Overview
A preposition is a part of speech that connects a noun or pronoun with a relationship in space, location, or time. Some prepositions such as of, for, to, in, or, and on are the most common words in the English language. When a preposition is used to describe the relationship, the noun becomes its object.
Relationships in Space and Location
One of the ways that prepositions are used are to show relationships in space and location. For example, in the sentence She works at the store, at shows the relationship between the subject of the sentence and the location where she works. Similarly, The books are on the table, on shows the relationship between the books and the table. If he walked to the desk, the preposition to shows the direction where the subject walked.
Relationships in Time
Prepositions also show relationships in time. In the sentence, The class begins at 8:00, at shows the relationship between the class and when it begins. However, in the sentence, The math class is in the morning, the time is not specific, so the preposition in is used to show a relationship in time. The sentence The meeting is on Tuesday at 3:00, shows two time relationships on for the day of the meeting and at for the specific time.
Commonly Confused Prepositions
Some prepositions are often confused. For example, the preposition among refers to more than two, while the preposition between refers to two. The balloons were divided among team members, but the balloons were divided between the two of them. The preposition beside refers to at the side of, while the preposition besides refers to in addition to, so that I walk beside the river, but What class are you taking besides English? If someone walks in a garden, they are walking within the garden, but if they walk into a garden, they are walking from outside into the entrance.
Unnecessary Prepositions
Sometimes extra prepositions are used in a sentence, but they are unnecessary and add nothing to the meaning of the sentence. They can be cut. In the sentence, She met up with her friend at the mall, she already met her friend, so the prepositions up and with can be deleted. In the sentence, Where did they go to? the preposition to is unnecessary and can be deleted.
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