GRAMMAR BASIC LEVEL
Many a times it happens that we try to speak English very fluently and when we are pretty sure that whatever we are speaking is absolutely flawless we are often wrong by this judgement of ours. So just to eradicate confusion regarding certain words where we at times often get confused about whether I should use this word or that. Thus the topic for today’s knowledge boosters is use of prepositions basic level of course. So here we go.
Grammar basic level:
Prepositions of time:
At: At is used only with a definite point of time; for example, with hours, moments: At 7 p.m., at this moment. At is also used with the names of festivals: at diwali; at durga puja.
On: On is used with more general points of time than at: for example, with days and dates: on Monday, on 1st of May, on annual day: on a May afternoon.
In: In is used with the parts of the day, months, years, seasons: in the morning but at noon as noon is a point of time; in September; in 1945, in winter.
In is also used with the future tense to show the period in which an action will happen: in a week, in four hours.
Note: in and within: in means at the end of: within means before the end of.
I shall be back in a week. (When a week is over)
I shall be back within a week. (Before a week is over)
By: By refers to a point of future time and denotes the latest time at which an action will be over: the competition will be over by 6 p.m. (It should be over before it is6, but the latest time at which it can be over is 6)
They will have declared the result by tomorrow morning.
For: For is used with periods of time to show the duration of an action. It is mostly used with perfect continuous tenses though it may be found with other tenses as well:
The child has been sleeping for three hours.
It may sometimes be omitted:
I have been busy the whole morning. ( for the whole morning)
Since: Since marks the point of time at which an action began. It is used only if the action has continued till the time of speaking, hence it is found with perfect continuous tenses. Unlike for, it can never be omitted: she has been teaching in this college since 1965.
A cool breeze has been blowing since morning.
From: From denotes the starting point of an action and is used in all other cases except when the action has continued till the moment of speaking. It is almost invariably used with to or till: the examination will be held from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m.
He was the Chief Minister of this State from 1950 till 1962.
Prepositions of Position:
Many prepositions may be used to define the position of one object in relation to another:
At the table; in the bed; on/in the chair; behind the curtain; below the surface; beside the wall; under the table; across the field; between Bombay and Allahabad; near Delhi; over the fireplace; above the fields; within the house; along the border; among the bushes; etc.
Most important and easily confused among these are discussed below.
At, In: At has the idea of an exact point , and is, therefore, used with houses, villages, small towns, in has the idea of a larger area and is used while speaking of bigger towns, states, countries, etc.
At Karol Bagh in New Delhi; at Ambala: in England; at the end; in the middle.
Between, Among: Between means in the middle of the two; it may be two persons or things, or any two items from a larger group:
A small table was lying between the two almirahs.
He walked in the garden between the flowerbeds.
Notice the use of between in
Between you and me, he is a cheat and rogue.
Among is used with more than two persons or things:
The hare hid itself among the bushes.
Distribute these sweets among the children.
Above, Over, Below, Under, Beneath
Above, Over: Above means higher than. Over means vertically above:
My house stands on a hilltop above the fields.
There is fan exactly over the table.
Below, Under: Below means lower than. Under means vertically below:
There was a beautiful lake below us in the valley.
The weary traveller was resting under the tree.
All the four can be used figuratively also:
Above
His expenditure is above his income.
He is above partiality.
His name was above mine in the list.
Over
He is over forty years old.
I have no power over him.
He is placed over him.
Below
He is below me in the office.
The number was below ten.
It is below your dignity to mix such people.
Under
The road is under repair.
The people present in the meeting were definitely under five hundred.
Fifty persons work under him.
Beneath
Beneath also means in a lower position, but is mostly used figuratively only:
She married beneath her.
His actions are beneath contempt.
Note: Please do post your comments, do not hesitate.
Thank you.
Knowledge is Power.
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