A Dictionary of Cont..

added to the sentence is called the object of the
preposition and together with the preposition
forms a prepositional phrase. (In this dictionary
other kinds of words have been defined without
reference to their meaning. To carry out this
principle, we might define a preposition as a
word that is not functioning as one of the other
parts of speech.) In Jeanie with the light brown
hair, the preposition with forms a phrase with
the noun hair and qualifies the noun Jeanie. A
preposition may be a simple, adverb-like word,
such as before, after, in, on, to, or it may resemble
a verb form, such as during, past, except.
Prepositions may be compound words, such as
into, upon, or they may be phrases, such as
apart from, in regard to. But in every case the
preposition has only one form. It is never altered,
as nouns are to show number, verbs to
show tense, and some adjectives and adverbs to
make a comparison.
According to the formal rules of grammar, a
subjective pronoun cannot be the object of a
preposition. This rule is observed in practice
when the object follows the preposition, as in
this is for him. The subjective form he cannot
be used in this position. When the object precedes
the preposition a subjective form may be
used, as in who is it for?. (See who; whom.)
With this exception, any kind of word may be
used as the object of a preposition provided it
has the force or the sense of a noun, as in until
now, from here, in short, at best. (For the toinfinitive
and the use of prepositions with the
-ing form of a verb, see verbal nouns.)
Some words that are used as prepositions may
also be used as conjunctions. A word of this
kind is a conjunction whenever it is followed by
a full statement that contains a true verb, as in
before the cock crowed, and a preposition when
it is followed by a noun or noun equivalent
without a verb, as in before the paling of the
stars. A personal pronoun following a word of
this kind is considered the object of a preposition
if no verb follows, and an objective form
is used rather than a subjective, as in you were
here before me. That is, a word of this kind is
interpreted as a preposition wherever possible.
(Other words that are trea:ed in the same way,
such as than, as, and but, are said by some
grammarians to be conjunctions only and not
prepositions. This means that a personal pronoun
following one of these words would have
to be subjective or objective depending upon its
function in the sentence. For a discussion of
this, see conjunctions and the individual words.)
Some words that are used as prepositions are
also used as adverbs. A word of this kind is an
adverb when it stands alone without an object,
as through in we have come through. When the
word is followed by an object it may be a preposition,
as in it came through the window, or it
may be an adverb forming part of a compound
verb, as in he read through the letter. The noun
object of a preposition can never stand immediately
before the preposition, but the normal
position for the object of a compound verb is
387 prepositions
between the two elements of the compound.
Therefore, a word of this kind is an adverb if
it is possible to place the object between it and
the verb, as in he read the letter through. If the
object cannot be placed between the verb and
the word in question, as in it came the window
through, the word is probably a preposition.
CHOICE OF PREPOSITION
Prepositions represent, primarily, spatial or
temporal relations, which are the only kinds of
relations that exist between physical things.
When used for this purpose, the meanings of the
words are clear enough and it is not hard to
choose the appropriate one. But as English ceased
to be an inflected language the old prepositions
were also used to express logical or conceptual
relations which were once expressed by case. In
these senses, it is sometimes difficult to say which
is the right preposition to use. For example, it is
easy enough to decide whether we want to say
the note was with the book or the note wus in the
book. But whether we should say the man spoke
with anger or the man spoke in anger is not as
clear cut. This is partly because the conceptual
relations themselves are not clear cut, and partly
because there is a large element of metaphor in
expressing them in terms of physical relations
Sometimes we have no choice in the matter
because custom has already established certain
words in certain phrases and these must be observed.
For example, we may say agree to but
not agree at and decide on but not decide in.
English is less rigid in this respect than most
languages. But when one preposition sounds
more familiar than another in a given combination
of words, it is probably the best one to use.
When one sounds no better than another, it is
time to examine the relation and choose the preposition
that expresses it best. For help in this,
see the individual prepositions.
POSITION OF A PREPOSITION
Etymologically, the word preposition means
“placed before.” But to argue from this that a
preposition must be placed before its object is
like arguing that a butterfly must be a fly. Even
in Latin a preposition sometimes follows its object.
In English there are some constructions in
which the preposition must precede the object
and some in which it must follow. And there are
others in which either word order is acceptable.
In a normal declarative sentence a preposition
must stand before its object unless the object is
a relative pronoun. Most sentences are of this
kind and most prepositions stand before their
objects. But we have a different situation when
(1) the sentence is interrogative, (2) the normal
word order is disturbed for the sake of emphasis,
and (3) the object of the preposition is a relative
pronoun. (When the object of a preposition is
made the subject of a passive verb the preposition
remains in its original position, as in Z was
made a fool of; but this is not ordinarily thought
of as an object preceding the preposition.)
1. In a question, a preposition that governs
the interrogative word may follow its object, as
in what are you looking for?, or may precede it,