A preposition relates the noun or pronoun following it to

another word in the sentence.

Fifty commonly used prepositions.Fifty commonly used prepositions.(Found on page 362 in your textbook)

About behind during off to throughAbove below except on toward downAcross beneath for onto underAfter beside from opposite underneathAgainst besides in out until againstBesides in out until along betweenInside outside up among beyond intoOver upon around but like past withAt by near since within before of without

Compound Prepositions(Found on page 362 in your textbook)

According to by means of instead of

Ahead of in addition to in view of

Apart from in back of next to

Aside from in front of on account of

As of in place of on top of

Because of in spite of out of

• The choice of preposition affects the way the other words in a sentence relate to each other. In the following example notice how each preposition changes the relationship between the words played and gym.

The girls played near the gym. in back of in on

Identify the prepositions in the following sentences.1. Basketball is a game between two

teams.2. A basketball hoop is suspended above

each end.3. The team that has the most points by the

end wins.4. According to archaeologists, kicking

games were played in many ancient societies.

Prepositional PhrasesPrepositional Phrases• A preposition must always be

followed by a noun or a pronoun.• A group of words: 1. beginning

with the preposition and 2. ending with the noun or pronoun is called a preposition phrase.

• The noun or pronoun that follows the preposition is called the object of the preposition.

Examples:

Preposition object of preposition• with us with us

• according to according to coach the new coach

• inside the large inside stadium stadium

• over the green hill over hill

PracticePracticeRecognizing prepositional phrases.

Put the prepositional phrase in ( ). Then underline the preposition and circle the object of the preposition.

1. An umpire stands behind home plate.

2. Fans don’t like waiting for home runs.

3. The pitcher stands on the mound.

4. Eager fans are in line for tickets.

5. We waited for the hot dog vendor.

Preposition or Adverb?Preposition or Adverb?Some words can be either prepositions or adverbs,

depending on how they are used in a sentence.

To be a preposition, a word must have an object and be part of a prepositional phrase. Example: The ball flew past third base.

An adverb modifies a verb and has no object. (an object answers the question, “what?”) Example: The umpire ran past quickly.

Examples:

Preposition: They sat inside the dugout

Adverb: Please come inside soon.

Preposition: They like to see players running around the bases.

Adverb: Fans don’t like to sit around waiting for hits.

PracticeDistinguish between prepositions and adverbs

Find the word that appears in both sentences. If the word acts as a preposition, write prep. above it. If the word acts as an adverb, write adv. above it.

1. At a night game, the lights are turned on.2. The pitcher stands on the mound.

3. The players warm up before the game.4. They’ve practiced the skills many times before.

5. The pitcher threw the ball across the plate.6. The catcher ran across to the pitcher.