Prepositons and Prepositional

Phrases (Grammar 6)

JCS, LLB.

PREPOSITION
A word which precedes anoun(or apronoun) to show
the noun's (or the pronoun's) relationship to another
word in the sentence.
NOTE: It is not true to say that a preposition always
precedes a noun or a pronoun, but it does most of the
time.

Role of preposition

Prepositions are important when constructing

sentences.

A preposition sits before anounto show the noun's

relationship to another word in the sentence.
Examples:
It is a containerforbutter.(The prepositionforshows
the relationship betweenbutterandcontainer.)
The eagle soaredabovethe clouds.(The
prepositionaboveshows the relationship
betweencloudsandsoared.)

Pitfalls:
1. Ending a Sentence with a PREPOSITION

Try to avoid ending a sentence with a preposition. This is not really a rule, but
lots of people think it is. So, to ensure you don't annoy your readers, just avoid
the situation. If rewording your sentence makes it sound too contrived, just go
for it and end your sentence with a preposition.

e.g. That is a situation I have not thought of. (The wordofis a preposition. Writers
should avoid ending sentences in prepositions. This is because a
preposition should sit before a noun or a pronoun.)
She is a person I cannot cope with.(The wordwithis a preposition.)

Next Steps of Action

Where possible, you should avoid ending a sentence in a

preposition

Examples:
That is a situation of which I have not thought.
She is a person with whom I cannot cope.

REWORD to AVOID
Often, the best solution is to re-word the sentence.
Examples:
That is a situation I have not considered
It is behaviour I will not tolerate.

VERBS with PREPOSITIONS

A verb liketo face up to,to give up,to put up with(i.e., a single

verb made up of more than one word) is called aphrasal verb.

Phrasal verbs usually take the form:

VERB + PREPOSITION(e.g.,to break up,to get over).

Reasons to avoid phrasal verbs

(1) It sounds too informal, and a Latinate verb would
be more appropriate (particularly in business
writing).
Examples:
All staff must get together on the tennis court.(okay)
All staff must congregate on the tennis court.
(preferable)
The meeting is put off until Tuesday.(okay)
The meeting is postponed until Tuesday.(preferable)

Reasons...
(2) It has unnecessary prepositions that don't add
anything.
Examples:
I cannot faceupto this problem.(okay)
I cannot face this problem.(better more succinct)
Try this new garlic dipout.(okay)
Try this new garlic dip.(better more succinct)
She will not standforshoddy work.(okay)
She will not stand shoddy work.(better more
succinct)

Reasons...
3) It would mean ending a sentence in a
preposition, and that is a
situation you're trying to avoid.
Examples:
It is a situation I will not putup with.(okay)
It is a situation I will not tolerate.(safer)
Can you sort it out? (okay)
Can you resolve it? (safer)

Reasons to Use Phrasal Verbs

(1) Being more natural sounding, a phrasal verb is a better fit for
your image.
We would not expect you to tolerate a second-rate service.
(understandable but perhaps a little too corporate and dry)
Don't put up with bad service.(more tuned to the "character" of
your business)
(2) A phrasal verb is clearer than the Latinate version.
The framework is required to concatenate the disparate elements.
(Too high a risk that it won't be understood)
The framework is required to join up each element.(safer)

(3) After a preposition, usewhomnotwho.

(4) After a preposition, usewhethernotif.
(5) If you're going to say something likemy wife and I, make sure it's
the subject of your sentence, otherwise it should beme and my
wife.
(6) You can't saybetween you and I. It'sbetween you and me.

Object of Preposition

The words that follow aprepositionare

called theobject of the preposition.

Examples:
The cat ran under the car.(The wordsthe
carare the object of the prepositionunder.)
Can you give this parcel to him tomorrow?(The
wordhimis the object of the prepositionto.)

CAVEAT
YOU AND I / MY WIFE AND I
Too often, people use Iin expressions like you and Ior my wife and
Iwhen they should be using me.
It is a present from my wife and me. (me objective case of I after the
preposition from)
It is a present from my wife and I. (This is as wrong as saying from I.)
Keep this between you and I. (This is as wrong as saying between I
and the post.)
Remember, prepositions govern the objective case. Therefore, the
word I must change to mewhen it is the object of a preposition (i.e.,
follows the preposition). The fact that it is preceded by you andor my
wife andis actually irrelevant

USE I when...

You should only use Iin an expression like you and

Iwhen it is the subjectoftheverb.

For example:
You and I argue on this subject on a daily
basis. (You and I subject of the verb to argue)
My husband and I accept your apology. (My husband
and I subject of the verb to accept)

CONFUSION you and I form or the you and

me form.
If the terms objective caseand subject of a verbare
confusing, there is a neat trick to determine whether
to use the you and Iform or the you and meform.

Simply remove everything apart from the Iand try your

sentence again. You will naturally use the correct
version.

It was proposed by my wife and (I/me).

Question: I or me?
Step 1: Remove my wife and
Step 2: Try the sentence again.
Step 3a: It was proposed by I (X)
Step 3b: It was proposed by me. (correct)
Therefore:
It was proposed by my wife and me. (correct)
It was proposed by my wife and I. (x)

EXCEPT vs. ACCEPT

Some writers confuse the words except and accept.

The word exceptis a preposition. It has a meaning
similar to not including.
I know everybody except Tony. (The
preposition except shows the relationship
between Tony andeverybody.)

The word accept, on the other hand, is a verb.

For example:
I accept.
She will accept the decision.

Past and Passed

The word pastcan be used as a preposition.

However, the word passedcannot.

The word passedis a verb that relates to the

action of passing.

For example:
Jennifer passed the exam.
She passed the salt.

past
The wordpastcan be used as:
A preposition:
It went past the post.
An adjective:
He believes he was a prince in a past life.
A noun:
It's all in the past.
Whether preposition, adjective or noun, the
wordpastusually relates to either time or distance.

Into, Onto and Up to

The wordintois apreposition. It is written as one word.
Example:
She turned everything she touchedintogold.
However, on occasion, the wordsinandtoappear
next to each other in a sentence, and writers are
unsure whether to useintoorin to.

This happens when theverbin the sentence includes the

wordin(e.g., hand in, step in, turn in).
Examples:
Paul wanted to hand the purse in to see if there was a
reward.
(In this example, the wordtois fromto see. When a verb
is preceded byto, it is said to be in its infinitive form.)
Paul wanted to hand the purse in to the police.
(In this example, the wordtois a preposition in its own
right.)

On to or Onto

The guidelines above apply equally toonto.

It is noteworthy, however, thatontocan meanon

top of. When this causes a problem, useon to.
Examples:
After seeing the sheep, we moved onto the cows.
(x)
After seeing the sheep, we moved on to the cows.
(correct)

Up to and Upto
Finally, the easy one:up tois never written as one word.
Example:
I can afford upto 400 pounds.(x)
(should beup to)
It takes up to four hours to hard boil an ostrich
egg.(correct)