First, let’s revisit what a preposition is.
A preposition is a word (or group of words) used before an object (a noun, pronoun, or noun phrase) to show direction, time, place, location, spatial relationships, or to introduce an object.
For example: in, at, on, of, to
What is a prepositional phrase?
At the minimum, a prepositional phrase will begin with a preposition and end with the object of the preposition.
For example:
At home
At = preposition, home=noun
About what we need
About = preposition, what we need = noun clause
Most prepositional phrases, however, are longer.
For example:
From my mother
From = preposition, my = modifier, mother = noun
Under the warm blanket
Under = preposition, the warm = modifier, blanket = noun
What do prepositional phrases do in a sentence?
Prepositional phrases function as either an adjective or an adverb in a sentence.
As an adjective, the prepositional phrase answers the question: which one?
The swimsuit on the beach chair is wet.
Which swimsuit? The one on the beach char.
As an adverb, the prepositional phrase answers the questions: How? When? Where?
We tried the sushi and tempura at Sushi Delight Bistro.
Where did you eat the sushi and tempura? At Sushi Delight Bistro.
What are some common prepositional phrases?
Here are some prepositional phrases we commonly use:
Prepositional phrases worksheets for grade 4 students
In our grammar section for grade 4, we have a series of worksheets to help students practice writing prepositional phrases in sentences.
Prepositional phrase practice for grade 5 students
For grade 5 students, we created a series of worksheets asking students to identify the prepositional phrases in sentences for time, place and both.
