Definition
(Prepositions of Place, Direction and Prepositions of Time)
Prepositions of place and direction describe the position of a person or thing with respect to the other person or thing. E.g. – up, above, over etc. Consider the following sentences using the preposition of place –
- Ram was staying up the hill.
- The books were lying above one another.
- The cake is over the oven.
Preposition of time commonly used are – ‘at’, ‘in’ and ‘on’. Though we are familiar with the use of – ‘at’, ‘in’ and ‘on’, we will just revise a few basic concepts regarding their use.
‘At’ is used wherever there is a need to indicate the precise time, E.g. – ‘at 9:00 A.M.’ or ‘at bedtime’ etc.
‘In’ is used for mentioning the larger periods like – years, months, centuries etc.
For example –
In December, in 10 years from now, in the past century etc.
‘On’ is used to mention dates and days – on the 25th of December, On Christmas Day, on Sunday etc.
Preposition of Place and Direction: List/Words
On, over, above, in front, beside, under, behind, below, across, along, around, behind, below, towards, between, inside, near, down, off, past, under, close to etc.
Preposition of Time: List/Words
At 3:00 P.M., at dinner time, at lunch time, in January, in a month, in few months, in ten years, on Deepawali, on Christmas, on Wednesday etc.
Exercise 1: MCQs with Answers:
Choose the appropriate prepositions of place and direction from the choices provided below every sentence.
- The Crow was flying ________ the house.
- above
- below
- on
- under
- Quickly he ran _________ the tree.
- on
- over
- past
- down
- His house is just ________ the road.
- past
- across
- below
- towards
- The old man was resting _______ a tree.
- over
- up
- under
- on
- The thief was hiding ________ the building.
- front of
- away
- below
- behind
- My car is parked _______ the exit gate.
- on
- over
- near
- up
- The book I was looking for was lying _________ the table.
- below
- towards
- around
- down
- He was sitting _______ his best friend.
- under
- up
- close to
- before
- He has to perform _________ of huge audience.
- on
- above
- over
- in front
- He had to perform in ________ other performances.
- between
- inside
- behind
- along
- The Paraglider bravely jumped _______ the cliff.
- between
- along
- off
- below
- The ship sailed _______ the coast.
- on
- above
- along
- under
- In case of an earthquake you are advised to hide ________ a strong structure.
- over
- under
- above
- up
- After roaming around the building the helicopter came ________.
- above
- around
- down
- under
- Please put the vegetables _________ the fridge.
- upon
- around
- over
- inside
- His house is _________ the hospital.
- beside
- along
- over
- towards
- The chopper was hovering ________ the building.
- below
- over
- up
- down
- He was sleeping peacefully _____ the bed.
- under
- over
- on
- below
- Everyone was sitting ________ the fire.
- towards
- above
- over
- around
- I was walking ________ my home.
- towards
- away
- under
- down
Answers – 1)a, 2)c, 3)b, 4)c, 5)d, 6)c, 7)a, 8)c, 9)d, 10)a, 11)c, 12)c, 13)b, 14)c, 15)d, 16)a, 17)b, 18)c, 19)d, 20)a
Exercise-2 with Answers:
Complete the given sentences by filling in appropriate Preposition of Time from the choices provided below –
We will meet for dinner ________.
- at 9 P.M.
- on 9 P.M.
- in 9 P.M.
The fruits of hard work become ripe __________.
- at years
- in years
- on years
The effigy of Ravana is burnt ________.
- on Dussehra
- in Deepawali
- at Dussehra.
We will have a family get together _________.
- at Christmas
- in Christmas
- on Christmas
The meeting is scheduled _________.
- on 8 AM
- at 8 AM
- in 8 AM
The staff chats _________.
- at lunchtime
- on lunchtime
- in lunchtime
I meet my family ________ on occasions.
- at months
- in months
- on months
Indian Independence Day is celebrated _________.
- in 15th August
- at 15th August
- on 15th August
We wear loose clothes ________.
- at summer
- in summer
- on summer
India got independence _______.
- in 1947
- at 1947
- on 1947
Children should get up early ________.
- at sunrise
- on sunrise
- in sunrise
I was gifted a pen by my friends _________.
- at my birthday
- in my birthday
- on my birthday
My birthday falls _______.
- at 6th Dec
- on 6th Dec
- in 6th Dec
Wooly mammoths roamed the earth _________.
- at the ice age
- on the ice age
- in the ice age
My favorite class starts _______.
- at 7 am
- in 7 am
- on 7 am
My favourite show starts _______.
- on hours
- at hours
- in hours
Answers – 1)a, 2)b, 3)a, 4)c, 5)b, 6)a, 7)b, 8)c, 9)b, 10)a, 11)a, 12)c, 13)b, 14)c, 15)a, 16)c
Related Links:
Participle Preposition
Phrase Preposition
Compound Preposition
Double Preposition