Identify prepositions

Key Notes:

📝 Identify Prepositions

What is a Preposition?

A preposition is a word that shows the relationship between a noun or pronoun and another word in a sentence.

It tells us about place, time, direction, cause, manner, etc.

Example:

  • The book is on the table. 📚➡️🛋️
  • She arrived after lunch. 🍽️⏰
Common Prepositions

Here are some common prepositions with examples:

🏠 Place / Position

  • in – The cat is in the box. 🐱📦
  • on – The pen is on the desk. ✏️🖥️
  • under – The shoes are under the bed. 👟🛏️
  • between – The ball is between the chairs. ⚽🪑🪑

⏰ Time

  • at – School starts at 8 a.m. 🏫⏰
  • on – My birthday is on Monday. 🎂📅
  • since – I have been reading since morning. 📖🌅
  • for – She has lived here for 5 years. 🏠🕰️

🏃 Direction / Movement

  • to – He went to the park. 🏃🌳
  • from – I got a gift from my friend. 🎁👫
  • into – She jumped into the pool. 🤿🏊
  • onto – The cat jumped onto the wall. 🐱🧱

💡 Cause / Reason / Manner

  • because of – We stayed home because of rain. 🌧️🏠
  • by – The book was written by J.K. Rowling. 📚✍️
How to Identify a Preposition

Tips:

  1. Look for a word that links a noun or pronoun to another word. 🔗
  2. Ask where? when? how? which direction?
  3. If it answers these questions, it is usually a preposition. ❓

Examples:

  • The bird is in the cage. 🐦🪤 (Where? → in the cage)
  • He will come after lunch. 🍽️ (When? → after lunch)
Preposition vs Adverb
  • A preposition is followed by a noun/pronoun.
  • An adverb is not followed by a noun.

Example:

  • Preposition: The cat is under the table. 🐱🛋️
  • Adverb: The cat is under. 🐱 (no object follows)
Fun Preposition Phrases 🌈
  • in front of – The car is in front of the house. 🚗🏠
  • next to – She is next to her friend. 👭
  • on top of – The book is on top of the shelf. 📚📏
  • out of – He ran out of the room. 🏃🚪
✅ Quick Practice Questions:
  1. The dog is ___ the garden. (in / at / by)
  2. We met ___ Monday. (on / in / for)
  3. She jumped ___ the river. (into / at / with)
  4. The gift is ___ my friend. (from / to / in)
  5. He stayed home ___ the rain. (because of / by / for)

let’s practice!