Prepositional Phrases

Here are some examples of prepositional phrases:

'under' the desk
'during' the lecture
'across' the yard
'after' lunch
'behind' the tree

The word in quotes is the preposition and the words that follow the preposition make up the prepositional phrase. Think about a mountain, for instance. A prepositional phrase is just about anything that we can say in relation to a mountain, like 'to the mountain,' 'over the mountain,' 'under the mountain,' 'toward the mountain.' This is a good way to test a group of words in order to see if they do, indeed, fit the definition of prepositional phrases.

The object of the preposition is the noun that follows the preposition. It is also the stopping point for each prepositional phrase. For instance, we might say, 'to the store.' The word 'to' is the preposition and 'store' is the object of the preposition. Here's another example, 'in the light.' The word 'in' is the preposition and 'light' is the object of the preposition.