PREPOSITIONS

ABOUT (preposition, adverb, and adjective)

 She's about 12 years old. (She is almost 12)
 When he woke up, there were about ten people waiting for his garage sale to begin.
 He's been on the phone for about ten minutes.
 He weighs about 240 pounds.
 He's just about to sneeze.
 They are about to leave.
 She's reading a very interesting book about European history.
 The movie is about aliens.
 Tell me about your experience.
There are some words we use with about:complain, concern, excited, happy and worry:
 He never complains about the pain.
 Everybody was very concerned about the accident.
 I’m very excited about coming to France and I can’t wait to see you.
 I’m very happy about my trip.
 Please don’t worry about me.

ABOVE- means higher than (adverb, preposition)

 The clouds above the trees are moving very slowly today.
 He lifted his bike above his head.
 The kite was flying above.
 Water was leaking from above.
 Her grades are above average.
 The temperature has been above normal for the past couple of weeks.
 We live above a bakery
Note: The opposites of above are under, below and beneath.

ACROSS (preposition, adverb)

Across means on the other side of something, or from one side to the other of something which has
sides or limits such as a city, road or river:
 She lives across the street
 They walked across as quickly as they could.
 The road was so busy that we found it difficult to get across.
 Across the street there's a small shop and some apartments.
We also use across when something touches or stretches from one side to another:
 You have to be careful when you walk across the street in a big city.
 They're traveling across the field on horseback.

AFTER(preposition, conjunction, adjective, adverb)

After means ‘later than’ and ‘next in time or place’.
After can be used before a noun phrase (as a preposition):
 It gets dark very quickly after sunset.

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After can introduce a clause (as a conjunction):
 After 5:00 a lot of people headed home from work.
 After much thought, I have decided to retire.
 He took a shower after the game finished.
 I think I will order dessert after dinner
 I have soccer practice after school.
We can use after as an adverb, but afterwards is more common. When after is used, it is usually as
part of an adverb phrase:
 They lived happily ever after. (means ‘forever’)
 She had an operation on her leg and afterwards was unable to walk for at least a month.
Note: When after refers to future time, we use the present simple, not the future with shall or will:
 I’ll do another course after I finish this one.
Not: … after I will finish …

AGAINST (preposition)
We use against to refer to negative, hostile or opposing reactions to situations, beliefs, people, events,
etc.
 Millions of people campaigned against the war.
 It’s not easy to go against your parents’ advice.
 That referee has something against our team. (he doesn’t like our team)
 I am against animal experimentation
 They are against the new office policy.
 She gets angry when something goes against her beliefs.
Here are some common verbs often followed by against:

act decide guard speak out

advise demonstrate have something struggle
argue discriminate protest testify
Be fight react vote
campaign go rebel
Against with nouns
 Discrimination against people on the basis of race, age or gender is illegal.
 Everyone can be part of the fight against litter.
 The best protection against illness is a good diet and lots of exercise.
Here are some common nouns often followed by against:
accusation campaign discrimination protest
action case evidence reaction
aggression charge Fight rebellion
appeal complaint Law
argument defence prejudice
battle demonstration protection

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We often use against to talk about physical contact between two or more things:
 He was leaning against the wall.
 The bed was against the wardrobe.
 A building developer wants to cut down this tree and build a new restaurant, but this protester
is against it.
We often use against with verbs and nouns connected with sport and competitions, such
as compete/competition, final, game, match, play, semi-final:
 Japan competed against Germany in the semi-final.
 England’s match against Jamaica was cancelled.

ALONG/ALONGSIDE(preposition, adverb)
As a preposition, ’along’ means ‘in a line next to something long and thin’, e.g. a road, a path:
 There's a beautiful building along the river.
 These trees are lined up along the road.
 We walked along the beach as the sun was setting.
We use ’along’ as an adverb with verbs of motion meaning ‘together with’:
 He went for a walk in the woods and did some bird watching along the way.
 You're more than welcome to come along.
Other examples
 The carolers asked the crowd the sing along.
 They get along with each other very well.
As a preposition, ‘alongside’ means ‘close beside’, ‘next to’ or ‘together with’:
 The trees alongside the fence have all been damaged by the wind. (near)
 Put your bike alongside mine. (next to)
 I find it difficult to cope with this illness alongside all my other problems. (together with)
We also use ‘alongside’ as an adverb, meaning ‘along the side of’ or ‘next to’ something:
 I parked my car in the drive and William parked his alongside.
AMONG (prepositions)
We use ’among’ to talk about things which are not clearly separated because they are part of a group
or crowd or mass of objects:
 She is comfortable being among friends.
 They found the lost dog among the wreckage.
 The child star grew up among famous people.
We use ’among’ to suggest a sense of being a part of or surrounded by or included in something else. It
is typically followed by a plural noun phrase:
 She's very popular among her friends.
 Among their three children, one has blond hair and the other two have red hair.
 They enjoy walking among the trees in the forest.
In the phrases ‘among others’ and ‘among other things’, among means ‘as well as’:
 Her parents, among others, were worried about her travelling alone.
 Among other things, I still have to pack.
AROUND(adverb, preposition)

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We use ‘around’ and ‘round’ when we refer to movements in circles or from one place to
another. Around and round can both be used.
 She tied a ribbon around the box.
 We spent a very pleasant day walking round the town. (movement from one place to another)
 Now that they are retired, they are planning a trip around the world.
Around and round also mean ‘in different places’ and ‘here and there’:
 He doesn't know his way around.
 How are you getting around?
 Let's take a look around.
 We live around the area.
 They planted a lot of trees around their house.
 The place I need to go to is just around the corner. (not far away, or going to happen soon)
Around can also mean ‘approximately’:
 I think it's around 1:00.

AT (preposition)
Used to show an exact position or particular place:
 Let's meet at the library.
 I found this at the store.
 She's sitting at the table in the corner.
Used to show an exact or a particular time:
 I'll meet you at noon.
 I have to wake up tomorrow at 6:00.
In the direction of:
 Take a look at all of these items.
 I glanced at the clock.
 She was waving at the crowd.
Used to show the cause of something, especially a feeling:
 We were surprised at the news.
 I was quite excited at the prospect.
 Why does no one ever laugh at my jokes?
Used to show the activity in which someone's ability is beingjudged:
 I was never very good at sports.
 He's very good at getting on with people.
 She's hopeless at organizing things.
Used to show a price, temperature, rate, speed, etc.:
 I'm not going to buy those shoes at $150!
 Inflation is running at 5 percent.
 He was driving at 120 mph when the police spotted him.
 My favorite radio station is at 91.1 FM on the radio dial.
Other examples:
 Andrea lives at number 21 Oak Street.

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 While Liz was at the dentist’s, I went shopping.(We use at the to refer to public places where we get
treatments, such as a dentist’s or doctor’s surgery, hairdresser’s or spa)
BEFORE(preposition, adverb, and conjunction)
Before means earlier than the time or event mentioned:
 Can you call me back before 5 pm, please?
 I met her just before she left.
We use before meaning ‘in front of’ in more formal contexts:
 Moses went before King Pharaoh and asked him to let his people go.
 These musicians enjoy performing before an audience.
 We have a long journey before us.
We use before most commonly with noun phrases to refer to timed events:
 It feels good to wake up before sunrise.
 They left before dinner.
 I came here before.
 I didn't think about it before.
Especially in writing, we use before long to mean ‘after a short time’:
 They’ll marry before long, and then you’ll have more grandsons than you can count.
We can use beforehand as an alternative to before as an adverb, especially when the reference to time
is less specific.
Beforehand is more common in informal speaking than in writing:
 I love singing but I always get so nervous beforehand.
With before + ing-form is more formal:
 Before bringing the milk to the boil, add the egg. (more formal than Before you bring …)
We can use adverbs such as just, immediately, shortly and long, and expressions involving words such
as days, weeks, months, years in front of before:
 We got home just before it rained.
 The deadline for the essay was 5 pm. I got mine in shortly before five o’clock but Lily had hers
in days before the deadline.

BEHIND(preposition, adverb)
Slower or later than someone else, or than you should be:
 She is behind in her schoolwork.
 I'm behind in my payments.
 She's falling behind at work, so now she takes her work home and finishes it on the weekend.
In the place where someone or something was before:
 She was accidentally left behind.
 I was annoyed to discover that I'd left my bag behind.
 After the party a few people stayed behind to help clean up.
At the back (of):
 She sits behind me in class.
 My keys fell behind the couch.
 The dog is behind the fence.
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 Responsible for or the cause of:
 He wondered what was behind his neighbour's sudden friendliness.
 Marie Curie was the woman behind enormous changes in the science of chemistry.

BELOW (preposition, adverb)

We use below most commonly as a preposition meaning ‘lower than’. We use it when there is no
contact between people or things:
 There was a big clock below the painting.
 These fish are far below the surface of the water.
When the adverb below is used to modify a noun, it follows the noun:
 The apartment below is owned by a French couple.
 In the figure below, the results show that 54% of the rats tested were carrying the antibody …
When we talk about numbers, amounts or statistics being at a lower level, we use below more
than under:
 When the temperature is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit and there's snow on the ground, you can
make a snowman.
 Inflation has fallen below 5% for the first time in six years.
To talk about the position one hold in comparison to someone higher:
 She works below the assistant manager. He's not her supervisor, but he tells her what to do.

BENEATH (preposition and adverb)

Beneath means ‘at a lower level than’ .Beneath is most common in formal writing.
 Archaeologists discovered a gold cup just beneath the surface at the site of a Roman villa.
 The metro station is right beneath the airport.
 In the kitchen there was a modern sink with cupboards and drawers beneath.
Beneath is particularly common when talking about the ground or surface directly under one’s feet:
 She could feel the train coming because the ground beneath her feet was moving.
Beneath as an adverb isn’t very common and we mostly use it in formal writing:
 She looked down from the balcony at the two men talking beneath.
 In the kitchen there was a modern sink with cupboards and drawers beneath.
Beneath has a meaning similar to under and below but we do not use it with numbers:
 We bought it for just under200 pounds.
 Not: … for just beneath 200 pounds.

BESIDE- next to (preposition)

 He sat beside the window and waited for the truck to come.
 They're standing beside each other.
 The opera house in Sydney is beside the ocean.

BETWEEN- being in the middle of two things

 There is a door between the two rooms.
 They are arriving sometime between lunch and dinner.
 The relationship between a doctor and a patient is confidential.
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 I had to choose between the two shirts.
 The voters had to decide between the two candidates.
 The man sitting between the other two men feels uncomfortable because there's not much room on
the bench for all three of them.
We can also use between + pronoun when referring to two people or things:
 I gave Maria and Joseph some money and told them to share it between them.
We can also use between, but not among, to connect times or numbers:
 They lived in New York between 1998 and 2004.
 What were you doing between 5.30 pm and 7.00 pm?

BEYOND (preposition, adverb)

Beyond as a preposition means ‘further away in the distance (than something)’:
 Beyond the door was a narrow corridor that led off to the right.
 He could see the horse in the field, just beyond thehedge.
Beyond meaning ‘outside the limits’. Weuse beyond with expressions of time to mean ‘after that time’
or ‘further than that time’:
 It’s impossible to predict beyond the next five years as regards world economic trends. (we cannot
predict further in time than the next five years)
Beyond very often has a meaning of ‘outside the limits of something’. We often use it in the
expressions beyond belief and beyond doubt:
 That the government should want to tax the poor even more heavily is beyond belief. (no one can
believe it)
 Her commitment to her profession is beyond doubt. (no one can doubt it)
 The mechanic announced that the engine was beyond repair. (it could not be repaired)

BY (preposition and adverb)

We use by meaning ‘not later than’ to refer to arrangements and deadlines:
 They said that the plumber would be here by Monday.
 The postman is always here by 11 am.
We use ‘by the time’, meaning ‘when’,
 By the time you wake up, I’ll have finished work! (When you wake up, I will have finished work)
 Not: By the time you will wake up …
 Unfortunately the man had died by the time the ambulance arrived. (When the ambulance arrived,
the man had already died.)
We use by + -ing form to describe how to do something:
 By pressing this button, you turn on the alarm system. Then by entering the code 0089, you can turn
it off again.
We use by + noun to describe how someone travels or communicates, or how things are processed:
 I’ll send it by email; I can send it by post as well if you wish.
 Can I pay by credit card?
We say by car, by bus, by plane, etc. but if there is a determiner (e.g. a/an, the, some, my, his) before
the noun, we say in or on.

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 We went by train to Pisa.
It’s easier to get there by car. by + mode of transport
Did you travel by plane?
I’ll have to go on the 5 am train.
on/in + determiner + mode of
Barbara is travelling in Ann’s car.
transport
Have you ever travelled in a small plane?
 They painted the whole house by themselves! (They did it alone.)
 I was all by myself in the house last night but I didn’t mind. (I was alone.)
 Did you build that castle all by yourself? (Did you do it alone?)
We use by to mean ‘beside’ or ‘at the side of’:
By and near have a similar meaning but by refers to a shorter distance:
 There’s a lovely café by the river. We could go there. (The café is beside the river.)
 Three people walked by the house as Henry opened the door. (They walked past the house.)
 Lisa waved as she went by. (She passed the house without stopping.)
We use by to talk about measurements, and increases and decreases in amounts:
 When you work part-time, you are usually paid by the hour.
 The price of fuel has increased by 12% this year.
We use by, not with, to talk about the action of something:
 He got into the house by breaking the window. (action)

DURING
We use during before nouns and noun phrases to refer to when something happens over a period of
time. During can refer to the whole time of the event:
 You are not allowed to use your mobile phone during class. (the whole of the class)
 I have to have my window open during the night. (the whole of the night)
In this meaning, during can often mean the same as in:
 His grandfather fought in the army during the First World War. (or … in the First World War.)
 When I was a kid, our cousins often came to stay with us during the summer. (or … in the summer.)
 I haven’t done any exercise during the last week.
During can refer to something that happened while the main event was taking place.
 What was that noise I heard during the night, I wonder? or … in the night. (I heard a noise at an
unspecified point in the night.)

DOWN- the opposite of up (preposition, adjective and adverb)

 She's walking down the steps.
 Water is flowing down the side of a cliff.
 Don't let your money go down the drain. (don’t waste your money)
 Hit the down arrow.
 Please come down.
 She feels down about her failure.
EXCEPT- not including someone or something (preposition)
 I got everything correct except for one problem.
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 Everyone except Nancy passed the test.
 Everyone was invited except Sam.
 He gets along with everyone except his brother.
Used As A Conjunction To Explain Why Something Is/Was Not Possible.
 The brothers are very alike, except (that) Mark is slightly taller than Kevin.
 I would go with you except I wasn't invited.
 She wanted to attend the party except she had an emergency at the hospital.
 This soup tastes good except it needs salt.
 Except for his keyboarding skills, he'spretty good at using a computer.

FOR (preposition and conjunction)

We use ’for’ to talk about a purpose or a reason for something:
 I’m going for some breakfast. I’m really hungry.
 I made potato salad for the potluck.
 He works for a bank.
We often use ’for’ to introduce the person or people receiving something:
 She bought a teapot for her sister.
 We’re going to Cape Town for two months. (We will spend two months in Cape Town.)
 We’re going to Cape Town in two months. (We’re leaving to go to Cape Town two months from
now.)
After a negative we can use ’for’ and in with the same meaning.
 I haven’t seen him in five years. (or for five years.)
In questions we often use what … for instead of why to ask about the reason
 What are you here for?
 What are they doing it for?
Other examples:
 She’s been caring for her mother for years.
 It’s not a good time to look for it now. We have to go.
 I need something for storing CDs.
 You should talk to Jane about it. You know, she’s famous for being a good listener. (A lot of people
know she’s such a good listener.)

FROM (preposition)
We use ’from’ to show the time or point in time when something starts:
 Tickets for the concert are on sale from Monday.
 The finals take place from 1.30 pm on Sunday.
We use ’from’ to show the level that things begin at, such as numbers or prices:
 Prices start from 300 rupees for a ticket to the theme park.
We use ’from’ to talk about distance in relation to somewhere else:
 The Metro station is nearby and we are only five minutes from the toll gate.
We use ’from’ to refer to the place where someone or something starts or originates:
 She is from Italy.
 Do you live far from here?
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 We get our vegetables from the farm shop. They’re really fresh.
We use ’from’ to talk about the way we use materials or ingredients to make things:
 Ivory is made from elephant tusk..
We use ‘from … to’ to talk about ranges of different things such as prices, geographical distance, time
 There were six Miller children, ranging in age from nineteen to seven.
Other examples
 Sweat is dripping from his forehead.
 He's a mean dude. He comes from a bad family.
 This picture is from a trip I took to Paris.

IN, INTO(prepositions)
We use ’in’ to talk about where something is in relation to a larger area around it:
 She’s in the garden.
 I’ve left my keys in the car.
We use ’into’ to talk about the movement of something, usually with a verb that expresses movement
(e.g. go, come). It shows where something is or was going:
 She’s gone into the house.
 Helen came into the room.
She’s gone for a walk in the garden. She is in the garden walking.
She walked into the garden. She entered the garden.
With some verbs (e.g. put, fall, jump, dive) we can use either ’in’ or ’into’ with no difference in
meaning:
 Can you put the milk in/into the fridge?
 Her keys fell in/into the canal.
We use ‘be’verb +‘into’ to express enthusiasm or strong interest for something:
 He’s really into his work.
 I’m into classical music and Thai food.
We use ’into’ after verbs describing change:
 We’ve translated the course into six different languages.
 She changed into her swimming costume and went for a swim.
 They divided the cake into four pieces.
Other examples
 This candy comes in many different flavors.
 His company has been in business for more than 20 years.

NEAR/NEARTO/NEARBY (prepositions) Near is also an adjective.

The preposition near (to) means ‘not far away in distance’. Near and near to mean the same,
but near is more common:
 My mother loves to sit near the fire at night.
 She reached out her hand and drew him near to her.
We can use near (to) to talk about time:
 My boss is near retirement. (He will retire soon.)
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 Call me back near the end of September.
We can use near (to) to talk about being almost in a particular state or condition:
 It was full of soldiers and of military police, and I was near despair.
In formal contexts, we can use near as an adjective to refer to time with the phrase in the near
future meaning ‘soon’. It is usually in end position:
 Bank interest rates are expected to rise in the near future.
We don’t use near as an adjective modifying a noun when it refers to distance:
 We went to a nearby restaurant in the evening.
 Not: … a near restaurant …
Nearby is an adverb or an adjective meaning ‘not far away’:
 Does Paul live nearby? (adverb)
 Luckily, the nearby buildings weren’t damaged by the fire. (adjective)
We don’t use nearby as a preposition. We use near:
 He worked in a restaurant near the station.
 Not: He worked in a restaurant nearby the station.

NEXT TO (preposition)
 They're sitting next to each other in the movie theater.
 There's a church next to this house.
 He's sitting next to the window.
OF (preposition)
‘Of’ commonly introduces prepositional phrases which are complements of nouns, creating the
pattern: noun + of + noun.
 Delhi is the capital of India.
 Twenty-four-hour TV news makes sure we all know the main events of the day.
 Would you like some more pieces of toast?
We also commonly use ’of’ as a preposition after different adjectives (afraid of, generous of, proud of)
and verbs (approve of, dream of, think of):
 I never thought she could take a flight on her own at her age. I feel very proud of her.
 Best of luck with the interview tomorrow. We’ll be thinking of you.
We use the structure determiner + of + noun in expressions of quantity:
 Most of the new workers in the country are from Turkey.
 Some of my best friends are computer scientists.
‘Of’ is optional with all, both, half except before the object pronouns me, you, it, him, her, us, them:
 Both (of) the finance ministers have decided to resign.
 All of them will be able to travel on the bus.
The pronoun ‘other’ has the same forms as nouns. We add ’s to the singular form, and we add an
apostrophe after the plural -s ending in the plural form:
 They took each other’s hand and started walking.
 All of our luggage arrived but the others’ cases didn’t.
We can talk about possession using the pattern: noun phrase + of + possessive pronoun:
 A friend of mine told me that all of the tickets have already sold out.
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 He’s gone to pick up a cousin of his at the station.
 Is Linda McGrath a close friend of yours?
 A neighbour of mine called late last night.
 He’s a brother of Maria’s. (Maria’s brother)
 A friend of my sister’s has opened a café on Dawson Street. (sister’s friend)
 She was a daughter of the President’s. (President’s daughter)
We don’t use ’s when the noun is not a person, animal, country, organisation, etc., or when the noun
phrase is very long:
 The name of the ship was ‘Wonder Queen’. (Not: The ship’s name was ‘Wonder Queen’.)
 The house of the oldest woman in the village. (Not: The oldest woman in the village’s house.)
Other examples:
 Hundreds of people on bikes appeared at the event.
 He's sick of his computer.
 He's tired of doing paperwork.
OFF (adverb, adjective and preposition)
Away from a place or position, especially the present place, position, or time:
 He drove off at the most incredible speed.
 She's off to Canada next week.
 He thief saw the police and took off.
 Please take your shoes off.
 All the berries had dropped off the tree.
 He fell off his bike.
 Take your feet off that seat, young man!
Used with actions in which something is removed or removes itself from another thing:
 One of my buttons has come off.
 She had all her hair cut off.
Not operating
 Make sure the computers are all off before you go home.
(Of money) taken away from the original price:
 The card entitles you to 30% off all rail fares.
Not at work; at home or on holiday:
 I'm going to take/have some time off to work on my house.
 She was off sick last week.
In such a way as to be separated:
 The police have shut/closed off all streets leading to the city.
 She marked off the amount of fabric she needed.
(Of an arranged event) stopped or given up:
 The party’s off - she's decided to cancel it.
 Andrew must be so well-off (= rich) by now.
In such a way as to be completely absent, especially because of having been used or killed:
 It says on the bottle that it kills off all known germs.
 It'll take some time before she manages to pay off all her debts.
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 The good thing about exercise is that it burns off calories.
Having a particular amount or number, especially of money:
 Andrew must be so well-off (= rich) by now.
 I think they're fairly badly-off (= poor) now that David has lost his job.

ON/ONTO (prepositions)
We use ’on’ when we refer to a position on a surface (on the table, on the ocean, on the moon, on the
roof, on the bus):
 Your keys are on the table.
 The men were standing on the roof.
We use ’onto’ to talk about direction or movement to a position on a surface, usually with a verb that
expresses movement:
 The cat climbed onto the roof.
 She emptied the suitcase full of clothes onto the floor.
We use ’on’ to describe a position along a road or river or by the sea or by a lake:
 The hotel is on the road opposite the beach.
 They have a fabulous house on a lake in Ireland.
We use ’onto’ to describe movement towards an end position along a road or river:
 The path leads onto the main road.
We use ’on’ or ’onto’ with very little difference in meaning to refer to attachment or movement of
something to something else. ’onto’ gives a stronger feeling of movement:
 There’s a battery pack with the camera that you can clip onto a belt.
 You can save the data onto your hard disk.
 Have you put the pictures on your memory stick?

INSIDE (adjective, noun, adverb and preposition)

 There's a lot of junk inside my desk.(preposition)
 Those shoes look a bit uncomfortable. Can you really move your toes inside them?
 The inside of their house is really beautiful. (as a noun)
 Are you looking for Anna? She’s inside. Do come in. (adverb)
 It was a Buddhist temple and we took our shoes off before going inside.
 I think I’ve left my phone in the inside pocket of my brown jacket. Could you have a look for me? (as
an adjective)
OUT /OUT OF
Note: Out is the opposite of in. Out of is the opposite of into:
We use ’out’ as an adverb to mean ‘not in a building or an enclosed space’:
 He went out last night.
 The dog ran out the door.
 He walked out the back door.
 He is out at the moment.
 They are always out.
 Tell them I'm out.
 She threw the spoiled food out.
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We use ’out’ as a verb particle in phrasal verbs:
 Look out there’s a car coming.
 I thought I’d phone and find out how you are.
 She called out for help.
 Has the new book come out yet?
We use ’out of’ to say that something is all gone:
 The printer is out of ink. We need to get some soon.
 I’m afraid, we’re out of soup.
We use ’out of’ as a preposition to talk about movement from within somewhere or something,
usually with a verb that expresses movement (e.g. go, come). It shows where something is or was
going:
 You go out of the building and turn right.
 He pulled a letter out of his shirt pocket, opened it and handed it to her to read.

OUTSIDE/OUTSIDE OF (adjective, noun, adverb and preposition)

We use outside as an adverb or an adjective to mean ‘not in a building’:
 It was sunny outside, but not very warm. (adverb)
 It’s a bit dark at night. We could put an outside light there. (adjective)
Outside can also mean ‘external’, not part of an existing plan or situation:
 They are interested in outside staff for the new teacher position.
We use outside or outside of as a preposition to mean ‘not in a particular place, but near it’:
 There’s a chair just outside the room opposite.
 She works in a software development company just outside of Dublin.
Outside of can also be used with time expressions to mean ‘excluding’ or ‘apart from’:
 Outside of the summer months, the hotel rates are lower.
Outside as a noun is used to refer to the exterior of something. It is more informal than exterior:
 The outside of the house is not very attractive, but inside it is beautiful. (or, more formal, The
exterior of the house …)

OVER (adjective, adverb and preposition)

Over as a preposition (it is equivalent to above; across)
 We hung a new chandelier over the dining table.
 A plane flew really low over our heads.
 He had mud all over his face.
 You can buy a plastic cover to put over your computer if you’re worried about dust.
Over as an adjective means finished; done
 The game was over quickly.
 The meeting is finally over.
We can use over to refer to extended periods of time:
 Over a period of three centuries, very little changed in the pattern of life for the poorest people.
 What are you doing over the summer holidays? Are you going away?
Over means ‘more than’ a particular number, or limit:

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 There were over 100 people at the lecture.
 If your hand baggage weighs over 10 kilos, you must check it in.
Over as an adverb can mean ‘to someone’s house’:
 Would you like to come over and have dinner one evening? (to the speaker’s house)
Over and over means ‘repeatedly’, ‘many times’.
 Stop it! I’ve told you over and over not to play with the radio!

PAST (adjective, adverb and preposition)

 He drove his car past the mountains on his way to the ocean. (preposition)
 It's five minutes past 11:00.
 It's not a good idea to drink or use milk that is past the expiration date.
 She found it hard to make ends meet in the past. (noun)
As an adjective it means, over and done with:
 The danger is now past.
As an adverb it means to pass from one side of something to the other:
 A week went past and nothing changed.

SINCE (preposition, conjunction and adverb)

From a certain point in time to now
 I haven't seen him since college.
 It was the band’s first live performance since May 1990.
 I haven't heard this song since my childhood.
 I haven't talked to her since last week.
Since (conj): because; from a certain time :
 It’s so long since I saw them.
 He’s been back to the office a few times since he retired.
We can use since + -ing form to refer to time when the subject of the verb is the same in the main
clause and the subordinate clause:
 Since leaving school, he has had three or four temporary jobs. (Since he left school, he has …)
We can use since or since then as an adverb of time when the time reference is understood from
the context:
 His father doesn’t talk to him. They had an argument a couple of years ago and they haven’t
spoken since. (since they had the argument)
 They bought the house in 2006 and they’ve done a lot of work on it since then. (since 2006)
We use ever since as a stronger form of since or since then:
 When I was young, I had a little collie dog, but one day he bit me really badly. I’ve hated dogs ever
since.
We use since as a subordinating conjunction to introduce a subordinate clause. We use it to give
a reason for something:
 Since it's hot today, let's turn on the air conditioner.
 Since her husband hated holidays so much, she decided to go on her own.

THROUGH (adjective, adverb and preposition)

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Through as a preposition means in one side and out the other; between; around; from the beginning to
the end; by the way of:
 The bullet went through the wall.
 We walked through the corn field.
 We passed through my hometown.
 I heard about the program through a friend.
Through as an adverb means from one side to another; completely; from the beginning to the end :
 Did you read the article through?
 The ink went completely through.
 How are we going to get through?
Through as an adjective means finished:
 We are finally through with this project.
 He's not through with his lecture yet.

THROUGHOUT (preposition, adverb)

Throughout as a preposition means in every part of something
 They were arguing throughout the meeting.
 Throughout her life, she always took care of others.
 He is known throughout the world.

TO
To is a preposition. It is also used as part of the infinitive (the to-infinitive):
 Does this train go to Cambridge? (preposition)
 I’d like to see that film. (to-infinitive)
We can use ’to’ as a preposition to indicate a destination or direction:
 We’re going to Liverpool next week.
 The dog ran to us as soon as we arrived.
We use ’to’ with verbs such as give, hand, send, write, to indicate the person or thing that
receives or experiences the object of the verb:
 I [V]gave [O]the keys to [receiver]Jane.
 She’s always writing letters to the local newspaper.
We use ’to’ in telling the time, when we refer to the number of minutes before the hour:
 Her train arrives at quarter to five.
 It’s ten to six. We’d better leave now or we’ll be late.
We can use ’to’ with the meaning of ‘until’ when we are talking about time. We often use it in the
expression from … to …:
 It’s just three days to New Year’s Day.
To as a preposition: time
We use ’to’ in telling the time, when we refer to the number of minutes before the hour:
 Her train arrives at quarter to five.
 It’s ten to six. We’d better leave now or we’ll be late.

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We can use ’to’ with the meaning of ‘until’ when we are talking about time. We often use it in the
expression from … to …:
 It’s just three days to New Year’s Day.
 They’re only open from Monday to Friday. They’re closed at the weekend.
To as a preposition: approximate numbers
We can use ’to’ when we refer to an approximate number somewhere between a lower number
and a higher number:
 There were forty to fifty people at the meeting.
 It’ll probably cost you thirty to thirty-five pounds.
To as a preposition: after nouns
A number of nouns are followed by to. These include nouns expressing direction or destination
such as door, entrance, road, route, and way:
 The door to the main office was open.
 Is this the way to the airport?
They also include nouns referring to transport, such as bus, coach, ferry, flight, train:
 The ferry to Santander takes 12 hours.
 Is this the bus to the stadium?
Nouns expressing reactions and responses are also followed by ’to’. These include answer, key,
reaction, reply, response, solution:
 His reaction to her comments was very aggressive.
 They don’t seem to be able to find a solution to the problem of global warming yet.
To as a preposition: after verbs
Some verbs are followed by the preposition ’to’, including be used, get used, listen, look forward,
object, reply, and respond:
 We listened to that CD you lent us. It’s great.
 I object to your remarks.
 The bank hasn’t replied to my letter yet.
To as a preposition: after adjectives
Some adjectives connected with people’s behaviour and feelings are followed by ’to’,
including cruel, faithful, generous, kind, loyal, nasty:
 I cannot bear people being cruel to animals.
 Be kind to her. You’re so nasty to her!
 Many individuals have been loyal to the Conservative Party all their lives.
To: the to-infinitive
We use ’to’ before a verb to make the to-infinitive form:
 She loves to wear really colourful dresses.
 I need to leave early today.
 To get an outside line, you have to dial 9 first.

TOWARD/TOWARDS
Towards and toward are prepositions. We can use both forms, but towards is much more
common than toward.
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Toward(s) most often means ‘in the direction of something’:
 The oil pollution is now moving towards the shore, and could threaten beaches and wild life.
 He stood up and moved toward the door.
We use toward(s) to mean ‘in relation to someone or something’.
 She’s always been very friendly towards me.
 He felt very angry towards her when she refused him.
We use toward(s) to mean ‘near to or just before a time or place’:
 Toward the late afternoon I always get sleepy and can’t work so well.
 We sat towards the back of the room but we could still hear the speakers very clearly
Toward(s) can mean ‘for the purpose of buying or achieving something’:
 Would you like to make a contribution towards our new children’s playground? (Would you like to
give some money to help pay for it?)
 The essays you do during term count towards your final grade.

UNDER
Under is a preposition. We use under to talk about something that is below or lower than
something else:
 The cat is under the table.
 His shoes were under his bed.
When we use under, we can also mean that one thing is touching or covering something else. We
do not use below in this way:
 The wreck of the Titanic still remains under the sea.
 Not: … below the sea.
 He had hidden the money under the floorboards.
 Not: … below the floorboards.
We don’t use under to refer to something in a lower position than something else. We use below:
 Venus is just below the moon right now.
 Not: Venus is just under the moon …
We use under, not below, to refer to age:
 You have to be under 18 to get an allowance.
 They have three children under the age of five.
We use under, not below, to talk about measurements of time and weight:
 We finished the project in under a year and a half.
 The bag was just under 10 kilos, so I was able to bring it on the plane.
When we talk about height and temperature, we use below not under:
 The roof of the new building is just below the height of the church and I think it distracts from the
church.
 Not: … under the height of the church …
 The liquid must be kept below five degrees. (preferred to … under five degrees.)
Underneath is similar to under, but it usually only refers to position:
 Underneath the stairs is where we keep our vacuum cleaner and brushes.
 The child weighed under five kilos.
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 Not: … underneath five kilos.
Other examples:
 This bridge is under construction.
 I'm under the care of a very good doctor.

UNDERNEATH (preposition, adverb)

Under or below:
 The tunnel goes right underneath the city.
 They found a bomb underneath the car.
The lower part or the bottom surface of something:
 Bake for half an hour - the top should be crisp, and the underneath moist and succulent.
 She found the key taped to the underneath of the table, as always.

UNTIL
Until is a preposition and a conjunction. Until is often shortened to till or ’til.
Until as a preposition means ‘up to (the time that)’:
 We played chess until midnight. (up to midnight)
 The film didn’t end till eleven o’clock.
We use from with until or till to talk about when something begins and when it ends:
 I worked out at the gym from 6 pm till 7.30 pm.
 The road outside our house will be closed from 6 am until 6 pm tomorrow.
We don’t use until or till to talk about quantity or numbers. We use ’up to’:
 The taxi can take up to five people.
We use until as a subordinating conjunction to connect an action or an event to a point in time:
 Let’s wait here till the rain stops. (till + subordinate clause)
Warning:
We don’t normally put the until-clause before the main clause:
 No one left the room until the talk ended.
 Not: Until the talk ended no one left the
We use present verb forms to refer to the future after until:
 I can’t wait until the summer holidays begin.
We also use the present perfect after until to refer to actions or events that will continue up to a
point in the future:
 We’ll sit here till Donna has finished.
We use the past simple and past perfect to talk about events in the past:
 He was the headteacher until he retired in 1968.
 We couldn’t put down the new floor till the plumber had finished.

UP
Up is an adverb, a preposition and an adjective.
Up is the opposite of down. It refers to movement to a higher level.
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We use up as an adverb to talk about movement towards a higher position, value, number or
level:
 She put the books up on the highest shelf.
 The good weather has pushed sales of summer clothes up.
 We light the fire every night and that heats the room up.
We use up to talk about a higher position or movement to a higher position:
 He was up a ladder painting.
 My grandparents live just up the road.
 I followed Vivian up the stairs, where there was a small dining room.
 As we were climbing up the narrow mountain road, we could see the sea below.
We use up as an adjective usually to talk about increases in prices, levels or amounts:
 The price of fuel is up again.
 It was cold yesterday but the temperature is up today.
Up is commonly used as a particle in phrasal verbs:
 He was brought up by his grandmother.
 Don’t give up. You will find a job.
 What time did you wake up this morning?
Up is also commonly used as an adverb particle followed by a preposition in phrasal
prepositional verbs:
 I had to run to catch up with Elaine. She walks so fast.
 I’ve always looked up to my older brother.

UP TO
Up to: as much as; almost
 An elephant can eat up to 400 pounds of food in one day!
 He spends up to two or three hours on the phone every day at work.
Up to: as high as
 A sudden thunderstorm flooded the streets. The water was up to the top of his tires.
 She worked her way up to a management position very quickly.
Other examples
 What are you up to? = What are you doing?
 Most of the big decisions in the company are left up to him.
 He walked up to a police officer and asked for help in finding his mother.

UPON
Upon (prep): on top; on; indicating someone or something is close by
 The king put his crown upon the prince's head.
 Once upon a time, there lived a prince and princess.
 The movie star was escorted into a room upon arrival.
 Upon her head she wore a black velvet hat.
 A country's future prosperity depends, to an extent, upon the quality of education of itspeople.

WITH
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With (prep): used when saying people or things are together; in addition to
 I am going to the mall with my friends.
 I need to do math with a calculator.
 I decorated the room with posters.
 She arrived with her grandpa.
 I don’t like tea with milk.
With often follows adjectives which refer to reactions and feelings:
 Are you happy with your music lessons?
 The teacher got angry with them because they were behaving badly.
 I’m delighted with this new jacket.
We use with to refer to what we use to do something:
 They opened the package with a knife.
 I’ll tie it with some tape to keep it closed.
 He cleaned the table with a cloth he found in the kitchen.
We use with to mean ‘having’ or ‘possessing’:
 It’s the house with the really big gates.
 She woke with terrible toothache.
 The Commonwealth Institute used to be a building with a very unusual roof in Kensington.
We use with to mean ‘because of’ or ‘as a result of’. This is especially common in speaking:
 With all this work, I’d better stay in tonight.
 I couldn’t sleep with the noise of the traffic.

WITHIN
Within means ‘inside or not further than a particular area or space’:
 People who live within the city pay higher local taxes than people who live just outside the city. (=
the people who live no further than the city boundary or limits)
 We’ve always lived within ten miles of the coast. We love the sea. (We’ve always lived no further
than ten miles from the coast.)
We can use within to refer to time:
 I’ve booked train tickets on the Internet. They should arrive within three days. (no later than three
days from now)
 I’ve noticed her change within a very short time.

WITHOUT
The preposition without means ‘not having something’ or ‘lacking something’:
 I can’t drink tea without milk.
 I found myself in a strange country, without money and with no one to turn to.
 He left without his umbrella and it's raining now.
 I can't see anything without my glasses.
Without + -ing form can also mean ‘if someone does not do something’:
 I couldn’t get the picture out of the frame without breaking the glass. (if I did not break the glass)

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LIKE-similar to (preposition, conjunction)
We use like to talk about things or people which we enjoy or feel positive about:
like + noun phrase
 I like Sarah but I don’t like her brother much.
 Do you like pasta?
ike + -ing
 I like swimming before breakfast.
 He likes telling jokes.
like + to-infinitive
 She likes to go and see her parents at the weekend.
 I don’t like to cycle in the dark.
ike + wh-clause
 I don’t like what he did.
 We liked how they cooked the fish.
We use would like or ’d like to offer something to someone in a polite way or to ask them to do
something politely (requests), or politely to say what we want. We use the to-infinitive form of
verbs that follow:
 Would you like another coffee?
 Would you like to watch a DVD?
 I’d like to enquire about the Sales Manager position which you have advertised
Like means ‘similar to’. We often use it with verbs of the senses such as look, sound, feel, taste,
seem:
 She looked like she was going to cry.
 It looks like it may rain.
 I want a haircut like yours.
 My brother looks like my dad.
When we use like to mean ‘similar to’, we can put words and phrase such as a bit, just, very,
so and more before it to talk about the degree of similarity:
 It’s a bit like skiing but there’s no snow.
 Isn’t that just like the bike we bought you for your birthday?
 That smells very like garlic.
We can use like as a suffix at the end of a noun to mean ‘similar to’:
 There is something child-like about Marianne. She always seems so innocent.
What is Martina’s new colleague like? What is his personality like? Is he nice?
He’s really nice.
What does Martina’s new colleague look like? What is his appearance like? Is he handsome?
He’s tall, with blond hair.

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