The following are single-word prepositions that can take a noun phrase complement following the preposition. Prepositions in this section may also take other kinds of complements in addition to noun phrase complements. Prepositions marked with an asterisk can be used transitively or intransitively; that is, they can take noun phrase complements (e.g.,he wasin the house) or not (e.g.,he wasin).
The following are single-word intransitive prepositions. This portion of the list includes only prepositions that are always intransitive; prepositions that can occur with or without noun phrase complements (that is, transitively or intransitively) are listed with the prototypical prepositions. Note that dictionaries and grammars informed by concepts fromtraditional grammar may categorize these intransitive prepositions as adverbs.
The following are single-word prepositions that take clauses as complements. Prepositions marked with an asterisk in this section can only takenon-finite clauses as complements. Note that dictionaries and grammars informed by concepts from traditional grammar may categorize these conjunctive prepositions as subordinating conjunctions.
The following are postpositions, prepositions whose complements typically precede them. Note that some grammars classify prepositions and postpositions as different kinds of adpositions while other grammars categorize both under the heading of the more common variety in the language.
English has many idiomatic expressions that act as prepositions that can be analyzed as a preposition followed by a noun (sometimes preceded by the definite or, occasionally, indefinitearticle) followed by another preposition.[86] Common examples include:
The following prepositions are not widely used in Present-Day English. Some, such asbating andforby, are archaic and typically only used to convey the tone of a bygone era. Others, such asayond andside, are generally used only by speakers of a particular variety of English. Yet others are generally only used in specialized contexts, such asabaft in nautical settings anddehors in law.
^Abroad can also be used transitively in a rare sense of the term: "We scatter abroad the face of the earth."[57]
^Ahead can also be used transitively in a rare sense of the term: "I saw the figure of my friend ahead me."[59]
^Aside can also be used transitively in certain regional varieties: "The boys were often seated aside the girls."[60]
^Forth can also be used transitively in a rare sense of the term: "I may fetch you from forth this loathsome prison house."[61]
^Onward could also be used transitively in an obsolete sense of the term: "Two of that troupe conducted him onward the way to Babylon."[62]
^Together could also be used transitively in an obsolete sense of the term: "You will find the worth and value of it together the whole process of the great work of sugar making."[63]
^Upward could also be used transitively in an obsolete sense of the term: "Whether to surprise the squatted hare or flit upward ragged precipices."[64]
^An obsolete sense offrom could also take a finite clause: "From we rise till we go to bed."[67]
^An obsolete sense ofwithout could also take a finite clause: "Man can put up with only so much without he descends a rung or two on the old evolutionary ladder."[68]
^This sense ofupside seems limited to discussion of strikes to the head: "He went upside her head with a meat mallet." "A white cop comes up and go upside your knot."[285]
^"thruout."The Century Dictionary, vol. IX, Century Co., 1911, p. 870, babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015036876855&view=1up&seq=870. Accessed 20 July 2020.
^"abroad, adv., prep., and n."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^abcdefghijklmnopqrstHuddleston, Rodney, and Geoffrey K. Pullum.The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language. Cambridge UP, 2002. p. 615.ISBN0-521-43146-8.
^"ahead, adv., prep., and adj."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"aside (of) prep."Dictionary of American Regional English, digital version, Harvard UP, 2013. Accessed 11 Aug. 2020.
^"forth, adv., prep., and n."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"onward, prep., adv., and adj.2"Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"together, adv., prep., n., and adj."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"upward, adv., prep., adj., and n."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"pertain, v."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"round about, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"round about."Collins English Dictionary, HarperCollins, 2020, www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/round-about. Accessed 30 July 2020.
^Rodney Huddleston, Geoffrey K. Pullum; et al. (2002). "chapter 7 §3.1".The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. pp. 618–620.ISBN0-521-43146-8.
^ab"ablow, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 6 July 2020.
^abcdefg"Aboon, and Other Prepositions You’ve Never Heard."Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2020, www.merriam-webster.com/words-at-play/prepositions-youve-never-heard-of. Accessed 16 July 2020.
^"abouts, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"acrost, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"adown, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"a-eastell, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"afore, adv., prep., and conj."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 6 July 2020.
^"afornent, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"afront, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"afterhand, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"again, adv., prep., and conj."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 6 July 2020.
^"ahind, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 6 July 2020.
^"alength, adv. (and adj.) and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"alongst, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 6 July 2020.
^"aloof, adv., int., adj., and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"amell, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"amidmost, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"anear, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 6 July 2020.
^"aneath, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"anent, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"anewst, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"anunder, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"askant."Webster's New World College Dictionary, 4th ed., Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010, www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/askant. Accessed 18 Aug. 2020.
^"askant, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"asklent, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"astern, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"athwart, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"atour, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"atter, prep., conj., and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"atween, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 6 July 2020.
^"atwixt, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"a-weather, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"a-west, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"awestell, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"ayond | ayont, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"bating."Webster's New World College Dictionary, 4th ed., Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010, www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english/bating. Accessed 18 Aug. 2020.
^"bedown, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"'be-east, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"beforrow, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 8 Aug. 2020.
^"behither, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 12 July 2020.
^"sithen, adv., conj., and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"sithence, adv., conj., and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 7 July 2020.
^"ter, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"thorough, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"thorter, adv., prep., adj., and n."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"thwart, adv., prep., and adj."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"thwart-over, prep., adv., and adj."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"tiv, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"touchant, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"transverse, adj., n., adv., and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"traverse, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"till prep, conj."Dictionary of American Regional English, digital version, Harvard UP, 2013. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"ultra, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"umbe, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 13 July 2020.
^"umbe."The Century Dictionary, vol. X, Century Co., 1911, p. 6572, babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015036876848&view=1up&seq=214. Accessed 30 July 2020.
^"unneath, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"upo', prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"upside, n."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 7 July 2020.
^"upsy, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"upsees, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"uptill."The Century Dictionary, vol. X, Century Co., 1911, p. 6664, babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=mdp.39015036876848&view=1up&seq=306. Accessed 20 July 2020.
^"utouth, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^ab"with, adv, prep."Dictionary of American Regional English, digital version, Harvard UP, 2013. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"withinside, adv., prep., and n."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"withoutside, adv. and prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"wiv, prep."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"ymong, prep. and conj."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"yond, prep. and adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"yonside, adv, prep."Dictionary of American Regional English, digital version, Harvard UP, 2013. Accessed 28 July 2020.
^"aground, adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 18 July 2020.
^"hereat, adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 18 July 2020.
^"herefrom, adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 18 July 2020.
^"hereon, adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 18 July 2020.
^"thereat, adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 18 July 2020.
^"therefrom, adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 18 July 2020.
^"thereon, adv."Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, 2020. Accessed 18 July 2020.