LoginCompound Prepositions for intermediate learners
Compound Prepositions or complex prepositions consist of two or more words that function as a single preposition. You'll learn about them here!
What Are Compound Prepositions?
In English, we can have both single-word prepositions and compound prepositions that consist of two to three words. However, bear in mind that these compound prepositions function as one single unit and they appear before a noun or a noun phrase.
Two-word Prepositions
Some compound prepositions consist of two words. Take a look at the following list:
- Because of
- Aside from
- According to
- Instead of
Now, let us examine each one separately:
Because of
When we want to express the reason for something, we use 'because of'. Let us take a look at some examples below:
People couldn't trust the police anymore,
Aside from
When we want to add additional information to an idea, we often use the preposition 'aside from'.Take a look at the following examples:
According to
If we want to show that an idea was expressed by a specific person, authority, or source, we can use the preposition 'according to'. Let us study the following examples:
Instead of
We can use 'instead of', to indicate a replacement for something or someone. Check out the following examples:
Couldn't you invite Sarah
Three-word Prepositions
As mentioned earlier, compound prepositions are not limited to two-word combinations. Below is a list of some of the most common three-word prepositions:
- In addition to
- On top of
- In spite of
Now, let us examine each one separately:
In addition to
As the name suggests, when we want to add something extra along with another thing, we mainly use 'in addition to'. Now, Take a look at the following examples:
On top of
We can use 'on top of' when we want to add something, especially something unpleasant, to an idea. Study the following examples carefully:
In spite of
Usually, when we want to indicate that surprisingly something still continues, we can use 'in spite of'. Take a look at the examples:
How could people be so foolish to vote for him,
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