Definition

1. Noun:
   • (Linguistics) A word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun or noun phrase) and another word in the sentence. A preposition typically indicates location, direction, time, manner, or possession. It forms a prepositional phrase with its object (the noun/pronoun that follows it).
   • (Linguistics) The grammatical placement of one element before another. This is a more technical sense, referring to the act of positioning a word, especially a modifier or affix, before the element it relates to.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • The book is on the table. (The preposition "on" shows the spatial relationship between "book" and "table".)
  • We will meet after lunch. (The preposition "after" shows a time relationship.)
  • She walked through the park. (The preposition "through" shows direction.)
  • This is a gift for you. (The preposition "for" shows purpose or recipient.)

Advanced Usage

• Stranded Preposition: A preposition that appears at the end of a clause or sentence, often in questions or relative clauses. This is grammatically acceptable in modern English.
  • What are you looking at? (The preposition "at" is stranded at the end of the question.)
  • That's the person I was talking about.
• Prepositional Phrase: The group of words beginning with a preposition and ending with its object (a noun or pronoun). The entire phrase functions as an adjective or adverb.
  • The house with the red door is mine. (The prepositional phrase "with the red door" acts as an adjective modifying "house".)
  • He ran to the store. (The prepositional phrase "to the store" acts as an adverb modifying "ran".)

Variants and Related Words

• Prepositional (adjective): Of or relating to a preposition.
  • "On" and "under" are prepositional words.
• Prepose (verb, rare/technical): To place (a word or element) in front of another.
• Postposition (noun): A word or particle placed its object, serving a similar grammatical function to a preposition. (Common in some languages like Japanese; rare in English, e.g., "ago" in "two years ago").

Synonyms

• Function word: A word (like a preposition, conjunction, or article) that has little lexical meaning but expresses grammatical relationships.
• Relator: A term sometimes used in linguistics for words that express relationships between other elements.

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

(Note: Prepositions themselves are components of phrasal verbs, but they are not phrasal verbs on their own. This section lists common prepositions that frequently form phrasal verbs.) - Up, down, in, out, on, off, over, under, with, for, to, at: These are common prepositions that combine with verbs to create phrasal verbs (e.g., give up, look down on, get over).

Related Idioms

• Preposition at the end: Refers to the common "rule" (often considered a myth) that one should not end a sentence with a preposition. The idiom "That is the sort of nonsense up with which I will not put!" is a humorous, overly complex sentence constructed to avoid ending with the prepositions "up" and "with," parodying strict adherence to this "rule."

Noun

1. (linguistics) the placing of one linguistic element before another (as placing a modifier before the word it modifies in a sentence or placing an affix before the base to which it is attached)
2. a function word that combines with a noun or pronoun or noun phrase to form a prepositional phrase that can have an adverbial or adjectival relation to some other word