Prepositions

1. A phrase is a group of related words that lacks both a subject and a predicate. Because it lacks a subject and a predicate it cannot act as a sentence. A phrase typically functions as a single part of speech in a sentence (e.g., noun, adjective, adverb). There are five types of phrases: 1. Prepositional phrases, which begin with a preposition and include the object of the preposition. 2. Participial phrases, which begin with the participle and include the object of the participle or other words that are connected to the noun by the participle. 3. Gerund phrases, which begin with the gerund and include the object of the gerund or other words that are acting as the complete subject or complete object. 4. Infinitive phrases, which begin with an infinitive and include the object of the infinitive or other words that are acting as part of the phrase. 5. Appositive phrases, which are nouns or pronouns adding more information to another noun or pronoun in the sentence.

2. Prepositions • A preposition is a word that links a noun or pronoun following it to another word in the sentence. about behind around against across as of outside down except but by on over of before beyond during despite for onto at • A noun or pronoun always follows a preposition. • A prepositional phrase is a preposition and its object (remember, objects are always nouns or pronouns). on the wing in the door near the violently swaying oak trees on account of his nearly-depleted bank account

3. PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES • The prepositional phrase includes the preposition and the object of the preposition as well as any modifiers related to either. [In the following examples, the preposition is bold and the prepositional phrase is underlined.] • The flying saucer appeared above the lake before it disappeared into space. • ABOVE is not an adverb because it has an object to complete its meaning; therefore, ABOVE is a preposition and the entire phrase is an adverb phrase. • Crystal could hear her sister snoring across the room. • Objects usually answer the question what. Therefore, we can ask across what? to determine the object of the preposition. • Christine discovered a pile of books hidden under the staircase. • UNDER is not an adverb because it alone does not answer where about the verb. • You should consider reading the notes before class. • BEFORE is not an adverb because it alone does not answer where about the verb. • You should consider reading the notes before you come to class. • BEFORE is not a preposition because is not followed by an object that it links to the clause. It is followed by another clause that is subordinate in meaning to the independent clause; therefore, it is a subordinate conjunction. • Alix walk down the ramp to the beach. • DOWN is not an adverb because it alone does not answer where about the verb. • Alix fell down. • DOWN is an adverb answering where about the verb. There is no object, so it cannot be a preposition.

4. More Prepositions and Phrases • The manager with the pink slips terrorized the employees. • The price of the promotion was much too steep. • Something in the corner of the desk was moving. • She lost her head at the retro drive in. • The salesperson skimmed over the product's real cost. • The boss was thrilled at their attitude. • The rock climbers arrived late at night. • Ms. Werner bribed the students with candy.

5. A Participle is a verb form that functions as an adjective. Participles aren’t preceded by a helping verb. • The sputtering car jerked down the road. (participle) • The car was sputtering down the road. (verb) Present Participles end in –ing (jumping, burning, speaking). • The howling children disturbed the neighbors. • Fred Flintstone gave Barney Rubble a crumbling rock. • Swimming slowly, I didn’t notice the shark on my tail. Past Participles usually end in –ed, -t, or –en (jumped, burnt, spoken). • The frozen candy bar broke her $900 braces. • Annoyed, Ms. Werner waited for the students to be quiet. • Confused by the noise, the mouse hid its face.

6. Participles,3 • Use participles and participial phrases to create concise and interesting sentences. You can combine to simple sentences to make a more interesting complex sentence. • 2 Sentences: Ms. Werner gave the students a pointed glare. She waited for them to be quiet. • 1 Sentence: Waiting for them to be quiet, Ms. Werner gave the students a pointed glare.

7. The participial phrase includes the participle and the object of the participle or any words modified by or related to the participle. Participial phrases act as adjectives [In the following examples, the participle is bold and the participial phrase is underlined.] • The car sliding out of control toward the building is going to hit the window. • SLIDING modifies the CAR. The verb is IS GOING. • Cameron spotted his brother throwing rocksat the passing cars. • THROWING is not a verb in this sentence. It describes the brother. Without an auxiliary verb, it cannot function as a verb. • The astronaut chosen to ride the space shuttle to Mars is afraid of heights. • CHOSEN describes the ASTRONAUT. • Running down the street, Alicia tripped and fell. • RUNNING certainly indicates something the subject is doing, but the verbs for the subject are TRIPPED and FELL. • Penned in by other runners, Steve was unable to make a break for the finish line. • STEVE is the subject. WAS is the verb. PENNED describes STEVE. • Mark returned the damaged package to the manufacturer. • DAMAGED describes PACKAGE. • Alex fell down the broken staircase. • BROKEN describes STAIRCASE.

8. A gerund is a form of verb used as a noun. Gerunds always end in –ing. Gerunds always act as nouns. • Leroy expanded his skills by studying. • At the age of ten, Irving started running. • My mother’s favorite occupation, nagging, makes her tedious company. • The quiet, steady humming soothed him to sleep. • My evening routine features cooking a delicious dinner. • Thousands of Kurt Cobain fans showed their love for the dead rocker by buying his CD boxed set. Don’t confuse gerunds with present participles, even though they both end with –ing. A gerund functions only as a noun, while a participle functions only as a modifier.

9. The gerund phrase includes the gerund and the object of the gerund or any modifiers related to the gerund. [In the following examples, the gerund is bold and the gerund phrase is underlined.] • Flying above the lake at this time of night seems a little dangerous. • FLYING is the subject of the sentence. A subject is a noun. A form of the verb ending in ING and used as a noun is a gerund. FLYING is a gerund. • Bill decided that scrambling over the pile of debris was not safe. • SCRAMBLING is the subject of the dependent clause. A subject is a noun. A form of the verb ending in ING and used as a noun is a gerund. SCRAMBLING is a gerund. • Ethan avoided doing his homework because the Wolfpack was playing the Royals. • DOING is the direct object of the verb AVOIDED. An object is a noun. A form of the verb ending in ING and used as a noun is a gerund. DOING is a gerund. HOMEWORK is the object of the gerund. • The student gathered signatures for increasing the hours of the library. • INCREASING is the object of the preposition FOR. An object is a noun. A form of the verb ending in ING and used as a noun is a gerund. INCREASING is a gerund. HOURS is the object of the gerund. • Philip Morris continues its fight to prevent government from regulating tobacco; nevertheless, the government is placing restrictions on marketing cigarettes to youth. • Both REGULATING and MARKETING are objects of prepositions (FROM and ON). • The young man opposes marketingsmoking cigarettes as if it were glamorous. • MARKETING is the direct object of the verb OPPOSES. SMOKING is a gerund and the object of the gerund MARKETING. CIGARETTES is the object of the gerund SMOKING. • Andrew continues his crusade to prevent the university from limiting free speech. • LIMITING is the object of the preposition FROM. SPEECH is the object of the GERUND.

10. -ing: What’s the difference? Present Tense Verb (requires a helping verb) • Bob was helping Su tie her shoe. Participle • The helping boy tripped on his shoe laces. Gerund • He loves helping.

11. An infinitive is a verb form that comes after the word “to” and functions as a noun, adjective, or adverb. • To succeed takes courage, foresight and luck. • Alone in her cubicle, all she wanted was to survive. • Afraid to move, she froze in terror. • His goal, to break into Fort Knox, was never achieved. • The student’s hope was to finish the paper before school started. Don’t confuse infinitives with prepositional phrases that begin with “to.” Remember that a preposition always ends with a noun or pronoun; an infinitive always ends with a verb.

12. The infinitive phrase includes the infinitive and the object of the infinitive or any modifiers related to the infinitive. [In the following examples, the infinitive is bold and the infinitive phrase is underlined.] • Even in New York, fans did not manage to buy the hype. • TO BUY is the direct object of the verb DID MANAGE. THE HYPE is the object of the infinitive. • The seemingly simple decision to appoint a Democrat caused controversy. • TO APPOINT is an adjective modifying DECISION. A DEMOCRAT is the object of the infinitive. • The gap provides a way to give Democratic candidates an edge in close elections • TO GIVE is an adjective modifying WAY. The object of the infinitive is CANDIDATES. • The respondents believe their neighbors are willing to vote for a woman. • TO VOTE is an adverb modifying the predicate adjective WILLING. In other words, it tells us the degree to which they are willing. • Two nonprofit organizations from opposite sides of the political spectrum plan to release a report blasting 25 Army Corps of Engineers water projects • TO RELEASE is the direct object of the verb PLAN. REPORT is the object of the infinitive. FYI: BLASTING is a participle modifying REPORT. • The corps has been trying to recast itself in a more ecosensitive light. • TO RECAST is the direct object of the verb HAS BEEN TRYING. ITSELF ( a reflexive pronoun) is the object of the infinitive. • Now Congress has to decide whether it wants to continueto be part of the problem, or if it wants to be part of the solution. • TO CONTINUE is the direct object of the verb WANTS. TO BE the object of the infinitive TO CONTINUE. PART is the object of the infinitive TO BE.

13. Appositives are nouns or pronouns that rename another noun or pronoun. Appositives are placed directly after the noun or pronoun they modify. • Bob’s car, a wreck, died a grisly death by the side of the interstate. • Spot, a cat, should understand my moods. • She, my friend, is always late. Some appositives are essential to the meaning of the sentence; others are not. Be sure to use commas carefully to establish meaning with essential and nonessential appositives. • Do you know my friend Bill? • Is Bill the friend or is the speaker talking to Bill? • Do you know my friend, Bill?

14. Appositives phrases are nouns or pronouns with modifiers. Appositive phrases provide additional information and description to the sentence. As with solitary appositives, appositive phrases are placed near the noun or pronoun they describe. • Columbia University, the second-largest land-owner in New York City, is part of the Ivy League. • David Prowse, the guy in the Darth Vader suit in the Star Wars movie, did not find out that his lines were going to be dubbed over by James Earl Jones until he saw the screening of the movie.

15. Appositive: A word, phrase or clause that means the same thing as (i.e., synonym) or further explains another noun (pronoun).Non-restrictive appositives are not essential to the meaning of the sentence.Restrictive appositives are essential to the meaning of the sentence. 1. NON-RESTRICTIVE: • Her husband, Fritz, is a nice guy. • We assume she has only one husband. Thus, commas are used. • The firm chose Mary, vice president of public affairs, as its chief executive officer. • Because we have identified the person by name, her title is additional information. It can be set off by commas. In other words, we could take it out and the meaning would not change. • The Grand Canyon, one of our nation's most popular tourist attractions, is breathtaking to behold. • Because we have identified the place by name, the rest is additional information. It can be set off by commas. In other words, we could take it out and the meaning would not change. • Neil Armstrong, the first man who walked on the moon, is a native of Ohio. • Because we have identified the person by name, the additional information is not restricted to the sentence. It can be set off by commas. In other words, we could take it out and the meaning would not change. 2. RESTRICTIVE: • Evan's friend John cheated on the test. • EVAN has more than one friend; therefore, no commas are used to set off JOHN. We need the name to know which friend we're talking about. • We students are happy with good grades. • STUDENTS identify who WE [subj.] are. If we remove it, WE does not have the same meaning. • She waited patiently for the famous author Stephen King. • STEPHEN KING identifies which famous author. There is no comma after AUTHOR because there are many famous authors.