When to use of in English. Use of prepositions in English

One of the first topics with which learning English begins is articles. Unfamiliar and, at first glance, having no analogues in Russian, they force beginning students to frantically abandon their textbooks, and with them their English studies. But are articles really that complicated? Let's focus on one of them and figure out when the article the is used in English.

The main purpose of articles is to provide additional information about the noun. This or that article can show whether the object or person in question is indefinite or definite. In simple words, the article indicates whether it is talking about an abstract (any) or concrete object or person. The article the is responsible for specificity.

The is the definite article in English, which is used for both singular and plural; with both countable and uncountable nouns. Some rules for using the article the have a logical explanation, others must be remembered and taken as an axiom. Let's consider each case separately.

When the article the is used in English:

1. The article the is used if in translation into Russian it can be replaced by a demonstrative pronoun. For example:

• When talking about an object or person that has already been mentioned earlier. Let's compare:

• When all interlocutors know what object or person we are talking about.

1. The article the in English is also used if a noun has a definition that distinguishes it from others.

• When a sentence contains a definition that is expressed by a subordinate clause or phrase.

• When the definition is expressed by an adjective in the superlative degree. Not to be confused with comparative degree.

• When the definition is expressed as an ordinal number.

• When the definition is expressed by a proper name.

• When definitions are used that themselves indicate a specific object or person. These include:

1. The use of the definite article is also necessary if one-of-a-kind items are mentioned.

1. In addition, the article the is used in classifying people and animals. It is worth noting that in the case of classifying people, the adjective becomes a role.

1. The is used in cases where a specific quantity of an uncountable item is spoken of:

1. Particular attention should be paid to the use of the definite article in English with. Articles are not always used when they are mentioned, therefore, in order to determine the need for their use, you need to know a number of rules.

• The article is used if the name of the country (organization) contains the words:

• The definite article is also used in the title:

• Articles are used in titles groups islands and mountain chains. Comparison table:

• The is also used with parts of the world:

• As with any rule, there are exceptions that you just have to try to remember. Here are some of them: the Netherlands (Netherlands), the Crimea (Crimea), the Caucasus (Caucasus), the Congo (Congo).

1. The use of the article the is necessary when mentioning an entire nation or using a surname when talking about one specific family:

1. The article the is used in the names of newspapers, magazines, hotels, cinemas and theaters. The article is often used in the names of musical groups.

1. Don’t also forget about stable phrases with the article the:

You may initially have some difficulty deciding when to use the article the and when it is not necessary in English. Despite the fact that in practice in most cases you will be understood without using the definite article, its use will not hurt the ears of a native speaker and will make your speech natural. You can also practice and complete exercises on articles offered on our website.

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Why I love English prepositions is the ability to completely change the meaning of the main word with the help of one small word. It was "watch" ( look at), and it became:

. "search" ( look for)
. "to have an opinion" ( look upon)
. "take care" ( look after)
. "forgive" ( look over)
. "track" ( look to).

Juggling English prepositions is aerobatics. If you learn this art, you will enrich your vocabulary and create a buzz of approval with your speech.

Many students of English treat prepositions with some arrogance, believing that it is like a student repeating the English alphabet at night. Underestimated. But in vain. Yes, prepositions are considered auxiliary, they don’t answer any questions, but they allow you to get different meanings from the same verb, form cases (yes, the same ones that exist in Russian) and do other interesting things. There is only one problem: there are a LOT of prepositions in the English language. But this does not mean that you need to learn them all right here and now. It is enough just to know the basic ones, as well as understand the division into groups.

Let’s not waste time on the fact that prepositions can be simple, monosyllabic, polysyllabic, consisting of several words, blah blah blah. Let's get straight to the point and provide not only tables of prepositions in English, but also visual examples in pictures. We will also look at the use of prepositions using examples.

1. Prepositions of place and direction (spatial)

2. Prepositions are temporary

Let's look at the most basic ones: about, after, at, during, for, in, on, till, within.

3. Causal prepositions

because of- because;
on account of- as a result, because of;
thanks to- thanks to;
in accordance with- according to, in accordance with.

As you can see, the same preposition can be in different groups (for example, in or on can be both temporal and spatial). Moreover, if you open any dictionary (well, at least Yandex) and select any preposition, you will be surprised by the number of meanings. Let's say the most frequently used English preposition to can have 13 values ​​(don't be lazy, take a look).

Let's talk a little about the nuances before inviting you to go into battle in the "tests" section, where the first linguistic tests of knowledge of prepositions await you.

Sing the prepositions!

Yes, yes, just sing or even read. When you are familiar with the basic prepositions, try yourself in the role of Eminem, Timati or any rapper you like. Still lacking an idea for a text? Mix prepositions! Knowing small and remote prepositions is very cool. Make sure of this by watching the video and feeling like a rising rap star.

ENGLISH PREPOSITIONS AND RUSSIAN CASES. Let's remember the second grade.

Genitive case (of whom? what?) - preposition of
Show me the plan of the house.

Dative case (to whom? what?) - preposition to
Give it to me.

Accusative case (who? what?) - without preposition
Give me a pen.

Instrumental case (by whom? with what?) - preposition with
She was cutting the letter with scissors.

Prepositional case (about whom? about what?) - preposition about
Don't speak about me.

PLACE OF PREPOSITION IN A SENTENCE

Every excuse, know its place!

In general, a preposition is supposed to be placed BEFORE a noun or pronoun (if the noun has an article or attribute, then it cannot be broken)

Put the book onthetable.
Give it to me.
The shop is behind green house.
You must do it with in two months.

In interrogative sentences (which begin with what, where, etc.) the preposition is placed at the end:

What city do you live in?
Who are you waiting for?

The remaining cases are associated with the use of prepositions in subordinate clauses and passive constructions. All this will be more relevant to study in the “Syntax” section.

It is very useful to learn tablets where the preposition has already merged with a specific noun. Useful in everyday communication.

By the way, about the last three prepositions. They won a special place in the sun and formed their own caste - prepositions of place. Why it is necessary to collect a dossier on them no less than on a counterintelligence agent will be told and proven by someone specially dedicated to them.

Just valuable advice: since it is impossible (and not necessary) to learn ALL prepositions at first, when you write out another new verb from the dictionary, mark yourself with at least 2 options with different prepositions.

For example:

Put- put
Put on- bet on (someone, something)
Put across- deceive

When this becomes a habit, one day you will be pleased to discover that the use of the verb comes out masterfully: in different meanings according to the situation. This will decorate your speech and get rid of all sorts of pauses and “mmm”, “uh”, “ahh”. In the meantime, the problem exists, you need to solve it, starting with passing a thematic test on prepositions.

Have you sorted the predogs into shelves in your head? Even the Sun has spots, so we suggest once again (which is not superfluous) to go through the prepositions by watching a video lesson on the topic. After viewing and several years of practice, you can safely assign yourself the honorary title of “guru”.

Most people starting to learn English have the question “what is it like?” meaning of the preposition of? And this is quite normal, because where in Russian it is enough to use the corresponding ending, in English the same number does not work. In English, it is generally not customary to create endings whenever gender or case changes. This is precisely the reason for the presence of the preposition of and others like him.

The main meaning of the preposition of

Let's consider the main meaning of the preposition of. Most often, this short but nasty word is found to denote that an object or person belongs to something, as well as to express the connection between the object and its component. It’s cleverly written, but in the examples everything looks much simpler:

and friend of mine - My friend

the history of French literature (history of French literature)

a piece of cheese - a piece of cheese

a bar of chocolate - chocolate bar

a drop of rain - rain drop

a slice of bread - a piece of bread

a crumb of pie - crumb of pie

If you look closely, it turns out that the pretext of simply conveys the Russian genitive case (answers the questions “who? what?”). It helps to trace the connection between objects and persons. Let's compare:

a piece of cake - a piece of cake

a piece _cake – a piece of cake

The difference is significant! Without an excuse of God knows what happens. It turns out that meaning of the preposition of it simply cannot be overstated. This little word is the link in the above examples.

The preposition of in English usage

What other rules are there on the topic “ preposition of in English usage»?

1. Of will be needed to talk about the composition of something. For example: a desk made of wood - a table made of wood.

2. This preposition is a constant companion of words kind & type . For example: this type of men - these types of men

In order not to miss new useful materials,

The English language, like Russian, has two groups of parts of speech: independent and auxiliary. Functional words include , particles, modal words, exclamations and ( prepositions). The information in this article is devoted to prepositions. You will learn what prepositions there are in English and how to use them correctly. After all, the literacy of your speech depends on the use of prepositions in English.

A preposition is an auxiliary part of speech that expresses a syntactic relationship between and words belonging to other parts of speech. In their structure, prepositions are simple ( on, near, for), complex ( outside, into), compound ( because of,in front of, in accordance with). There is also a classification of prepositions depending on the relationships they express (prepositions temporal, spatial, directions, causal, etc.).

English prepositions and Russian cases

The choice of preposition in English may also depend on which Russian case we are talking about. There are six cases in Russian. Here are the prepositions that correspond to them:

1. Nominative case (who? what?)
   

   young woman - This girl wants to buy a bouquet of flowers. (without preposition)

2. Genitive case (whom? what?)
   

   girls – The bouquet of this girl is lying on the table. (preposition of)

3. Dative case (to whom? to what?)
   

   girl – I am giving this bouquet to the girl. (preposition to)

4. Accusative case (whom? what?)
   

   girl - My mother likes this girl. (without preposition)

5. Instrumental case (by whom? with what?)
   

   girl – This bouquet of flowers is bought by the girl. (prepositions by / with)

6. Prepositional case (about whom? about what?)
   

   about the girl - I am talking about this girl. (prepositions about / of)

Moreover, many verbs, nouns, and adjectives in English are used strictly with certain prepositions. Therefore, these parts of speech should be taught together with prepositions. For example: verb to wait(to wait) necessarily requires a preposition after itself for. Or verb to listen(listen) used only with a preposition to. Adjective proud(proud) requires a preposition of, and the use of an adjective satisfied(satisfied) possible only with a pretext with. The same goes for nouns. Behind the words advantage / disadvantage(advantage, disadvantage of something) follows only a preposition of, and after the noun damage(damage, harm to someone or something) it is worth putting exactly a preposition to.

The most common prepositions in English

The use of prepositions in English implies mandatory knowledge of their meanings, translation options and areas of application. We will not list all the prepositions of the English language, but will name only a few of the most famous. The meaning of the rest and their connection with certain parts of speech should be further clarified.

1. Prepositions of direction:
   • to the left- to the left
   • to the right- to the right
   • up- up
   • down- down
   • off- With
   • onto- on
   • towards- towards
   • away, from- from
   • through– through, through
   • out of- from
   • into- V
   • along- along
   • past- past
   • across- through
2. Prepositions of location:
   • above- above
   • over- above
   • between- between
   • near, at, by, beside- near, near, at
   • behind- behind, behind
   • under- under
   • below- under
   • outside- from
   • in front of- before
3. Prepositions of time:
   • at– in hours
   • in– in months, years
   • on– in days
   • from– c, from
   • to- until some point
   • since- from some point
   • till- before
   • before- before, before
   • after- after
   • about– about, approximately
   • for– over a period of time
   • during– during + noun
   • by- at some point
4. Causal prepositions:
   • because of- because
   • in accordance with- according to, in accordance with
   • on account of- as a result of, due to
   • thanks to- thanks to

Use of prepositions in English can be called a kind of "