Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases

This is “Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases”, section 1.17 (from appendix 1) from the book Writers' Handbook (v. 1.0). For details on it (including licensing), click here.

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21.17 Prepositions and Prepositional Phrases

Prepositions are words that show the relationships between two or more other words. Choosing correct prepositions can be challenging, but the following examples will help clarify how to use some of the most common prepositions.

Types of Prepositions	Examples of Prepositions	How to Use	Prepositions Used in Sentences
Time	at	Use with hours of the day and these words that indicate time of day: dawn, midnight, night, and noon	We will eat at 11:30.
	at		We will eat at noon.
	by	Use with time words to indicate a particular time	I’ll be there by 5:00.
	by	Use with time words to indicate a particular time	I’ll be finished by October.
	in	Use with the and these time-of-day words: afternoon, evening, and morning	We’ll start in the morning.
	in	Use on its own with months, seasons, and years	The rainy season starts in June.
	on	Use with days of the week	I’ll see you on Friday.
Location	at	Use to indicate a particular place	I’ll stop at the dry cleaners.
	in	Use when indicating that an item or person is within given boundaries	My ticket is in my pocket.
	by	Use to mean “near a particular place”	My desk is by the back door.
	on	Use when indicating a surface or site on which something rests or is located	Place it on the table, please.
	on		My office is on Lincoln Boulevard.
Logical relationships	of	Use to indicate part of a whole	I ate half of the sandwich.
	of	Use to indicate contents or makeup	I brought a bag of chips.
	for	Use to show purpose	Jake uses his apron for grilling.
State of being	in	Use to indicate a state of being	I am afraid that I’m in trouble.