Prepositions – Study Notes


Definition: preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to show its relationship with another word in a sentence. It shows time, place, direction, movement, cause, or position.


Preposition āĻšā§ˆāϛ⧇ āĻāύ⧇ āĻļāĻŦā§āĻĻ āϝāĻŋ noun āĻŦāĻž pronoun ā§° āφāĻ—āϤ⧇ āĻŦāĻšāĻŋ āĻŦāĻžāĻ•ā§āϝāϤ āĻĨāĻ•āĻž āφāύ āĻļāĻŦā§āĻĻā§° āϏ⧈āϤ⧇ āϏāĻŽā§Ÿ, āĻ āĻžāχ, āĻĻāĻŋāĻļ, āĻ—āϤāĻŋ, āĻ•āĻžā§°āĻŖ āĻŦāĻž āĻ…ā§ąāĻ¸ā§āĻĨāĻžāύ⧰ āϏāĻŽā§āĻĒā§°ā§āĻ• āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The pen is on the table.āĻ•āϞāĻŽāĻŸā§‹ āĻŸā§‡āĻŦ⧁āϞ⧰ āĻ“āĻĒā§°āϤ āφāϛ⧇āĨ¤


Rules of Prepositions


Definition : Preposition is a word used before a noun or pronoun to show time, place, position, direction, cause, or relation.


Preposition āĻŦ⧁āϞāĻŋāϞ⧇ āĻāύ⧇ āĻļāĻŦā§āĻĻ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧ āϝāĻŋ noun āĻŦāĻž pronoun-ā§° āφāĻ—āϤ⧇ āĻŦāĻšāĻŋ āϏāĻŽāϝāĻŧ, āĻ¸ā§āĻĨāĻžāύ, āĻĻāĻŋāĻļ, āĻ…ā§ąāĻ¸ā§āĻĨāĻžāύ, āĻ•āĻžā§°āĻŖ āĻŦāĻž āϏāĻŽā§āĻĒā§°ā§āĻ• āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Important Preposition Rules                 Prepositions – 50 MCQ : View Paper


1. Use in for months


Rule: In is used before months. āĻŽāĻžāĻšā§° āφāĻ—āϤ in āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: I was born in July.


2. Use on for days


Rule: On is used before days. āĻĻāĻŋāύ⧰ āφāĻ—āϤ on āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The party is on Friday.


3. Use at for exact time


Rule: At is used for exact time. āύāĻŋā§°ā§āĻĻāĻŋāĻˇā§āϟ āϏāĻŽāϝāĻŧā§° āĻŦāĻžāĻŦ⧇ at āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He arrived at 7 p.m.


4. Use in for years


Rule: In is used before years. āĻŦāϛ⧰⧰ āφāĻ—āϤ in āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: She graduated in 2020.


5. Use at for small places


Rule: At is used for small places. āϏ⧰⧁ āĻ¸ā§āĻĨāĻžāύ⧰ āĻŦāĻžāĻŦ⧇ at āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: We met at the station.


6. Use in for large places


Rule: In is used for big places.āĻĄāĻžāϙ⧰ āĻ¸ā§āĻĨāĻžāύ⧰ āĻŦāĻžāĻŦ⧇ in āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: They live in London.


7. Use on for surfaces


Rule: On is used for surfaces.āĻ“āĻĒā§°āϤ āĻĨāĻ•āĻž āĻŦāĻ¸ā§āϤ⧁⧰ āĻŦāĻžāĻŦ⧇ on āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The book is on the table.


8. Use by to show the doer


Rule: By shows who did the work. āĻ•āĻžāĻŽ āϕ⧰āĻž āĻŦā§āϝāĻ•ā§āϤāĻŋ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ by āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The song was written by her.


9. Use to for direction


Rule: To shows direction. āĻĻāĻŋāĻļ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ to āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He went to the market.


10. Use into for movement inside


Rule: Into shows movement from outside to inside.āĻŦāĻžāĻšāĻŋā§°ā§° āĻĒā§°āĻž āĻ­āĻŋāϤ⧰āϞ⧈ āĻ¯ā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ into āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: She walked into the room.


11. Use onto for surface movement


Rule: Onto shows movement onto a surface. āϕ⧋āύ⧋ āĻĒ⧃āĻˇā§āĻ ā§° āĻ“āĻĒā§°āϞ⧈ āĻ¯ā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The cat jumped onto the bed.


12. Use from for starting point


Rule: From shows starting point. āφ⧰āĻŽā§āĻ­āĻŖāĻŋ āĻ¸ā§āĻĨāĻžāύ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ from āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: I came from work.


13. Use with for instruments


Rule: With is used for tools. āϏāρāϜ⧁āϞāĻŋ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ with āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: She cut it with a knife.


14. Use about for topics


Rule: About shows topic. āĻŦāĻŋāώāϝāĻŧ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ about āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: We talked about politics.


15. Use for to show purpose


Rule: For shows purpose. āωāĻĻā§āĻĻ⧇āĻļā§āϝ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ for āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: This gift is for you.


16. Use since for point of time


Rule: Since shows starting time. āφ⧰āĻŽā§āĻ­āĻŖāĻŋ āϏāĻŽāϝāĻŧ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ since āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He’s been here since Monday.


17. Use for for duration


Rule: For shows period of time. āϏāĻŽāϝāĻŧā§° āĻĻā§ˆā§°ā§āĻ˜ā§āϝ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ for āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: I lived here for two years.


18. Use over for covering


Rule: Over means covering. āĻĸāĻžāĻ•āĻŋ āĻĨāĻ•āĻžā§° āĻ…ā§°ā§āĻĨāϤ over āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: A blanket is over the baby.


19. Use under for position


Rule: Under means below. āϤāϞāϤ āĻĨāĻ•āĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ under āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: Shoes are under the bed.


20. Use between for two


Rule: Between is used for two things. āĻĻ⧁āϟāĻž āĻŦāĻ¸ā§āϤ⧁⧰ āĻŽāĻžāϜāϤ between āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The ball is between the boxes.


21. Use among for more than two


Rule: Among is used for many. āĻĻ⧁āϟāĻžāϤāĻ•ā§ˆ āĻ…āϧāĻŋāϕ⧰ āĻŽāĻžāϜāϤ among āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: She is among friends.


22. Use before for earlier time


Rule : Before means earlier. āφāĻ—ā§° āϏāĻŽāϝāĻŧ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ before āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: I slept before midnight.


23. Use after for later time


Rule: After means later. āĻĒāĻŋāϛ⧰ āϏāĻŽāϝāĻŧ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ after āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: We ate after the meeting.


24. Use near for closeness


Rule: Near means close to. āĻ“āϚ⧰āϤ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ near āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The school is near the park.


25. Use beside for next to


Rule: Beside means next to. āĻ•āĻžāώāϤ⧇ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ beside āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: Sit beside me.


26. Use behind for back position


Rule: Behind means at the back.āĻĒāĻŋāĻ›āĻĢāĻžāϞ⧇ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāĻŦāϞ⧈ behind āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The dog is behind the door.


27. Use in front of


Rule: Shows position before something. āφāĻ—āĻĢāĻžāϞ⧇ āĻĨāĻ•āĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The car is in front of the house.


28. Use through for passage


Rule: Through means passing inside. āĻ­āĻŋāϤ⧰⧇āĻĻāĻŋ āĻĒāĻžā§° āĻšā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He walked through the tunnel.


29. Use across for other side


Rule: Across means from one side to another. āĻāĻĢāĻžāϞ⧰ āĻĒā§°āĻž āφāύāĻĢāĻžāϞāϞ⧈ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He swam across the river.


30. Use along for line/path


Rule: Along means following a path. āĻĒāĻĨ āĻ…āύ⧁āϏ⧰āĻŋ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: They walked along the road.


31. Use past for going by


Rule: Past means passing by. āĻ•āĻžāώ⧇āĻĻāĻŋ āĻĒāĻžā§° āĻšā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He ran past the shop.


32. Use off for separation


Rule: Off means separation. āĻĒ⧃āĻĨāĻ• āĻšā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: She fell off the bike.


33. Use out of for exit


Rule: Out of means exit. āĻŦāĻžāĻšāĻŋā§°āϞ⧈ āĻ“āϞāĻžāχ āĻ¯ā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He ran out of the room.


34. Use down for lower movement


Rule: Down means moving lower. āϤāϞāϞ⧈ āĻ¯ā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: She went down the stairs.


35. Use up for upward movement


Rule: Up means moving higher. āĻ“āĻĒā§°āϞ⧈ āĻ¯ā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He climbed up the hill.


36. Use against for contact


Rule: Against shows contact. āϞāĻžāĻ—āĻŋ āĻĨāĻ•āĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: The bike is against the wall.


37. Use without for lack


Rule: Without means absence. āύāĻžāĻĨāĻžāĻ•āĻž āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: I went without my phone.


38. Use within for limits


Rule: Within shows limit. āϏ⧀āĻŽāĻžā§° āĻ­āĻŋāϤ⧰āϤ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: Finish it within an hour.


39. Use beyond for limits crossed


Rule: Beyond means outside limits. āϏ⧀āĻŽāĻžā§° āĻŦāĻžāĻšāĻŋā§°āϤ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: This is beyond my ability.


40. Use according to for sources


Rule: According to means as per. āĻŽāϤ⧇ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: According to news, it will rain.


41. Use because of for reason


Rule: Shows reason. āĻ•āĻžā§°āĻŖ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: We stayed home because of rain.


42. Use due to for cause


Rule: Shows cause/result.āĻ•āĻžā§°āĻŖāϤ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: Delay was due to traffic.


43. Use instead of for replacement


Rule: Shows replacement. āĻĒā§°āĻŋāĻŦā§°ā§āϤ⧇ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: Tea instead of coffee.


44. Use as well as for addition


Rule: Adds extra information. āϞāĻ—āϤ⧇ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: He sings as well as dances.


45. Use in spite of for contrast


Rule: Shows contrast. āϏāĻ¤ā§āĻ¤ā§āĻŦ⧇āĻ“ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤        Prepositions – 50 MCQ : View Paper


Ex: In spite of rain, we played.


46. Use out of for source


Rule : Shows source. āĻ‰ā§ŽāϏ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: Money out of pocket.


47. Use at for events


Rule: At is used for events. āĻ…āύ⧁āĻˇā§āĻ āĻžāύ⧰ āĻŦāĻžāĻŦ⧇ at āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: We met at the concert.


48. Use by for deadline


Rule: By shows last time. āĻļ⧇āώ āϏāĻŽāϝāĻŧ āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤ Ex: Finish by Friday.


49. Use to with communication verbs


Rule: To follows verbs like speak, talk. āĻ•āĻĨāĻž āĻ•ā§‹ā§ąāĻž āĻ•ā§ā§°āĻŋāϝāĻŧāĻžā§° āϞāĻ—āϤ to āĻŦā§āĻ¯ā§ąāĻšāĻžā§° āĻšāϝāĻŧāĨ¤


Ex: I spoke to the teacher.


50. Use of for possession


Rule : Of shows relation/ownership. āϏāĻŽā§āĻĒā§°ā§āĻ• āĻŦāĻž āĻ…āϧāĻŋāĻ•āĻžā§° āĻŦ⧁āϜāĻžāϝāĻŧāĨ¤
Ex: A friend of mine.