Grammar

2024-04-26 What is a preposition? – Prepositions with Georgie

What is a preposition?

Prepositions are words that usually go before a noun or a pronoun. They express things like:

Time

  • I start classes at 8am.

Place 

  • The food is in the fridge.

Movement/direction

  • The lions are walking towards the safari car.

Why are they so difficult?

Often they aren’t easy to translate, but even when there’s a translation, it doesn’t always apply, because English prepositions have lots of meanings and uses. 

For example, ‘over‘:

Expresses direction/place

  • The plane flew over the mountains

Expresses a duration of time

  • I worked on a project over the weekend

Means ‘more than’

  • The athlete is over six feet tall.

TOP TIPS!

  • Learn prepositions in categories like time, place and movement/direction
  • Learn phrases in chunks like depend on, consist of, agree with, believe in

To do

BBC Learning English

Share
Published by
BBC Learning English

Recent Posts

2025-09-17 Israel committing genocide in Gaza: UN commission – Learning English from the News

The story An investigation by the United Nations, called a 'commission of inquiry', has found…

1 week ago

2025-09-03 Earthquakes hit Afghanistan – Learning English from the News

The story A major aftershock has hit eastern Afghanistan, just days after an earthquake measuring…

1 week ago

2025-08-27 Heatwaves speed up ageing process, study says – Learning English from the News

The story A study in Taiwan has found that peoples' biological age increases when they…

1 week ago

2025-08-20 Ukraine: Presidents discuss end to war – Learning English from the News

The story Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky returned to the White House on Monday to meet…

1 week ago

2025-08-13 Is prostate cancer over-treated? – Learning English from the News

The story The charity Prostate Cancer UK, says that the UK is treating too many…

1 week ago