List of Prepositions in English
Prepositions are terms that describe how one thing interacts or relates to another. “The man sat in the chair,” for example. This sentence’s preposition is on. Prepositions indicate the location of something concerning something else. For example, the man is not under the chair. He’s working on it.
They can also be more abstract in nature. Both for and to, as well as despite, are prepositions. Prepositions appear to be random words that don’t seem to fit anywhere else. However, there are rules, and instances of prepositions that are more helpful than anything else.
Many prepositions have almost identical meanings. . The words at and to are frequently interchanged. It’s not always necessary to recall precise rules, but rather phrases and learning which prepositions match with which nouns.
When it comes to propositions, many people believe that a sentence should not end with a preposition. That isn’t entirely correct. It’s allowed to use a preposition after a sentence as long as it’s not merely an extra word. However, it can be removed if it is just an extra word and its removal does not affect the meaning of the sentence, for example, “where is the cat at?” In this sentence, the preposition ‘at’ can be removed.
Preposition List
We’ll list all of the prepositions we can discover in the English language, which number roughly 150. They’re divided into preposition groups based on how each form of preposition works.
Prepositions that are one word, as well as complex prepositions, are included in this list. When more than one-word functions as a preposition, it is called a complex proposition. This is not to be confused with a prepositional phrase, which begins with a preposition and ends with a noun.
Prepositions of Time
- After
- Around
- Before
- Up until
- Circa
- Following
- Past
- From
- In
- Ago
- By
- Until/till
- About
- Gone
- At
- On
- Before
- During
- Since
- For
- Up to
Prepositions of Place
- On top of
- Outside of
- Under
- Among
- Minus
- In front of
- Underneath
- From
- Near
- Together with
- Out of
- Astride
- Onboard
- With
- Atop
- Outside
- On
- In
- Behind
- Against
- Inside
- Through
- Forward of
- Off
- Opposite
- Far
- Near to
- Beyond
- Across
- Within
- Onto
- At
- Aboard
- Beside
- Amid
- Beneath
- Round
- Next to
- Of
- In between
- Without
- Throughout
- Out
- By
- Apart from
- Below
- Close to
- Far from
- Toward/towards
- Above
- Up against
- Upon
- Alongside
- Into
- Between
- To
- Over
Prepositions of Movement
- Under
- Further to
- Against
- Up
- In between
- Off
- Down
- On
- Beneath
- Via
- By means of
- Behind
- Along with
- Through
- Away
- Onto
- Amid
- Along
- Past
- Ahead
- Out of
- Above
- Around
- Into
- Over
- Toward/towards
- Round
- Away from
- Below
- Off of
- Across
Preposition with Manner and Phrase
- As for
- By
- in case of
- Bar
- Given
- Except
- Considering
- Save for
- Than
- Versus
- Concerning
- Regardless of
- About
- Instead of
- Excluding
- On behalf of
- Anti
- Contrary to
- Despite
- Counting
- Re
- Like
- In view of
- Other than
- Due to
- Pending
- Because of
- With reference to
- According to
- Depending on
- Unlike
- Notwithstanding
- But
- Owing to
- Except for
- Plus
- In addition to
- With regard to
- Pro
- Worth
- Of
- As to
- In light of
- As well as
- In spite of
- Aside from
- Save
- Less
- Excepting
- On account of
- Saving
- As per
- Regarding
- Preparatory to
- Cum
- In face of
- With
- As
- Per
- Thanks to
- But for
- Barring
- In favor of/in favour of
- Including
- Besides
Intransitive Prepositions
The intransitive prepositions listed below are single-word intransitive prepositions. Prepositions that can occur with or without noun phrase complements (that is, transitively or intransitively) are listed with the prototypical prepositions; prepositions that can occur with or without noun phrase complements (that is, transitively or intransitively) are listed with the prototypical prepositions. It’s worth noting that dictionaries and grammars based on traditional grammar principles may classify these intransitive prepositions as adverbs.
- herein
- overland
- now
- thereto
- overseas
- forward(s)
- ashore
- thereby
- underfoot
- overhead
- downhill
- seaward(s)
- apart
- southwest
- east
- upstage
- hence
- downward(s)
- westward(s)
- outward(s)
- forth
- northwest
- indoors
- therewith
- south
- ahead
- thence
- here
- upwind
- abroad
- herewith
- adverbs.
- there
- downwind
- upstairs
- west
- upstream
- hereto
- north
- backward(s)
- homeward(s)
- then
- overboard
- heavenward(s)
- downstream
- uphill
- hereof
- home
- aside
- together
- hereby
- northward(s)
- northeast
- inward(s)
- away
- rightward(s)
- back
- downstage
- onward(s)
- southeast
- southward(s)
- therein
- thenceforth
- adrift
- when
- whence
- aft
- afterward(s)
- underground
- beforehand
- outdoors
- upward(s)
- downstairs
- leftward(s)
- eastward(s)
- henceforth
- thereof
- skyward(s)
Conjunctive Prepositions
The following are prepositions that take clauses as complements and are single-word prepositions. It’s worth noting that dictionaries and grammars based on traditional grammar principles may classify these conjunctive prepositions as subordinating conjunctions.
- since
- besides
- like
- despite
- at
- lest
- unless
- on
- wherever
- given
- once
- so (purpose or result sense)
- except
- whereas
- of
- wherever
- on
- provided
- whilst
- between
- given
- beside
- so (purpose or result sense)
- lest
- seeing
- from
- besides
- given
- upon
- until
- supposing
- by
- because
- for
- considering
- though
- now
- from
- granted
- at
- whereas
- providing
- because
- beside
- to
- once
- though
- by
- with
- although
- lest
- notwithstanding
- seeing
- whilst
- before
- now
- although
- so (purpose or result sense)
- lest
- whereas
- after
- without
- if (conditional sense)
- till
- before
- considering
- seeing
- despite
- than
- to
- except
- whilst
- like
- from
- at
- supposing
- while
- by
- since
- when
- than
- notwithstanding
- now
- into
- between
- unless
- as
- granted
- than
- where
- beside
- save
- when
- providing
- like
- save
- till
- between
- except
- into
- with
- upon
- beside
- without
- if (conditional sense)
- since
- while
- upon
- considering
- providing
- granted
- where
- between
- with
- besides
- since
- besides
- like
- despite
- at
- lest
- unless
- on
- wherever
- given
- once
- so (purpose or result sense)
- except
- whereas
- of
- wherever
- on
- provided
- whilst
- between
- given
- beside
- so (purpose or result sense)
- lest
- seeing
- from
- besides
- given
- upon
- until
- supposing
- by
- because
- for
- considering
- though
- now
- from
- granted
- at
- whereas
- providing
- because
- beside
- to
- once
- though
- by
- with
- although
- lest
- notwithstanding
- seeing
- whilst
- before
- now
- although
- so (purpose or result sense)
- lest
- whereas
- after
- without
- if (conditional sense)
- till
- before
- considering
- seeing
- despite
- than
- to
- except
- whilst
- like
- from
- at
- supposing
- while
- by
- since
- when
- than
- notwithstanding
- now
- into
- between
- unless
- as
- granted
- than
- where
- beside
- save
- when
- providing
- like
- save
- till
- between
- except
- into
- with
- upon
- beside
- without
- if (conditional sense)
- since
- while
- upon
- considering
- providing
- granted
- where
- between
- with
- besides
List of Prepositions with Examples
The examples below show how prepositions are used in sentences. In the list of prepositions below, there is one example for each category of the preposition.
- That happened during the 1980s
This is a preposition that expresses the relationship between the event and time. Many words are classified as both adverbs and prepositions, and many words are listed as both adverbs and prepositions. - The glass is on the bench
This preposition indicates the location of the glass on the bench. It’s a geographical preposition. - She wrote a thesis with daizy
This preposition indicates how the work was written about these two individuals. This group is a little more ambiguous, and the names vary depending on whom you ask. It is largely concerned with how people or objects interact to perform together. - There is some juice in the bottle
- They sat on the bench
- The cat was hiding under the chair.
- A little boy was sitting next to my aunt.
- The girl is between 18 to 20 years in age.
- Julia is popular among the teachers.
- I can’t see because of the man in front of me.