PREPOSITIONS, CONJUNCTIONS, AND

INTERJECTIONS

Prepositions show the relationship between a noun or pronoun and some other word in the sentence.• Sarah skated off the ice.• Sarah skated onto the ice.• Sarah skated over the ice.In the examples above, off, onto, and over show the relationship between the noun ice and the verb skated.In each example above, ice is the object of the preposition.

COMMON PREPOSITIONSabout at down near toabove before during of towardacross behind except off underafter below for on underneath

against beneath from onto untilalong beside in out upamong betwee

ninside over upon

around but (except)

into since with

as by like through without

COMMON COMPOUND PREPOSITIONS

according to because of

in place of on account of

ahead of due to in spite of on top of

along with in addition to instead of out of

as of in front of next to prior to

THE OBJECT OF THE PREPOSITION

• The o. of p. is always a noun, pronoun, or a noun clause. There may be more than one o. of p.

ex. With poise, she walked to the stage. (noun)ex. The city welcomed the prime minister and

scheduled a sightseeing tour for him. (pronoun)

ex. Give the concert tickets to whoever requests them first. (noun clause)

ex. Between January and July, Franklin gained twenty pounds. (compound o. of p.)

THE PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE• The prepositional phrase consists of a

preposition, its object, and any modifiers of the object.

• A preposition does not show relationships by itself. It always begins a phrase (a group of words without both a subject and verb).

ex. Martha indicated her approval with a nod.

ex. The figures on a totem pole have special significance.

COMMAS BEHIND PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

• There are 3 situations when a prepositional phrase at the beginning of a sentence must be followed by a comma.

1) if the phrase is followed by a natural pause when read (According to our town’s fire marshal, working fire detectors can save lives.)

COMMAS BEHIND PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

2) After a series of prepositional phrases: (After three weeks of heavy rain in April, the farmer’s fields were wet and muddy.)

3) To avoid confusion: (Next to the new elementary school, houses were being built for employees of the city.)

ADVERB OR PREPOSITION?• Many words used as prepositions can also

be used as adverbs. A preposition is never used alone. It will always have an object.

ex. The visitors walked around the house. (preposition)

ex. The visitors walked around. (adv.)ex. The trees towered above the trail.

(prep.)ex. The trees towered above. (adv.)

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES AS MODIFIERS

• Prepositional phrases can modify other words in sentences, just like adjectives and adverbs do.

• A prepositional phrase that modifies a noun or pronoun is an adjective phrase (also known as an adjectival modifier).

• A prepositional phrase that modifies an adjective, adverb, or a verb is an adverb phrase (also known as an adverbial modifier).

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES AS MODIFIERS

• The last room on the right is haunted. (The phrase answers the question which one about the noun room; therefore, it is an adjective phrase.)

• All of the restaurant workers wear weird purple hats. (The phrase answers the question what kind about the pronoun all; therefore, it is an adjective phrase.)

• No one could explain the reason for his sudden departure. (The phrase answers the question which one about the noun reason; therefore, it is an adjective phrase.)

PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES AS MODIFIERS

• The bottles are sealed by a huge machine. (The phrase answers the question how about the verb are sealed; therefore, it is an adverb phrase.)

• Hendricks sulked on the beach. (The phrase answers the question where about the verb sulked; therefore, it is an adverb phrase.)

• She acted courageously during the crisis. (The phrase answers the question when about the verb acted; therefore, it is an adverb phrase.)

• The sun was hot as fire. (The phrase answers the question to what extent about the predicate adjective hot; therefore, it is an adverb phrase.)

SEVERAL PHRASES IN A ROW• Sometimes one prep. phrase

follows another. Sometimes both phrases modify the same word.

ex. We fished with minnows during the evening.

(The adverb phrase with minnows tells how about the verb fished. The adverb phrase during the evening tells when about the same verb fished.)

SEVERAL PHRASES IN A ROW• Frequently, however, the second

phrase is an adjective phrase that modifies the object of the first phrase.

ex. Sam topped the salad with bits of cheese. (The adverb phrase with bits tells how about the verb topped. Of cheese is an adjective phrase describing the noun bits.)

MISUSED PREPOSITIONS: AMONG/BETWEEN

• Between refers to two people or things.

• Among refers to three or more.ex. There is a peace treaty between

the two countries.ex. We divided the work among the

four of us.

MISUSED PREPOSITIONS: BESIDE/BESIDES

• Beside means “at the side of.”• Besides means “in addition to.”ex. Secret Service agents stand

beside the President.ex. There are other motives besides

greed.

MISUSED PREPOSITIONS: IN/INTO

• In means “inside something.”• Into suggests motion from the

outside to the inside.ex. Mary stayed in the car.ex. I went into the house.

MISUSED PREPOSITIONS: OFF/FROM

• Do not use off when you mean from.WRONG: Tony borrowed a coat off me.RIGHT: Tony borrowed a coat from me.WRONG: He copied that off the

internet.RIGHT: He copied that from the

internet.

MISUSED PREPOSITIONS: ON/ONTO

• On means “upon something.” • Onto suggests motion (sometimes to

the top of something).ex. The teams were on the beach.ex. The beach ball sailed out onto the

water.

PREPOSITIONS USED UNNECESSARILY: AT, OF, TO

WRONG: Where are my gym clothes at?WRONG: I could not feel my toes inside of

my boots.WRONG: Where did the Tuckers move to?

WRONG: The book fell off of the desk.WRONG: He threw the book out of the

window.

MISPLACED PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

• A prep. phrase should be placed near the word it modifies. Otherwise, the meaning of your sentence may not be clear.

WRONG: Pablo told many stories of his fascinating childhood in our class.

RIGHT: In our class, Pablo told many stories of his fascinating childhood. (The phrase has been moved closer to the word told.)