Questions tagged [prepositions]
Prepositions are function words like "to", "over", "through", "in". The meaning of a sentence can be dramatically altered by choosing the wrong preposition. Questions need to include enough information for the intended meaning to be deduced.
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Which is correct? "This subject attracts attention from researchers into/on/of tourism" [closed]
"This subject attracts attention from researchers into tourism"
"This subject attracts attention from researchers of tourism"
I am a non-native speaker and would like to know which ...
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Preposition on, in & against, on
Which of these statements is correct?
On/In
a. Lying in the bed
or
b. Lying on the bed
Against/On
a. Leaning against the wall
or
b. Leaning on the wall
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Actual meaning of "as saying " and its uses [closed]
"He was quoted as saying there would be further delays."
Here what is the meaning of as saying?
Like, Someone quoted him that, "he was saying— there would be further delays.(saying as ...
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Difference between "Intrigued With" and "Intrigued By"
What exactly is the difference between the usage of "intrigued with" and "intrigued by" in sentences?
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Which preposition is correct to use in "to conjugate __ 3rd Person Singular"?
Is it at/on/in with the following phrase:
to conjugate .... 3rd Person Singular
So far I consistently use "at". Am I right?
Edit:
"have" is conjugated ... the 3rd Person Singular,...
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Can I put down "I'm wondering about whether....." [migrated]
I'm learning about indirect questions, but I'm confused with the use of "wondering about".
I was wondering about one thing. Can Lisa fly a helicopter?（combine the sentences）
The answer is &...
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1
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Meaning of "How many Euros can be exchanged for 5 USD?"
Take the question How many euros can be exchanged for 5 USD?
I see two possible meanings:
It's asking about the amount of Euros that we must exchange to exchange to get 5 USD
It's asking about the ...
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Is "when" considered a preposition in this sentence with extraposition and is the chunk an adjunct?
I recently discovered that if is considered a preposition in contemporary grammar. Is "when" considered a preposition as well? And in the following sentence, is the chunk introduced by when ...
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Does this sentence need "me" or "I"? [duplicate]
Here is the sentence. Which one is correct?
Dec. 21st from 9:30-10:30 can work for both I-SHEA and I.
Dec. 21st from 9:30-10:30 can work for both I-SHEA and me.
I think it should be I-SHEA and me ...
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Parsing "…including a problem…, in a characteristically diffident aside, he noted his own 'fleeting vain attempts' to resolve it"
Prologue to a book which I was reading ends with this verbatim copy-pasted text:
A book should be dedicated to someone living, so that the dedication can give pleasure. I have dedicated this book to ...
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"More than" or "above" [migrated]
Which one is more accurate?
The hormone level is above 10 ng/dl.
Or
The hormone level is more than 10 ng/dl.
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2
answers
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What meaning of "off" is used in "bedrooms off the hallway"?
I've read some description of certain house design as below:
Living and dining rooms are towards the front with kitchens to the rear, with bedrooms either off the hallway or upstairs if it's a two-...
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Idioms with prepositions and CMS Capitalization
I am finding the CMS instructions confusing on whether one should capitalize the word under in a title when it is used as an idiom. For example,
A Park under Threat.
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"died at New York" [duplicate]
While doing archival work I bumped into a few instances where the awkward verbiage "died at New York" appeared. Research using Google Books led me to these examples from over a century ago:
...
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What is the difference between “To every action” and “For every action”?
Here are two statements:
The first statement is: To every action there is always an equal and opposite reaction.
The second statement is: For every action there is always an equal and opposite ...
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"Proclaimed [noun] X" or "Proclaimed [noun] as X"?
I've seen both used, with "as" used more frequently, but it sounds wrong to my ears.
The federal government has proclaimed January 8 National Ice Cream Day.
or
The federal government has ...
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What is the function of "as" here in the sentence and is there a lack of preposition before "the unpardonable sin"? [closed]
Thus, for instance, I was much moved by the eloquent attack on Christianity as a thing of inhuman gloom; for I thought (and still think) sincere pessimism the unpardonable sin. Insincere pessimism is ...
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How to use into and to [closed]
Which of the following is a correct sentence:
By his wrongdoing, he brought the institution to disrepute.
By his wrongdoing, he brought the institution into disrepute.
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0
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Do I need to add "in" before "an English-speaking country" in this sentence?
1 All my life, I have dreamed of living somewhere overseas, potentially an English-speaking country.
2 All my life, I have dreamed of living somewhere overseas, potentially in an English-speaking ...
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How do you sentence diagram a gerund when it does not act as the verb or the subject?
I am looking to diagram this quote from The Lord of the Rings:The Return of the King:
"They kept going because they were holding on to something. That there's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo, ...
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1
answer
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How can we use " share" in various sentences? (verb)
(I mean the "share" which means "dividing"), I'm a bit confused about prepositions that can be used after this "share", would you explain it with examples please?
Example ...
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Which is the correct use of these prepositions?
Trying to discern correct use of prepositions. Here's the sentence as I have it:
This was proof that he could stay steadfast under conditions in which other men could not!
Should it be: "......
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Which preposition is correct, "asset to", "asset for" or "asset of"? [closed]
Which preposition would be grammatically correct?
I am confident that I have the character and integrity to be an asset to your organization.
I am confident that I have the character and integrity to ...
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'Wracked with" or "wracked by"?
Which is considered (more) correct: wracked by [X] or wracked with [X]?
Example sentences:
He is wracked with grief.
He is wracked by grief.
The Cambridge definition of wrack contains examples of ...
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preposition for "research" [the verb] [duplicate]
I would like to know the correct preposition for research when used with "any topic."
Should it be:
It enables us to research any topic with ease.
Or:
It enables us to research into any ...
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3
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Difference between "wave AT" and "wave TO"
What's the difference between "wave" used with "to" and "wave" used with "at"?
Two sentences as examples:
She's waving at the person behind me.
and
The ...
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1
answer
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Prepositions in Relative Clauses: Placement Rules and Exceptions (during which)
"In the form of 'preposition + relative pronoun (whom, which),' we can place the preposition at the end of the phrase. For example:
I read a book in which I was interested. (✔)
I read a book ...
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'In the belief' or 'under the belief'?
I was doing a grammar Multiple Choice Question in a top school examination paper and I came across a question:
Mr. Mohan is __________ the belief that artificial intelligence changes the way we work, ...
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Which is better: "On first reading" vs. "At first reading"?
In the context of a section in a technical document that describes several topics, one of which is essential and others can be skipped, which of the following is better?
You can skip the others on ...
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"New additions *for*..." or "New additions *to*..."
If I'm trying to advertise that you can scroll through this webpage to find additions that go in/on your home, would it be...
"Find new additions for your home."
"Find new additions ...
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1
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Challenge to a chess match / challenge over a match [closed]
I am wondering if the correct one is:
He challenged me to a chess match. OR
He challenged me over a chess match.
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What is the difference between “to support someone in all they can” and “to support someone with all they can”?
Good day. I am writing to a dear friend of mine, and I don’t want to sound incoherent and inarticulate in my English. He is way older than me. I am like a daughter to him. And English is my native ...
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2
answers
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Has the conception of prepositions broadened?
When I studied linguistics 40-some years ago, it was understood that
PP → Prep NP
But I’ve discovered sources that suggest that the class of prepositions is (now?) understood much more broadly.
...
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Obtained "by" or "through"? [duplicate]
I work in STEM and a problem I often face with is the use of "by" or "through". Let me explain it with an example. I have a quantity named "variance" that is derived ...
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Effect of using an unidiomatic expression - "a tableau in happiness"
EDIT:
Thank you everyone for the answers. The point about grammatical vs idiomatic is interesting.
To clarify, I would like to know if an average reader would a) understand the meaning of the (...
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1
answer
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Difference between "Walk" and "Walk down" / "Drive" and "Drive down" [closed]
I'm an English learner, and sometimes I cannot understand why some words are used to express a meaning. For example, the word "Down". What's the difference between "I walked on the ...
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"at" or "in" with the city 's name [duplicate]
This question is about the use of preposition 'at'.
In this passage:
In 715 CE, ten years after the foundation of the Umayyad Mosque at Damascus, the Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid engaged in the ...
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"Planned on system": meaning (G.M. Trevelyan, A Short History of England)
Their method of conquest was to make military roads, planned on system for the whole island, and to plant along them forts garrisoned by the regular troops.
I can't manage to explain this ...
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Are "the roof of the building" and "a house of stone" grammatically the same constructions?
Are "the roof of the building" and "a house of stone" grammatically different prepositional phrase constructions? Or are they both understood to be possessives with the latter not ...
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"Students leaving on campus often complain having roommate problems." [closed]
I came across the following sentence in a corpus called SkELL (Sketch Engine for Language Learning):
(1) Students leaving on campus often complain having roommate problems.
https://skell.sketchengine....
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A "change in scenery" or a "change of scenery"? Are both forms of this sort of expression truly correct? I know the latter one is, but the former? [closed]
As my title says, is a "change in scenery" as correct as a "change of scenery"? I am self-conscious of how a "change in" might sound odd or off or be even absolutely ...
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1
answer
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Who is being fed in "Did hourly feed him by" from Walden, or, Life in the Woods? [duplicate]
There was a shepherd that did live,
And held his thoughts as high
As were the mounts whereon his flocks
Did hourly feed him by
From Walden, or, Life in the Woods by Henry David Thoreau
I'm confused ...
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2
answers
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What is the grammatical ground for this prepositional phrase? [duplicate]
In below formal excerpt, how the first part, bolded, can be thought grammatically:
With personnel an enduring target of violence, we must work together to ensure our safety.
It is structured this way:...
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0
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Question regarding the expression ¨One kind of + [plural noun].¨ [closed]
Which one is correct?
There is only one kind of sunglasses, and it´s small.
There is only one kind of sunglasses, and they are small.
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1
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"of" in "slow of the mind" "slow of heart"
Stonecrusher considered both of them to be slow of the mind except in fights. (book)
This use of the preposition "of" sounds nonidiomatic to me, but I wonder if it is a dated use. This ...
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Comparing word order: "with whom" and "with" [duplicate]
Sentence 1: A person with whom I am particularly close has moved away.
Sentence 2: A person I am particularly close with has moved away.
What are some differences between these two sentences that are ...
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Is "as well as" a preposition here or conjunction?
A short passage from a book piqued my interest:
Nevertheless, it is this third line of argument which offers the most hope, by bringing
us into a largely unexplored area of moral philosophy which has ...
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'Some rats lived at/in the school. To get rid of them, the headmaster called in a rat control service.' [duplicate]
Can one use "at the school" instead of "in the school" in,
Some rats lived at the school. To get rid of them, the headmaster called in a rat control service.
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"The associations between x and y " vs "The associations of x with y"
When conducting and reporting a statistical analysis, is it more correct to state:
"The associations between x and y "
"The associations of x with y"?
Or are both equally correct?...
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To vs For difference [closed]
Could anyone help me to understand the difference between the usage for and to in the below sentences.
They will be more interested in the struggles of the downtrodden, in those who are fighting to ...
