Main Takeaways:
- There are five types of prepositions in the English language.
- A preposition is a word that helps connect nouns and pronouns with a verb or adjective in a sentence.
- The five types of prepositions are simple, double, compound, participle, and phrase prepositions.
- Prepositional phrases contain a preposition plus a noun or pronoun.
There are five types of prepositions. They are simple, double, compound, participle, and phrase prepositions. A preposition is used to show a relationship between the noun, pronoun, or phrases in a sentence. They are used to connect people, objects, time, and locations.
What is a Preposition?
The definition of a preposition is a word or phrase that connects a noun or pronoun to a verb or adjective in a sentence. They are usually short words, and they normally are found in front of nouns. On rare occasions, prepositions can be found in front of gerund verbs.
If the subject, noun, and verb are the bricks of sentence, then prepositions are the mortar that connects them. They express position, movement, possession, time, and how an action is completed.
How Many Types of Prepositions are There?
There are five types of prepositions:
- Simple preposition
- Double preposition
- Compound preposition
- Participle preposition
- Phrase preposition
These are spoken and written quite often in English. In fact, many of us use all types of prepositions naturally without realizing that they are distinct and have a name.
What are the Most Common Prepositions?
The Top 10 most common prepositions in the English language are: of, with, at, from, into, during, including, until, against. These represent the most frequently used prepositions. They are also called “simple prepositions.”
What is a Simple Type of Preposition?
Simple prepositions are the short words used to show the relationship between nouns, pronouns, or to join parts of a clause or sentence.
List of Simple Prepositions
Here are some of the most common, or simple prepositions:
aboard
about
above
across
after
against
along
alongside
amid
among
around
at
before
behind
below
beneath
beside
besides
between
beyond
but
by
concerning
considering
despite
down
during
except
excepting
for
from
in
inside
into
like
near
of
off
on
onto
opposite
out
outside
over
past
regarding
round
save
since
through
throughout
till
to
toward
under
underneath
until
unto
up
upon
via
with
within
without
Examples of Simple Prepositions Used in Sentences
Car is the object of the preposition out.
Upon is the preposition. Tin Man is the object.
Homework is the object and the preposition is without.
What are Prepositions of Place?
Writers use this type of preposition to describe where something is located. There are four Prepositions of Place. “At” describes a specific point in space. “In” describes an enclosed space. “On” describes an object’s relationship to a surface. “By” describes an object’s proximity to something else.
Prepositions of Place Examples
“At”
“In”
“On”
“By”
Prepositions of Direction
If you ask “Where?”, this type of preposition is usually part of the answer. Prepositions of Direction let you know where something is going. They indicate which direction something is moving. There are dozens of examples, but the most common examples of Prepositions of Direction are:
What is a Double Preposition?
Easily form a Double Prepositions by joining two simple prepositions.
Examples of Double Prepositions in Sentences
What is a Compound Preposition?
Double prepositions and compound prepositions are very similar. Both are two-word phrases. The double preposition is formed through the conjunction of two simple prepositions. Whereas the compound preposition is formed through the conjunction of a non-prepositional word and a simple preposition.
I use INK which is a web content optimization editor. It identifies wordy or complex sentences and suggests that I edit to make my articles easily digestible.
This sentence can be simplified to:
Then, I didn’t know the answer.
or
I didn’t know the answer.
The Most Common Compound Prepositions
according to
ahead of
along with
alongside of
apart from
around about
as against
as between
as compared with
as compared to
as for
at that point in time
at this point in time
at the point of
at the time of
because of
by force of
by means of
by reason of
by virtue of
by way of
due to
during the course of
except for
for fear of
for lack of
for the purpose of
for the reason that
for the sake of
from above
from among
from behind
from beneath
from between
from the point of view of
in accordance with
in a manner similar to
in care of
in case of
in close connection with
in common with
in comparison to
in compliance with
in connection with
on account of
on behalf of
on the basis of
on the part of
on the point of
on top of
out of
outside of
owing to
previous to
prior to
pursuant to
regardless of
relating to
relative to
short of
similar to
subsequent to
under cover of
what with
with a view to
with regard to
with reference to
with respect to
with the intention of
in consequence of
in consideration of
in contrast to
in default of
in deference to
in exchange for
in excess of
in favor of
in front of
in lieu of
in opposition to
in order to
in place of
in preference to
in receipt of
in regard to
in relation to
in search of
in spite of
in terms of
in the course of
in the event of
in the face of
in the immediate vicinity of
in the nature of
independently of
inside of
instead of
on account of
on behalf of
on the basis of
on the part of
on the point of
on top of
out of
outside of
owing to
previous to
prior to
pursuant to
regardless of
relating to
relative to
short of
similar to
subsequent to
under cover of
what with
with a view to
with regard to
with reference to
with respect to
with the intention of
Participle Prepositions
Participle prepositions have endings such as -ed and -ing.
Prepositional Phrase Example Sentences
How do you Identify a Prepositional Phrase?
A prepositional phrase is a group of words that doesn’t contain a verb or a subject. It functions as a unified part of speech. A prepositional phrase normally has a simple preposition and a noun or a simple preposition and a pronoun.
You can jazz up your hamburger by adding cheese, grilled onions, mustard, tomatoes, etc. The same can be done for prepositional phrases. Add adverbs and adjectives to make your sentence more enjoyable to read.
Prepositional Phrase Examples
Prepositional phrases contain a preposition followed by an article followed by a noun.
Let’s spice up this sentence.
Next, we add more details.
Adjectives make the sentence more enticing to read.
Adding a number adjective makes the sentence for informative.
Awesome post! Keep up the great work! 🙂
Thank you! Happy that you’ve enjoyed it!
Great content! Super high-quality! Keep it up! 🙂
Thank you AffiliateLabz!
Thank the innovator. Students would feel that learning of prepositions is easy
Happy you’ve liked the article!
Wonderful article!
Thanks!
Thank you very much.
You’re welcome!
Thank you from Mexico, it was very helpful
Nice
Thanks for reading! Glad it was helpful.
Marvollus
Wow, Muhammad! What a compliment! Thanks again. Don’t forget to explore other articles on the topic like this one https://blog.inkforall.com/prepositional-phrase and let us know what you think.
Thanks. Helpful.
Thank you, Jillian! You made my day 😀 You might also like this article and the quiz at the end: https://blog.inkforall.com/prepositional-phrase
Thanks again for taking the time to leave such kind words.
I’m learning a foreign language and when prepositions are used in a sentence, it changes the placement of a conjugated verb. Your article helped me understand prepositions better. Thank you!
Sheila, so glad to hear it! Thanks for taking the time to let us know. This means the world to us. If there’s anything we could add to the article to make it better or a topic you’d like more information on, don’t hesitate to post your ideas here. Also, have you taken a look at this article? We recently added a quiz that might give you some extra practice. I would love to know what you think: https://blog.inkforall.com/prepositional-phrase
having seen this gorgeous content ,I could not stop myself to click at your blog page.
Wow very outstanding knowledge
Thank you for the explanation ?
Thank you for reading our article, Joselisse!
Love your post
Thank you. This helped me teach middle school students more grammar!
WOW, Michelle! What an honor. Thanks for letting us know. We’re proud to be a part of your curriculum. Is there anything we can change or add to make this a better resource for students like yours? Thanks again!
I love the delivery, content and intent.
I have a good study of preposition but this article has added tremendously to my knowledge. Thanks for all the hard work that you must have gone through.
Abdul, thank you! We’re thrilled and appreciate your kind words.
Very useful information about uses of preposition.
We’re happy that you find our content useful!
Thanks a very helpful….
Thanks, Zakir! We’re glad the article was helpful to you. Let us know what you think about our other resources on prepositions. And, don’t forget to take some of the quizzes to test your skills. Thanks again!
Thank you
Hi Bibek, thank YOU for stopping by and checking out our article. Is there anything we missed that might make the article more helpful for you? Thanks again!
Good post. Easy to read and well laid out. Will refer students.
Thank you so much, Paige! We also have a follow up article with a quiz here, would love to know what you think: https://blog.inkforall.com/prepositional-phrase
Thank you again for stopping by and taking the time to leave your very kind comment. Stay safe!
How nice of you to have shared your lecture! Looking forward to more sharing from you. Thanks.
Hi Tito, thank you! Please do let us know what you think of our other articles on prepositions. Looking forward to your thoughts! Thanks again for stopping by.
Thank you. Superb.
WOW, James! What an encouraging comment. So happy to have created a valuable resource for you. We appreciate you. Thank you again!
It was very informative,thanks
Hi, thank you for your feedback and positive words!
Great. Good job. Add some activity for practice.
Thanks, Chakib! Great suggestion. We have another article on prepositional phrases with a quiz at the end here: https://blog.inkforall.com/prepositional-phrase
See what you think of this practice exercise and let us know your feedback. It will help us create better resources in the future. Looking forward to your thoughts! Thanks again for your comment.
I am Indian I like this class and answer so much thanks for helping ❤️?
Hi, thank YOU for taking the time to let us know. We’re happy to help and glad our article was valuable to you. English is not easy, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be fun. Take care!
Super article thanks ♥️ and namaste 🙏 😊
Thank you for reading!
Thanks for sharing . I would want to read more
Thank you! Please do. We’re busy adding new articles and resources all the time. Thanks again for reading!
It is splendid work
You’re too kind! Thank you for reading.
Thanks a lot for learning good.
We’re happy that you find our content useful!
Tq very much sir for this wonderful content
Thank you, Sir! Glad you enjoyed it. Thanks again for stopping by.
A wonderful article, but can you give prepositions examples that learners can’t distinguish them in general.
Hi! Thank you for your comment. No worries, it would be my pleasure. Some simple prepositions are:
after
against
along
alongside
amid
among
around
at
Some examples of compound prepositions include:
by means of
by reason of
by virtue of
by way of
due to
Reread the article for a more complete list of simple, compound, and other types of prepositions. Cheers!
Awesome
Thank you, Areeba!
Very helpful.Thank you
Thank you, Sushma!
Very informative post. Keep it up
Thank you, Muhammad! I appreciate you taking the time to leave such a kind and encouraging comment.
This is so informative. Never ever had I got to know about preposition in such detail. Thank you so much.
Hi, Bithika! WOW! What a beautiful comment. Thank you! We are so glad our article could help make one of the hardest things in English (and any language, for that matter) a little easier. Thank you again for your touching words.
Excellent content
I really like it
Thank you, Sundas!
Thanks so much !!!!!
Hi Gahan, thank you for reading!
Great stuff–this was a very helpful post for my ESL student. Thank you
Hi Raymond! We’re happy that you find our article helpful in your class. We have other posts similar to this one, like the Linking Verbs .PDF + Easy Examples And Tricks and the Adjectives: The Ultimate Guide With Tons Of Examples. Feel free to check them out and let us know your thoughts. Have a great day!
GREAT! Very very useful! Thank you!
Hi Naufal! We’re glad that you found this article helpful. Thank you for reading and have a great day!
Awesome!!!
Helps a lot…
Awesome! We’re glad that you find this article helpful, Ritika! Did you try the quiz? How was it? Feel free to let us know your thoughts. Take care and have a great day!
Hepeful,great job.
Cynthia, thank you for reading! We’re thrilled you found our article helpful. Thank you again for the beautiful words of encouragement. Let us know how we can make our articles even better. Take care!
Great job,keep it up.thanks👏
Thank you, Cynthia! We appreciate your positive feedback. Let us know if there’s anything else that we can do to make our article even better. Have a great day!
Very Helpful to me
Awesome! We’re thrilled that our post has been helpful to you. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to let us know how much you liked the article.
Really great! Really helpful
Thank you, Ghatfan! Glad you found this article helpful.
It is very useful for learners and students.
Hello Dev! Thank you for the positive feedback. Have a great day!
Yes mam
Marvelous
Thank you
great work! it was easy yet effective.
Thank you for the positive feedback. Let us know if there’s anything else that we can do to improve our post. Take care and have a great day!
This is awesome, thanks for your guidance
Hi! We’re glad that you found this article helpful. Thank you for reading and have a great day!