INGLES I: TEMA 9: Preposiciones

Preposiciones

Son palabras que relacionan los elementos de una oración.

Las preposiciones en inglés, al igual que en castellano, son palabras que por sí solas no tienen significado. Sirven para indicar la relación entre dos palabras, como puede ser el destino, lugar o tiempo, entre otros. Una preposición sirve para enlazar sustantivos, pronombres y expresiones a otras palabras en la frase.

Las preposiciones siempre van seguidas por un sustantivo, no un verbo (excepto en la forma de gerundio).

USO DE LAS PREPOSICIONES

Las preposiciones pueden realizar distintas funciones:

- Sirven  de enlace entre dos palabras o distintos elementos en la oración:

The meeting is at five o'clock / La reunion es a las cinco

- Pueden acompañar a un verbo sirviendo de enlace a su complemento. En este caso, pueden no alterar el significado del verbo o alterarlo con lo que constituyen una palabra distinta convirtiéndolo en un verbo frasal

Verbo Mirar  :  To look

To look after / Cuidar de     (se altera el significado del verbo)

- Cuando ponemos un verbo después de una preposición, en inglés normalmente se utiliza la forma ' ing' y no el infinitivo.

You shouldn’t cross the streets  without watching  the traffic lights.

No deberías cruzar la calle sin ver las luces del semáforo

Definition: Prepositions are a class of words that indicate relationships between nouns, pronouns and other words in a sentence. Most often they come before a noun. They never change their form, regardless of the case, gender etc. of the word they are referring to

Three Groups of Prepositions:

a. Prepositions of place, position and direction.
b. Prepositions of time.

c. Prepositions for other relationships.

Rule:

They are always followed by a "noun", never followed by a verb.
By "noun" we include:

Noun (dog, money, love)
Proper Noun (name) (London, Mary)
Pronoun (you, him, us)
Noun Group (my first car)
Gerund (swimming)

If we want to follow with a verb, we must use the "-ing" form which is really a gerund or verb in noun form.

Subject + Verb	Preposition	"noun"
The pen is	on	the table.
He lives	in	England.
Henry is looking	for	you.
The newspaper is	under	your green book.
Pascal is used	to	English people.
She isn't used	to	working.
We ate	before	coming.

Prepositions of Time / Place at, in, on

At for a PRECISE TIME
In for MONTHS, YEARS, CENTURIES and LONG PERIODS
On for DAYS and Dates

At	In	On
At 4:30 pm	in March	on Monday
At 3 o'clock	In Winter	On 6 March
At noon	In the summer	On 22 Dec.2012
At dinnertime	In 1990	On Christmas Day
At bedtime	In the next century	On your birthday
At the moment	In the future	On New Year's Eve

Notice that use of the prepositions of time in and on in these common expressions:

In the morning /On Monday morning
In the mornings / On Sunday mornings
In the afternoon(s) / On Sunday afternoons
In the evening(s) / On Friday evenings

When we say next, last, this, every we do not use at, in, on.

I went to New York last June (not in last June)
She is coming back next Monday. (not on next Monday)
I go home every Easter . (not at every Easter)
We'll call you this afternoon. (not in this afternoon)
In General:
Place: at, in, on

At for a POINT (dog, money, love)
In for an ENCLOSED SPACE
On for a SURFACE

At	In	On
At the bus stop	In London	On the wall
At the corner	In the garden	On the ceiling
At the entrance	In a box	On the floor
At the crossroads	In a building	On the carpet
At the top of the page	In a car	On a page

Some other common uses of at / on / in

At	In	On
At home	In a car	On a bus
At work	In a taxi	On a train
At school	In a helicopter	On a plane
At university	In an elevator	On a bicycle
At the top	In the sky	On the radio
At the bottom	In the street	On the left
At the side	In a row	On a horse
At reception	In a boat	On a boat

Notice how we can use on a boat or in a boat depending on the type and the size of the particular boat/ship.

Single Word Prepositions

about	as	despite	of	toward
above	at	during	off	under
across	before	for	on	underneath
after	behind	from	onto	until
against	beneath	in	over	up
along	beside	into	through	upon
among	between	like	to	with
around	by	near	together	within

Single Word Prepositions

according to de acuerdo con	because of a causa de	contrary to contrario a	except for excepto por
in addition to además de	in spite of a pesar de	on account of entendido que	with regard to referente a

More on Prepositions Use

Prepositions	use	Example
during durante	while in	during the movie, during the flight, during my stay
for por/para		for two days, for an hour
from / to desde /hasta/a		from Saturday to Monday, from 5 to 9
between entre	the time period from one to another	between 1986 and 2012, between Saturday and Monday
until/till hasta	before a certain time	until/till Sunday,5 o'clock
by por	at the least	by Tuesday, by next month, by tomorrow
to a	movement towards	to school, to work, to the station
into dentro	movement towards inside something	into the cinema, into the car
out of fuera de	to leave a place/a thing	out of the theater, out of the car
by por	near/next to/beside	LINK stand by me, by the lake
through a través		through the tunnel, through the room
across lado opuesto	opposite ends	across the river, across the street
against contra		against the wall, against the door

1. The meanings of prepositions
The table below gives the most usual meanings of English prepositions. Each meaning is illustrated by an example.

About
1. On the subject of: This is a story about elephants.
2. Approximately: He is about ten years old.

Above
1. Higher than; over: The plane flew above the clouds.
2. Earlier on a page: There is a heading above each diagram.

Across
1. From one side to the other: We walked across the field.
2. On the other side of: There is a store across the street.

After
1. Later in time:  after ten o'clock; after lunch
2. Later in a series: Q comes after P in the alphabet.
3. In pursuit of: The dog ran after the cat.

Against
1. In opposition to: Theft is against the law.
2. Touching; supported by: I leaned my bicycle against the wall.

Along
1. Following the length of: We walked along the road.

Among
1. Within a group: The money was shared among three people.

Note: In formal English, among is usually used only when referring to more than two persons or things. In contrast, between is used when referring to two persons or things.

Around
1. Circling something: We walked around the block.
2. Surrounding: There is a fence around the garden.
3. In different parts of: I looked around the house for the keys.
4. In the other direction: We turned around and went back home.
5. Approximately: He is around six feet tall.

At
1. A specific location:  at 23 Chestnut Street; at the park
2. A point in time:  at 5 o'clock; at Christmas
3. A condition:  at peace; at war; at rest
4. An activity:  at work; at school; at play
5. Towards: Look at someone; wave at someone

Note: When referring to a specific location or to a point in time, at is usually used. When referring to a certain street or a certain day, on is usually used. When referring to a location as an area, or when referring to a unit of time longer than a day, in is usually used.
e.g. at Christmas; on Christmas day; in the Christmas holidays

Before
1. Earlier in time:  before two o'clock; before Christmas
2. Earlier in a series: S comes before T in the alphabet.

Behind
1. At the back of: The little girl hid behind her mother.
2. Late: I am behind in my work.
3. Cause; origin: Who was behind that idea?

Below
1. Lower than; under:  below freezing; below sea level
2. Later on a page: Footnotes are provided below the text.

Beneath
1. Lower than; below:  beneath the earth

Beside
1. Next to; at the side of: I sit beside her in class.

Besides
1. Also; as well as: We study other languages besides English.

Note the differing meanings of beside and besides. Beside is usually used with reference to a physical location.

Between
1. An intermediate location: Toronto lies between Montreal and Vancouver.
2. An intermediate time:  between Christmas and New Year's Day
3. Intermediate in a series: B comes between A and C in the alphabet.
4. An intermediate amount:  between five and ten people
5. Within a group of two: The money was shared between two people.

Beyond
1. Farther than: The mountains lie beyond the horizon.
2. Further than; exceeding: That was beyond my expectations.

But
1. Except: I have read all but the last chapter.

Note: But is used more often as a conjunction than as a preposition.

By
1. Near: a house by the sea
2. Past: He waved as he drove by the house.
3. Not later than: Try to finish the work by next week.
4. In units of: cheaper by the dozen; sold by weight
5. Through the means of: travel by plane; written by him

Note: By is often used in combination with verbs in the Passive Voice.

Concerning
1. Connected with; about: He studies everything concerning trees.

Despite
1. In spite of: We walked downtown despite the rain.

Down
1. To a lower position: The ball rolled down the hill.
2. Further along: He lives down the street.

During
1. Throughout a period: She works during the day.
2. Sometime within a period: An accident occurred during the night.

Except
1. Not including: I have visited everyone except him.

For
1. Duration of time: We walked for two hours.
2. Distance: I walked for five kilometers.
3. Purpose: I bought this jacket for you.
4. In the direction of: She left for New York.
5. In favor of: We are for the proposal.
6. Considering: The boy is clever for his age.

From
1. Place of origin: We left from Boston; he comes from Mexico
2. Start of a period of time:  from now on; from yesterday until today
3. Start of a range:  From 20 to 30 people were present.
4. Cause: He suffers from nervousness.
5. Source: I first heard the story from you.

In
1. Place thought of as an area:  in London; in Europe
2. Within a location:  in the room; in the building
3. Large units of time: That happened in March, in 1992.
4. Within a certain time: I will return in an hour.
5. By means of: write in pencil; speak in English
6. Condition:  in doubt; in a hurry; in secret
7. A member of: He is in the orchestra; in the navy
8. Wearing: the boy in the blue shirt
9. With reference to: lacking in ideas; rich in oil

Inside
1. Within: They are inside the house.

Into
1. To the inside of: We stepped into the room.
2. Change of condition: The boy changed into a man.

Like
1. Resembling: That looks like him.
2. Appearing possible: It looks like rain.
3. Be in a suitable mood for: I feel like going swimming.

Minus
1. Less: Three minus two equals one.

Near
1. Close to:  near the school; near the ocean

Of
1. Location: east of here; the middle of the road
2. Possession: a friend of mine; the sound of music
3. Part of a group: one of us; a member of the team
4. Measurement: a cup of milk; two meters of snow

Off
1. Not on; away from: Please keep off the grass.
2. At some distance from: There are islands off the coast.

On
1. Touching the surface of:  on the table; on the wall
2. A certain day: That happened on Sunday, on the 6th of June.
3. A certain street:  on South Street
4. About: a book on engineering
5. A state or condition:  on strike; on fire; on holiday
6. By means of: live on a pension; shown on television

Onto
1. To a position on: The child climbed onto the table.

Opposite
1. Facing: The library is opposite the fire station.

Out of
1. To the outside of: She went out of the room.
2. From among: We won two games out of three.
3. Motive: We spoke to them out of politeness.
4. Material: The bridge is made out of steel.
5. Beyond:  out of control; out of danger

Outside
1. On the outer side of:  outside the house
2. Beyond the limits of:  outside my experience

Over
1. Above; higher than: There are cupboards over the sink.
2. Covering: We spread an extra blanket over the bed.
3. Across: I jumped over a puddle.
4. More than: It cost over ten dollars; it took over an hour
5. During: I saw him several times over the past week.
6. By means of: We made plans over the telephone.

Past
1. Up to and beyond: I walked past the house.
2. After (in time): It was past 2 o'clock; half past two
3. Beyond:  past belief

Per
1. For each: 60 kilometers per hour; price per liter

Plus
1. With the addition of: Six plus four equals ten.

Since
1. From a specific time in the past: I had been waiting since two o'clock.
2. From a past time until now: I have been waiting here since noon.

Note: Because of its meaning, the preposition since is usually used in combination with a perfect tense. It should be noted that the preposition for can also be used with a perfect tense. However, when used with reference to time, for is usually followed by a phrase referring to a period of time; whereas since is usually followed by a phrase referring to a specific time.

--> I have known him for six months.
--> I have known him since January.

In the first example, for is followed by six months, which refers to a period of time. In the second example, since is followed by January, which refers to a specific time.

Through
1. Across; from end to end of: the main road through town
2. For the whole of a period: I slept through the night.
3. By means of: Skill improves through practice.

Throughout
1. In every part of:  throughout the world
2. For the whole of a period:  throughout the winter

Till
Note: Till can be used instead of until. However, at the beginning of a sentence, until is usually used.

To
1. In the direction of: Turn to the right.
2. Destination: I am going to Rome.
3. Until: from Monday to Friday; five minutes to ten
4. Compared with: They prefer hockey to soccer.
5. With indirect object: Please give it to me.
6. As part of infinitive: I like to ski; he wants to help.
7. In order to: We went to the store to buy soap.

Toward (or Towards)
1. In the direction of: We walked toward the center of town.
2. Near; just before (time): It rained towards evening.

Under
1. Beneath:  under the desk; under the trees
2. Less than:  Under 100 people were present.
3. In circumstances of:  under repair; under way; under discussion

Underneath
1. Below, under:  underneath the carpet

Until
1. Up to a certain time: She will stay until Friday; until 5 p.m.

Upon
Note: On and upon have similar meanings. Upon may be used in certain expressions, as in once upon a time, and following certain verbs, as in to rely upon someone.

Up
1. To a higher place: We went up the stairs.
2. In a higher place: She lives up the hill.

Up to
1. As far as:  up to now; I have read up to page 100.
2. Depending on: The decision is up to you.
3. As good as; ready for: His work is up to standard.

Versus
1. Against (sports, legal): The next game is England versus Australia.

Via
1. By way of: He went to Los Angeles via San Francisco.

With
1. Accompanying: He came with her; I have my keys with me.
2. Having; containing: Here is a book with a map of the island.
3. By means of; using: I repaired the shoes with glue.
4. Manner:  with pleasure; with ease; with difficulty
5. Because of: We were paralyzed with fear.

Within
1. Inside of:  within twenty minutes; within one kilometer

Without
1. Not having: Do not leave without your coat; without money

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