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Grammar Prepositions
Prepositions begin phrases that m odify other w ord s in the sentence. Often, they d escribe tim e or space
relationships, show ing how a noun or pronoun relates to another w ord w ithin a sentence.
COMMON PREPOSITION S
The m ost frequently used prepositions are at, by, for, from, in, of, on, to, and with. Below is a list of these and
other com m on prepositions. (N ote: A preposition m ay be m ore than one w ord .)
about
aboard
above
accord ing to
across
after
against
along w ith
am ong
as
at
because of
before
behind
below
beneath
besid e
betw een
but
by
d ow n
d espite
d uring
except for
for
from
in
in ad dition to
inside
in spite of
like
near
of
off
on top of
out
outsid e
over
past
since
through
throughout
till
to
tow ard
und er
und erneath
until
unto
up
upon
w ith
w ithin
w ithout
PREPOSITION AL PHRASES
A p reposition is m ost often follow ed by a noun or pronoun that serves as the object of the preposition.
The preposition, its object, and all w ord s that m od ify the object m ake up a prepositional phrase.
Prepositional Phrase
under my old table
because of his horrible attitude
Preposition
und er
because of
Modifiers
m y old
his horrible
Object
table
attitud e
THE ROLE OF PREPOSITION AL PHRASES
Prepositional phrases norm ally function as ad jectives or ad verbs w ithin a senten ce.

Adjectival Prepositional Phrases—As ad jectives, prepositional phrases usually follow the noun or
pronoun they m od ify and answ er questions like W hich one? or W hat kind?
EXAMPLES: The girl from Canada. (Which girl? The girl from Canada. The phrase m od ifies girl.)
A d ay like today. (What kind of d ay? A d ay like today. The phrase m odifies day.)

Adverbial Prepositional Phrases—As ad verbs, prepositional phrases m od ify verbs, ad jectives, or other
ad verbs. They answ er questions such as the follow ing: W hen? W here? How? W hy? To what extent?
Under what conditions?
EXAMPLES: I slept in the barn. (The phrase m od ifies the verb slept. It answ ers the question W here?)
For you, I’ll d o it! (The phrase explains under what conditions you ’ll d o it.)
I am tired of this show . (The phrase, of this show, m od ifies the ad jective tired.)
ID EN TIFYIN G PREPOSITION S
In certain settings, a w ord that is usually a preposition may actually be a conjunction instead . If the w ord
introd uces an object of a preposition (noun + w ords that modify the noun), then it is a preposition :
P REPOSITION S: Before school (The phrase contains a preposition and a noun , so before is a preposition .)
H e w orks as a full-time doctor. (The phrase contains the w ord as, a noun [doctor], and its
m od ifiers [a full-time], so as m ust be a preposition. A full-time doctor is its object.)
If the w ord introd uces a clause (group of w ord s containing both a noun subject and a verb), then it is not a
preposition, but a conjunction. (See Conjunctions hand out.)
C ON JUN CTION S: Before you w ent to school (The group of w ord s is a clause because it contains a noun
subject [you] and a verb [went]. Therefore, before is a subord inating conjunction .)
I w ill w atch as the doctor operates. (The doctor operates is a clause because it has a subject
[The doctor] and a verb [operates]. Thus, as m ust be a subord inating conjunction.)
Utah Valley University Writing Center
Revised 12/15/2008