PREPOSITIONS

Prepositions
Preposition	Meaning	Example of use
above	higher than or over	The sun is above the clouds.
across	from one side to the other	It's dangerous to run across the road.
after	- following something  - later than	- The boy ran after the ball.  - I'll phone you after lunch.
against	- in opposition to  - in contact with	- Stealing is against the law  - The sofa is against the wall
along	from one end to the other	To walk along the street.
among	surrounded by	Peter was among the spectators.
around	- in a circle  - near, approximately	- He walked around the table.  - It costs around 50 euros.
before	- earlier than  - in front of	- The day before yesterday.  - He bowed before the King .
behind	at the back of	Passengers sit behind the driver.
below	lower than	His shorts are below his knees.
beneath	under	The pen was beneath the books.
beside	next to	The bank is beside the cinema.
between	in the space separating two things	Mary sat between Tom and Jane .
by	near, at the side of	Our house is by the river.
close to	near	The school is close to the church.
down	from a higher to lower	She pulled down the blind.
from	where something starts	The wind is blowing from the north.
in	at a point within an area	The pen is in the drawer.
in front of	directly before	The car was in front of the bus.
inside	on the inner part of	The bird is inside the cage.
into	enter a closed space	He went into the shop.
near	close to	The school is near the church.
next to	beside	The bank is next to the cinema.
off	down or away from	He fell off the horse.
on	in a position touching a surface	The cup is on the table.
onto	move to a position on a surface	Move the books onto the shelf.
opposite	facing, on the other side	Eva sat opposite Tom at the table.
out of	- move from a closed space  - without	- He got out of the taxi.  - She's out of work.
outside	opposite of inside	The garden is outside the house.
over	- above/across  - on the surface of	- The plane flew over the Atlantic.  - She put a cloth over the table.
past	beyond	She went past the shop.
round	in a circular movement	The earth moves round the sun.
through	from one side to the other	The Seine flows through Paris.
throughout	in every part of	The virus spread throughout the town.
to	in the direction of/towards	On the way to the station.
towards	in the direction of	The child ran towards her father.
under	beneath, below	Water flows under a bridge.
underneath	beneath	There was dust underneath the rug.
up	to or in a higher position	She went up the stairs.