English Grammar: Prepositions of Place

Prepositions of Place are used to show the position or location of one thing with another. It answers the question “Where?”

A preposition of place is a preposition which is used to refer to a place where something or someone is located.

This lesson introduces some of the most common prepositions of place in English.

Prepositions of Place in English | Video

List of Prepositions of Place

Learn how to use Prepositions of Place correctly in English with useful rules and examples.

next to/beside: refers to a thing (or person) that is at the side of another thing

• We lay beside the pool to dry off in the sun.
• The hotel is situated next to the lively bustling port.

near/close to: “near” and “close to” are similar to “next to/beside” but there is more of a distance between the two things

• There is a bush near the school playground.
• The new shopping center is close to the railway station.

between: something in the middle of two objects or things (or places)

• There is a gulf between the two cities.

in front of: further forward than someone or something else

• They massed in front of the city hall.
• It was brave of you to speak in front of all those people.

behind: at the back (part) of something

• The horse fell behind in the race.

opposite/across from: someone (or a place) is on the other side of something

• The hospital is opposite to the post office.
• The shoe store is across from the bank.

under: lower than (or covered by) something else

• We slept under the open sky.

below: lower than something else

• He dived below the surface of the water.

over: above or higher than something else, sometimes so that one thing covers the other

• She held the umbrella over both of us.

above: higher than something else, but not directly over it

• Our friends in the apartment above us are really noisy.

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Prepositions of Place in English | Images

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