Reference List of Prepositions

 Here is a reference list of common prepositions in English, categorized for clarity:

Time

• at: at 3 o'clock, at night, at the weekend
• on: on Monday, on 25 December, on a hot day
• in: in 2023, in January, in the morning
• before: before lunch, before 2000
• after: after the film, after I left
• during: during the flight, during our stay
• for: for two weeks, for a few days
• since: since yesterday, since 1990
• until/till: until Friday, till the end
• by: by 5 o'clock, by next week

Place/Position

• at: at home, at school, at the station
• in: in the garden, in London, in a box
• on: on the table, on the wall, on the bus
• above: above the clouds, above the door
• below: below sea level, below the surface
• under: under the bed, under the tree
• beneath: (more formal than under) beneath the waves
• over: over the bridge, over the fire
• across: across the road, across the river
• through: through the forest, through a tunnel
• to: to London, to the beach
• from: from Italy, from the office
• near: near the park, near my house
• by/beside: by the window, beside the lake
• between: between two trees, between 9 and 10
• among: among the crowd, among friends
• in front of: in front of the building
• behind: behind the car, behind the curtain
• inside: inside the house, inside the box
• outside: outside the shop, outside the city

Direction/Movement

• to: go to Spain, walk to the door
• from: come from France, return from work
• towards: walk towards the station
• into: go into the house, get into the car
• out of: go out of the room, get out of the taxi
• through: drive through the tunnel
• across: run across the street
• along: walk along the beach
• up: walk up the hill
• down: walk down the stairs
• around: walk around the park

Other Relationships

• of: a cup of tea, the capital of France
• for: a present for John, famous for its beaches
• with: tea with milk, a man with a beard
• by: written by Shakespeare, by car/bus/train
• about: talk about the weather, a book about history

Phrasal Prepositions

These are combinations of words that function as a single preposition:

• according to: According to the news...
• because of: Because of the rain...
• in spite of: In spite of the difficulties...
• due to: The flight was delayed due to fog.
• instead of: I had tea instead of coffee.
• next to: The bank is next to the post office.
• on top of: The book is on top of the desk.
• out of: He ran out of the room.

This list is not exhaustive, but it covers the most common prepositions in English. Remember that the meaning of a preposition can change depending on the context.