What Are Prepositions of Direction and Movement?
Prepositions of direction and movement are used to talk about the location of things and their movements from one place to another. These prepositions always describe movement and we usually use them with verbs of motion.
Categories of Prepositions of Direction and Movement
According to their meaning, prepositions of direction and movement can be classified into two groups:
- Prepositions that show the destination of a movement
- Prepositions that show the movement compared to something else
Look at the examples:
The manager walked
In this example, the noun after the preposition ‘into’ shows the destination which is ‘the office’. This sentence means that the manager arrived at the office.
The manager walked
In this example, the noun after the preposition 'around' doesn't show the destination. It means that ‘the manager’ was already in the office and he moved throughout the office.
Across, Along, Past
'Across' shows the movement from one side to the other side of something.
'Along' or 'alongside' from one point to the other point of something in a line.
As a preposition, 'past' indicates a move to the other side of something.
She walked
Driving
Joe and Molly walked
When Tom runs, his pet dog runs
The bookstore is just
The police car drove right
Around, Round
'Around' (or especially in British English 'round') is a preposition that shows movement in a along a curving line, not straight and not going through it.
The children ran
A big pile of clothes was on the floor so she had to walk
Through
'Through' shows a movement into one side and out of the other side of something. Generally, 'through' means entering the middle of something and then going out the other side, but 'across' shows crossing the middle, but not necessarily going in the thing you're crossing.
He got shot and the bullet went
The train went
Up and Down
using the preposition 'across' to show direction
'Up' shows being in or towards a higher position. It also means along or further along a street or a road.
'Down' is the opposite of 'up'. It indicates a movement from a higher point on something to a lower one. It also means towards the direction in which you are facing.
He pulled his socks
The church is just
We started running
Our school is just
Into
'Into' is a preposition that's related to direction. It shows a direction towards a position in or inside something.
The difference between 'in' and 'into' lies in the existence of movement. 'Into' is used when something or someone is going or being put into another location. 'In' is used to describe where someone or something already is.
Mary walked
He jumped
Out of
'Out of' is the opposite of 'into'. When we want to state that something or someone is coming out of a place, we use 'out of'. Let us take a look at the following examples:
I'm
Jessica is coming
Tip!
It might come in handy to know that in American English, it is very common to use 'outta' instead of 'out of'. Bear in mind that it is only used in informal, spoken English.
Off
'Off' as a preposition, shows separation, removal, and disconnection. It indicates moving away from something.
He bought an island
Try not to fall
Onto
'Onto' is used to express movement into or on a particular place or position.
At the interjection, turn right
We went
Over
'Over' as a preposition can show a movement from one side of something to the other; It is somewhat synonymous to the preposition 'across'.
Let's walk
I watched a bird flew
Under
When we want to talk about something or someone that is in a lower position than something else, we can use 'under'. Take a look at the following examples:
I'm
The basement is located
Toward
'Toward' (which is also called Towards especially in British English) shows a movement in the direction of something.
I was walking
The baby was pointing
To
'To' indicates a movement in the direction of something; it can be synonymous to the preposition 'toward'.
To and toward show direction or movement. To is used to show movement toward a point, person, place or thing approached and reached. Toward is used to express a motion or direction toward something in the direction of something.
She walked
On my way
Away from
Normally, when we want to show the movement between two things, people, etc. we can use 'away from'. Study the following examples carefully:
Take this cockroach
She drove
Review
As you know, prepositions of directions and movements are used to talk about how things are placed or how they move from one place to another. We gathered all of them at the table so that we can learn them easily.
| 1. across | 5. around | 9. off | 12. past |
| 2. through | 6. down/ up | 10. onto | 13. toward |
| 3. along | 7. into | 10.over | 14. to |
| 4. away from | 8. out of | 11.under |
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