What is a Preposition? Unit 13 – Presentation 1 A (usually) small, uninflected word that comes...

• What is a Preposition?

Unit 13 – Presentation 1

A (usually) small, uninflected word that comes before an article/ noun/ noun phrase-clause/ gerund/ pronoun or adverb to show the relation between the word(s) it accompanies and other words in the sentence, or to time, place, direction, etc.

Prepositions are used in …

• Noun cases (possessive ‘of’ & before the accusative)

• Dependent Words• Phrasal Verbs• Prepositional Phrases &• The Passive Voice (to introduce the

Agent)

(There are other cases, too!)

3 cases we are exploring here are …

A)

i) Time

ii)Place &

iii)Motion Prep’s

B) Prep’s as a complement to intransitive verbs

C) Prep’s as links to show manner, purpose, use, etc.

The main Time Prep’s are …

Other Time Prep’s are …

Some Standard Phrases with Time Prep’s are …

Some Standard Phrases with Time Prep’s are …

Some Standard Phrases with Time Prep’s are …

Some Standard Phrases with Time Prep’s are …

Some Standard Phrases with Time Prep’s are …

The main Place Prep’s are …

The main Place Prep’s are … (cont’d)

The main Place Prep’s are … (cont’d)

Some Standard Phrases with Place/ Position Prep’s are …

Some Standard Phrases with Place/ Position Prep’s are …

Some Standard Phrases with Place/ Position Prep’s are …

What are Motion/ Direction Prepositions?

They are the ones that are used to show movement & point in various directions but do not have a meaning in themselves. They only take on meaning when used in relation to motion verbs (e.g. go, come, travel, drive, climb, etc) and are then translated: a)as a new verb e.g. to run around or b)with the preposition as a verb and the verb as a present participle (showing manner)

The main Motion Prep’s are …

The main Motion Prep’s are …

Verbs of Boarding/ Disembarking

• Get in(to): for changing levels downwards & inwards ≠ Get out (of) (mainly taxis, cars, trams)• Get on(to): when changing levels upwards ≠ Get off (planes, trains, buses, etc but also horses, bikes) • Get/ Go on board (a plane/ ship) ≠ Get off (a plane)/ Go ashore

Means of Transport

•USE: by + means/ way to describe the manner in which you get around e.g. by bus/ air

•USE: in/ on + article/ possessive adj. + means to talk about moving around using one particular vehicle e.g. in my dad’s car/ on the tube

•USE: on foot OR walk to to show that no vehicle is used for the transport.

Function: Directions

Grammar: Imperative/ Present Simplee.g. Go along this street to the next

intersection and you’ll see the hypermarket straight ahead.You get on a no. 35 bus from Omonia square and you get off at the third stop.

Function: Asking for Directions

• Excuse me, could/ can you tell/ show me the way to … ?

• Excuse me, how can/ do I get to … ? • Excuse me, where is the … ? • Excuse me, do you know where the … is?

Function: Giving Directions I• Walk along this street to … • [It’s (just)] round the corner. • Across the street • Opposite e.g. the bank • Cross over/ Walk across … • Straight ahead • It’s down this street

Function: Giving Directions II• It’s up that hill • At the traffic lights • Turn left/ right into … • At the end of the street • Don’t change lanes until you get to … • You’re nearly there. • You can’t miss it!

What is meant by ‘Prep’s as Complements to Intransitive Verbs’?

It means the freer, more creative use of prepositions that ‘liberates’ conciseness and helps English become the flexible medium of expression that it is.

Let’s see what happens when a prep like on is combined with intransitive verbs to mean:• continue to … e.g. dream on, read on, walk on• prompting to do/ continue e.g. come on, go on• travel (usu. with go) e.g. go on a cruise/ trip• in a state of e.g. (be) on call/ on all fours/ etc

Prep’s as Complements to Intransitive Verbs (cont’d)

We could think of other such prepositions, like:

and the list could go on indefinitely!

Prepositions as Linkers I

• for + -ing → to show use e.g. This mini camera is for taking photos on

stealth missions.• (up)on + noun → to show time e.g. The details will be made available (up)on

request.• with + noun → to substitute for a Relative

Clause, instead of a ‘have’ participle e.g. Too many people with problems (i.e. who

have problems) knock on your door these days.

Prepositions as Linkers II• without + -ing OR noun → the opposite of

‘with’ above & meaning ‘neglecting to’ OR ‘not having’

e.g. You can’t give up without at least trying/ an effort.

• like + -ing OR noun OR clausee.g. He enjoyed things like running and wrestling

but it didn’t look like he would have much chance of practising either.

• before/ after/ since + -ing e.g. Don’t give them permission to go ahead

with the construction before checking with me.

Notes on Prepositions

a) Prep’s are among the most frequent parts of speech – alongside articles & linking verbs, perhaps,

b) although most of them are double prep’s, there are cases when we could find two of them together, e.g. along with, from under (the table), until after, etc,

c) they are also encountered in many standard (idiomatic) phrases, e.g. well over, round the clock, above board, etc.