Professional Documents
Culture Documents
at the time of At the time of the First and the Second Crusades,
Constantinople was the center of Western civilization.
because of (on account of)
Because of the bad weather, we stayed at home.
by way of (via)
We entered Italy by way of Southern France.
for the sake of (in the interest of, for the good of)
He treated her badly, but she stayed with him for the sake of the children.
from above (from a position above or over)
Seen from above, the countryside looks like a checkerboard of brown and
green squares.
from beneath He picked the coin up from beneath the table, where it had rolled.
from between He emerged from between two parked cars and began to
walk toward us.
from under
The cat came out from under the bed, where it had been hiding.
in front of
(located before)
My car is parked in front of the house.
in lieu of
(as a substitute for, in place of)
In lieu of the money he owed us, we received only fine words and more
promises to pay.
in opposition to
(opposing)
This action was taken in opposition to the expressed will of the majority of
our people.
in place of
(as a substitute for, replacing)
I’m teaching today in place of Mr. Jones, who is sick.
in preference to
(being preferred to)
Through personal influence, he was given the job in preference to several
older and more experienced men.
in regard to
(concerning)
In regard to that question you asked me the other day; I think I can answer
you in affirmative.
in search of
(looking for)
He’s gone to the library in search of some books on sky diving he just heard
of.
in spite of
(disregarding the difficulty, resistance, hostility, etc, of)
In spite of the weatherman’s predictions, I think it’s going to be a good day.
He was able to complete his work in spite of illness.
in terms of
(from the aspect of)
In terms of offensive or retaliatory airpower, the two nations are on a more or
less equal footing.
in the course of
(during)
In the curse of the ages (long periods of time), great alterations have taken
place in the earth’s surface.
in the event of
(in case of)
This policy pays double in the event of accidental death. (policy = insurance
agreement)
in the face of
(because of)
He is always calm in the face of danger.
independently of
(without dependence of)
He made his decision independently f the other members of the group.
inside of
(within-refers to either place or time)
I’ll never set foot inside of his house again.
He was back inside of 10 minutes.
instead of
(in place of, substituting for)
I wish I were going to a party instead of to the dentist.
on account of
(because of)
The game has been postponed on account of rain.
on behalf of
(speaking or acting as a proxy or representative)
I make this request on behalf of my government.
on the part of
(this phrase, which is difficult to translate, serves to attribute some attitude or
behavior to its object)
Eagerness to learn on the part of the students, combined with a clear
knowledge of objectives and of the techniques best adapted to attaining
them on the part of the teacher, constitutes the ideal classroom situation.
on the point of
(about to… followed by gerund)
I was on the point of leaving when the phone rang.
on top of
a. (on the highest surface of)
There’s always slow on top of those mountains.
b. (furthermore, in addition)
He ate a full lunch like the rest of us, but on top of that, he ate two or three
candy bars, and drank two cokes.
out of
a. (from the interior of)
As soon as she went out of the room, I got out of bed and began to dress.
b. (no longer in or within as in the idioms out of sight, our of mind, out of
reach, out of fashion, out of business, etc)
The plane vanished out of sight over the horizon.
Get out of my way!
Out of sight, out of mind. (proverb)
c. (no longer have or be supplied with)
We ran out of gas coming from town.
He was out of breath from running so fast.
outside of
a. (beyond the limits of an area)
He lives in a small town outside of New York.
b. (with the exception of)
Outside of his immediate family and one or two old friends, he sees no one
any more.
owing to
(because of)
I can’t accept your invitation owing to a previous engagement.
previous to
(before a certain time)
Previous to 1980, he had been employed as a clerk in a department store.
regardless of
(without regarding, irrespective of)
All men, regardless of race, color, or creed, are entitled to equal rights and
opportunities.
relating to
(having some relation with)
He told us several stories relating to his experiences in East Asia during
World War II.
relative to
(concerning)
He made some interesting observations relative to life in the tropics.
round about
(at approximately.. usually said of time)
(around about)
I’ll be back around about 11:00
short of
(with the ultimate exception of)
I’ve tried every technique of teaching I know, short of standing on my head;
and they still don’t understand!
under cover of
a. (concealed by)
They accepted from their guards under cover of darkness.
b. (protected by)
The attack was made under cover of a heavy barrage.
what with
(this idiomatic, sometimes humorous, untranslatable phrase introduces a list
of various factors in a difficult, confusing, or exasperating situations)
What with the children crying, the dog barking, and both the telephone and
the doorbell ringing at the same time, I felt that I’d go out of my mind.
with (in) regard to
(with respect to, concerning)
With respect to your request for a two-week delay in the due payment of
annual interest on the above mentioned note, we regret that it is contrary to
the policy of this organization to grant such requests.
with a view to
(for the purpose of, intending to)
With a view to increasing the sale value of the property, he had the house
painted and driveway resurfaced.
with reference to
(referring to)
With reference to your letter of June 17, requesting information about
unshipped items on your order No. 1113, we are glad to report that these
items are now in stock and are being shipped to you.
with the intension of
(intending to)
I went downtown with the intention of buying some shirts and ties
Older elementary and middle school students are exposed to a variety of prepositions.
This includes compound words and single words used in complex sentences.
according to
along with
alongside
among
apart from
as for
atop
because of
by means of
concerning
despite
except for
in addition to
in back of
in case of
in front of
in place of
in spite of
instead of
on top of
out of
regarding
throughout
till
up to
via
within
worth