Grammar Lesson 9.4: Prepositions and Prepostional Phrases
When you write for a formal purpose (school report)...
... avoid ending a sentence with a preposition INCORRECT: Whom are up talking to? CORRECT: To whom are you talking?
Verbs can NEVER be a part...
... of prepositional phrases.
The subject can NEVER be an...
...object. EXCEPT IN SOME CASES LIKE: I thought to myself..
Prepositional Phrase (1)
A group of words that begins with a preposition and ends with the object of the preposition EX: Trey visited his aunt {for[PREPOSITION] two weeks[OBJECT]}.←[PREPOSTIONAL PHRASE] ↖
Prepostion (1)
A word that shows direction, location, or a relationship between things. EX: Jared[NOUN/SUBJECT] looked[VERB] {on[PREPOSITION] the[ARTICLE] shelf[OBJECT].} ← PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE
Preposition (2)
Always part of a prepositional phrase
Adverb Phrase
It can modify a a verb, an adjecive, or another adverb. It tells how, when, where, or to what extent, as an adverb does. EX: He[PRONOUN/SUBJECT] traveled[VERB]←[mostly by plane{PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE}].
Adjective Phrase
It can modify a noun or pronoun by telling which one or what kind, as an adjective does. EX: The suitcase[NOUN/SUBJECT]←[in the hall {PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE}] belongs to Amelia.
Preposition (3)
May have a compound (more than one) object EX: Julia was gone until[PREPOSITION] last Tuesday[OBJECT] or Wednesday[OBJECT].
Prepositional Phrase (2)
Modifies another word in the sentence
Prepositional Phrase (3)
Should be placed close to the word it modifies to avoid confusion INCORRECT: Passengers looked for the book on the plane under the seat. (Is the plane under the seat?) CORRECT: Passengers on the plane looked for the book under the seats.
Object of a Preposition
The noun or pronoun that follows the preposition EX: She looked {under[PREPOSITION] the shelf[OBJECT] ↗}.←PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE↖
Preposition (5)
The object of a preposition will always come after the preposition She looked above(PREPOSITION[1st]) the shelf(OBJECT[2nd]).
Prepositional Phrase (4)
There are often more than one preposition phrase in a sentence. EX: Jared[NOUN/SUBJECT] looked[VERB] {at[PREPOSITION] the[ARTICLE] people[OBJECT]} running[VERB] {from[PREPOSITION] the[ARTICLE] train[OBJECT]} that was barreling[VERB] {towards[PREPOSITION] them}. {} = PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES
Preposition (4)
When the object of a preposition is a pronoun, it is always an object pronoun EX: Keep this between you and me.←[not I]
Commonly Used Prepositions
about, above, against, along, around, at, before, beside, beyond, but, by, for, from, inside, into, near, of, off, on, out, over, through, to, toward, up, with, etc.
