Underline the prepositions in the following sentences.
1Humpty Dumpty sat ............... a wall.
Wrong!
We use "on" for something resting on the surface of a wall.
2The lion and the unicorn fought ............... the crown.
Wrong!
We use "for" to show the thing someone is trying to win or obtain.
3Little Jack Horner sat ............... a corner.
Wrong!
We use "in" when someone is inside the area of a corner.
4Wee Willie Winkie runs ............... the town.
Wrong!
We use "through" for movement from one side of a place to another within it.
5A fair little girl sat ............... a tree.
Wrong!
We use "under" for a position directly lower than something, often covered or shaded by it.
6I bring fresh showers for the thirsty flowers ............... the seas and the streams.
Wrong!
We use "from" to show the source that something comes out of or begins at.
7She laid her arms ............... her breast.
Wrong!
We use "across" for something placed from one side of the chest to the other.
8I tried to reason him ............... his fears.
Wrong!
The phrase "out of" completes the pattern "reason someone out of something."
9He swore ............... the nine Gods.
Wrong!
We use "by" after "swore" when naming what someone uses as the authority for an oath.
10One day the boy took his breakfast and ate it by a purling brook which ran ............... his mother’s orchard.
Wrong!
We use "through" for a brook passing within and across an orchard.
11One crowded hour of glorious life is worth an age ............... a name.
Wrong!
We use "without" to mean that the age has no name or fame.
Answers
- Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
- The lion and the unicorn fought for the crown.
- Little Jack Horner sat in a corner.
- Wee Willie Winkie runs through the town.
- A fair little girl sat under a tree.
- I bring fresh showers for the thirsty flowers from the seas and the streams.
- She laid her arms across her breast.
- I tried to reason him out of his fears.
- He swore by the nine Gods.
- One day the boy took his breakfast and ate it by a purling brook which ran through his mother’s orchard.
- One crowded hour of glorious life is worth an age without a name.
