In- used for nonspecific times during a day, a month or a year
E.g. Sheila started her job in June.
Ø For- used to measure time (second, minutes, hours, days, years) / a period
for time
E.g. world war two lasted for three years
Ø Since- used with a specific date or time or to show the starting point of an
action. It also refers to a period of time that extends from a point of
time in the past to the present. The verb tense is usually the present
perfect or past perfect.
E.g. Anne has been working here since 2004.
Ø Until- used for a period of time which starts now and stops at a point in the
future.
E.g. we to have be here for the conference until Sunday.
Ø During- used for a period time or block of time. It represents the length of
time of an action is happening.
E.g. you must not talk during the examination.
Ø From- used to or till/ until.
E.g. Stella will working from eight to five.
Prepositions of manner
Show the way in which something is done. The preposition like means ‘similar to’ and it is used for comparison. The preposition with is always is always followed by an abstract noun. § She spoke in a loud voice.
§ He behaves like his mother.
§ The teacher handled the delicate matter with care.
Prepositions of cause and purpose
There is a spectrum of relations extending from cause to purpose. For part covering cause, reason and motive, we have prepositional prases with such as because of, on account of, for, and out of. (Greenbaum & Quirk, 1990, p.199)
§ My aunt died of stomach cancer.
§ Ismail achieved stardom through hard work.
§ The prime minister resigned due to old age.
Prepositions of accompaniment
Prepositions that show accompaniment are ‘with’ and ‘without’. It is always followed by an object which can be either a person or, an animal or a thing. If object is a living thing, ‘with’ conveys the meaning ‘in the company of’ § The director attended the function with his secretary.
§ The lawyer attended the trial without his legal assistant.
§ You must have some of this mint sauce with lamb chop.
Preposition of possession
The prepositions that show possession are ‘with’ and ‘of’. The possessive function is also referred to as genitive of.
§ Catherine is a woman of great strength and wisdom.
§ John was taken to hospital with the best surgical facilities
§ Kuala Lumpur is capital of Malaysia.
Prepositions of concession
Preposition expressing concession include in spite of and its more formal synonym despite, the still formal notwithstanding, the somewhat informal for all, with all (Greenbaum & Quirk, 1990). § The manager is quitting for all her disapproval.
§ The rescue workers continued their search despite the rain.
§ The dancer continued her performance in spite of her injuries.
Prepositions of means
The prepositions that shows means is by. It requires an object that can be a non-count noun’ a singular cont noun or a noun phrase. By can also used before an-ing form. We can also use by means of explain how something is done § My children usually go to the library by bus.
§ The bouquet of flowers was delivered by her fiancée.
§ The workers entered the factory by using the back entrance.
Prepositions of instrument
Prepositions that show the device, machine, substance or tools through which something is accomplished, making use of prepositions with and without (master, 1996, p.304). § She pushed open the back door with her foot.
§ My husband hit the steering wheel with his right hand anger.
§ The electronic gate cannot be opened without a mechanical device.
