CBSE Class 8 English Grammar Preposition

A preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to show its relation with some other word in the sentence.

1. He works hard in the hope of standing first.
2. We met at night.
3. The book is on the table.
4. We stay at home during the holidays.
5. I will be there by ten O’ clock.
6. It has rained for three hours.
7. He pointed to the tree.

In the above sentences, the italicised words in. at. on. by. for and to are preposi¬tions. The nouns that come after them are called their objects. Thus, ‘hope’ is the object of ‘in’ ; home is the object of at: holidays is the object of ‘during’. ‘Ten is the object of ‘by’; hours is the object of for’ and tree is the object of to.
The Prepositions generally serve three important purposes :

(a) Indication of Time
(b) Indication of Place
(c) As a part of the Verb

The Preposition

(A) Indicating Time
Time is indicated mainly by at. on, in. during, by. and for.
1. At
(i) At is used for a point in time :
We shall meet at 6 O’clock.
He came at midnight.
Similarly, at dawn, at sunset, at the end, at the beginning etc.
(ii) At is used before festivals :
We have a holiday at Diwali.
Similarly, at Holi, at Christmas, at New year etc.

2. On
(i) On is used for a particular day, whether it is a date (e.g. 5 June, Feb. 14th), a
day (e.g. Monday, or a special da
(ii) On is used for a particular part of such days as described above.
I will come on the night of 10th July.
We will meet on Friday afternoon.

3. In
(i) In is used before a period of time : in the winter, in July, in the year 2005, in the morning, in the evening.
I first met him in 2005.
Cricket is played in India in winter.
(ii) In is also used to show the total length of time taken to complete an activity or operation.
This train will get you from Delhi to Chandigarh in four hours.

4. During
When an action or a situation continues for sometime, during is used before that specified period.
We enjoyed ourselves during the vacation.
People work during the day.

5. By
(i) By is used to denote the ultimate point by which something was or is to be completed.
I have to complete the work by Monday.
The applications should reach by 14 February.
(ii) By is used with day and night where it means during.
He travelled by day and slept by night.

6. For
For is used before a time phrase to denote that so much time has passed during which an action or a situation continued.
I have not seen him for two years.
We waited for an hour but he didn’t turn up.
Important Points
(i) The prepositions at, on and in are not used if the noun giving time has an adjective with it.
He met me last Sunday.
We will come again next Diwali.
We go for a walk every morning.
I will be twenty next June.
(ii) Yesterday, today and tomorrow do not take a preposition.
I will come again tomorrow.
You met me yesterday.
He is arriving today.

Exercise 1
(Solved)

Fill in the blanks with appropriate prepositions :
1. Diwali is …….. 10 November.
2. Gandhiji lived ………. the English rule.
3. They finished work ………. sunset.
4. Gandhiji was born …………. 1869 and died ……… 30 January, 1948.
5. I will call at your house sometime ……… he evening.
6. Shankar’s birthday is ………. 3 March.
7. The train leaves Delhi ………. 3.00 pm and reaches Chandigarh …….. 7.00 pm.
8. He should be here ………. now.
9. Please come to my office at 11.00 am ………. Tuesday afternoon.
10. Parmod will see you …………. Monday ………. 11.00 am.
Answers:
1. on
2. during
3. by/before
4. in, on
5. in
6. on
7. at, at
8. by
9. on
10. on, at

Exercise 2
(Solved)

Fill in the blanks with prepositions in the following sentences :
1. You must reach there ……… week-end.
2. The robbers entered the house ………. the night.
3. The exhibition will be opened ……… 10 am ………. Friday.
4. The interested candidates should report for interview latest ………… 3 June 2007.
5. He came to my house ……… my absence.
6. The examinations will commence ……….. April 1 ………. 9.00 am.
7. Send your reply ……. March 3, the latest.
8. We are having a variety show ………… Saturday.
9. Are you coming to see us ………. Diwali ?
10. A gale got up ………… night and did much damage.
Answers
1. by
2. during
3. at ; on
4. by
5. in
6. on ; at
7. by
8. on
9. at
10. at

(B) Indicating Place
1. Residence (Countries, towns etc.)
(i) When the reference is general, use in
Many people live in cities/villages/suburbs/deserts/countries/towns
But
He lives at the seaside.
He lives on an island.
Note. 1. Village, suburb, desert, country and town are imagined as closed entities and hence the preposition in (i.e., inside).
On the other hand seaside means near the sea and hence the preposition at ; Island is imagined as something open and so the preposition on.

2. Residence (Houses etc.)
(i) For the general reference use in :
I live in a small house.
She lives in a bungalow.
Do you live in a flat or in a mansion ?

(ii) For a house with a name or address use at:
Mrs Gandhi lives at 10 Janpath.

(iii) For the names of streets and roads use in :
He lives in Mayur Vihar.
I live in Sector-14.

3. Place of Work
(i) If it is a building, use in :
His father works in a bank.
But
In case the place of work is not a building use on :
Ram works on a farm.

(ii) If the name of the place of work is given, use at:
He works at the Public Library.

(iii) For a particular department, use in :
He is a teacher in the Department of English

Exercise 3
(Solved)

Supply the correct preposition in the following :
1. Does he live ……….. the town, or ……….. the country ?
2. Have you lived …………… Kharkhoda long ?
3. I have always wanted to live ……….. a bungalow.
4. Mr. Sharma lives ………….. Model Town ………….. Delhi.
5. He lives ……………. 194 Kali Bari Kolkata.
6. My father works …………. an office.
7. My uncle lives ………….. a mansion …………….. a village a few miles from Mumbai.
8. James was brought up …………. a farm but at the age of 11 he was sent to work a small town.
9. His father is the manager …………….. the local bank.
10. How long have you been ………….. Delhi ?
Answers:
1. in, in
2. at
3. in
4. at, in
5. at
6. in
7. in, at
8. at, at, in
9. in
10. in

Exercise 4
(Solved)

Fill in the blanks with proper prepositions from the box :

beside, besides, between among, since, for by, with.

1. He was standing ………….. her.
2. I write ………… a pen.
3. I have not seen him …………. he left for England.
4. It has been raining hard ………… the last 3 days.
5. India beat Bangladesh ………… an innings.
6. Distribute the fruit ………. the students.
7. The two friends will settle it ………… them.
8. ……….. being a teacher, he is also a poet.
Answers:
1. beside
2. with
3. since
4. for
5. by
6. among
7. between
8. Besides

Exercise 5
(Solved)

Correct the following sentences :
1. The interview will be held between 2 to 4 p.m.
2. The house was besides the river.
3. I have been waiting here since two hours.
4. He walked across the park among the flower beds.
5. He was killed by an axe.
6. I shall be there on 4 p.m. at Friday.
7. He fell in the well.
8. He sat upon a chair.
9. He jumped on the horse.
10. The land was ploughed by the help of a tractor.
Answers:
1. The interview will be held from 2 to 4 p.m.
2. The house was beside the river.
3. I have been waiting here for two hours.
4. He walked across the park between the flower beds.
5. He was killed with an axe.
6. I shall be there at 4 p.m. on Friday.
7. He fell into the well.
8. He sat in a chair.
9. He jumped upon the horse.
10. The land was ploughed with the help of a tractor.

Exercise 6
(Solved)

Rearrange the following into meaningful sentences :
1. I like / the winter / the summer / the country / the town / spend / to / in / in / and
2. in / long / Sonepat / you / have / lived / how ?
3. always / thought / she / she / a bungalow / would like / live / to / in
4. lives / seaside / his father / at / in / lives / he / while / Baker street
5. his father / a farm / a bank / in / on / works / he / and
Answers:
1. I like to spend the winter in the town and summer in the country.
2. How long have you lived in Sonepat ?
3. She always thought she would like to live in a bungalow.
4. He lives in Baker Street while his father lives at seaside.
5. He works in a bank and his father on a farm.

Exercise 7
(Solved)

The following passage has not been edited. There is a word missing in each line of the following passage. Write the missing word along with one word that comes before it and one that comes after it. Do not forget to underline the missing word.
For a long time neither them spoke. The (a) ______
lamp burned and a leak in one (b) ______
comer thatch water fell into a (c) ______
vessel the floor beneath. After a (d) ______
while Ratan rose and went off the (e) ______
kitchen prepare the meal. Many new (f) ______
things to think had entered her little brain. (g) ______
Answers:
(a) neither of them
(b) and from a
(c) corner of thatch
(d) vessel on the
(e) off to the
(f) kitchen to prepare
(g) think of had.

Exercise 8
(Solved)

The following passage has not been edited. There is an error in each of the following lines. Write the error along with the correction in your answer sheet. Do notforget to underline the correction.
Years went down, and the Giant grew very old (a) ______
and feeble. He could not play about any long, (b) ______
so he sat with a huge chair and (c) ______
watched the children in their games. (d) ______
One winter morning he looked out in his window. (e) ______
In the farthest corner from the garden was (f) ______
a tree quite covered in lovely white blossoms. (g) ______
Silver fruit hung down in the branches (h) ______
and below it stood the little boy he had loved. (i) ______
Answers:
(a) down — by
(b) long — longer
(c) with — in
(d) in — at
(e) in — of
(f) from — of
(g) in — with
(h) in — from
(i) below — under

Exercise 9
(For Practice)

Supply the correct preposition in the following :
1. Mr and Mrs Sharma stay ………….. the seaside for a week.
2. I’d prefer to work ……………. a factory rather than a farm.
3. Ram Lai is a typist ………… the New Courts.
4. He has got a post …………. the office …………. a large steel works.
5. He has a job …………… the dockyard.
6. He is a lawyer ………… a small town.
7. He teaches English ………….. the High School.
8. Do you live …………… a glass house ?
9. He has gone to live …………… Simla.
10. He told me that he lived ……….. 36 Royal Gardens.

Exercise 10
(For Practice)

The following passage has not been edited. There is a word missing in each line of the following passage. Write the missing word along with one word that comes before it
and one that comes after it. Do not forget to underline the missing word.
The little boy could not run. His eyes were
so full tears that he did not see (a) ______
the Giant coming. The Giant put him into (b) ______
the tree. And the tree broke at once blossom, (c) ______
and the birds came and sang it, and (d) ______
the little boy flung his arms the Giant’s neck. (e) ______
And the other children came and then came (f) ______
the spring. (g) ______

Multiple Choice Questions
Exercise 1

Fill in the blanks in the following sentences using one of the options from the brackets :
1. There is a cow (on/at/in/of) the field.
2. He is fond (on/at/in/of) tea.
3. The cat jumped (on/at/in/of) the chair.
4. What are you looking (on/at/in/of) ?
5. It is true according (with/by/for/to) law.
6. A man is known (with/by/for/to) the company he keeps.
7. I do not agree (with/by/for/to) you.
8. What are you looking (with/by/for/to) ?
9. Let us move (by/with/for/on).
10. The book lies (on/at/for/of) the table.
Answers:
1. in
2. of
3. on
4. at
5. to
6. by
7. with
8. for
9. on
10. on

Exercise 2

The underlined words in the following sentences have been wrongly used. Supply the correct word/ words from the options given below each sentence :
Question 1.
Did you see him by the party ?
(a) at
(b)in
(c) of
(d) from

Question 2.
He lives by church street.
(a) at
(b) in
(c) of
(d) from

Question 3.
I have not heard by him since long.
(a) at
(b) in
(c) on
(d) from

Question 4.
It fell below the table.
(a) of
(b) off
(c) from
(d) by

Question 5.
It is cool on May.
(a) than
(b) for
(c) in
(d) by

Question 6.
He was left by dead.
(a) for
(b) than
(c) in
(d) on

Question 7.
He was fond in children.
(a) with
(b) on
(c) of
(d) to

Question 8.
His action was appropriate by the occasion.
(a) with
(b) for
(c) on
(d) to

Question 9.
Shaw abstained with animal food.
(a) from
(b) by
(c) since
(d) on

Question 10.
He is afflicted on leprosy.
(a) in
(b) with
(c) of
(d) from

Answers:
1. (a) at
2. (b) in
3. (d) from
4. (b) off
5. (c) in
6. (a) for
7. (c) of
8. (d) to
9. (a) from
10. (b) with

I wrote a letter.
Children like sweets.
In each of these sentences the verb takes an object. ‘Song’, ‘letter’ and ‘sweets’ are objects. A verb that takes an object is called a Transitive Verb. The object usually answers the question what ? Or whom ?
Now look at the following sentences :
Birds fly.
The sun shines.
These verbs do not require objects. They express the actions by themselves and make the sense complete. They are called Intransitive Verbs. Some Verbs can be used both Transitively and Intransitively.

Verbs Used Intransitively	Verbs Used Transitively
1. Birds fly	Boys fly kites
2. The horse runs fast	I ran a race

Exercise

Pick out the Transitive and Intransitive Verbs in the following sentences. Name the Object of each Transitive Verb:
1. I killed a snake.
2. The ship sank.
3. She jumped into the well.
4. She spoke slowly.
5. The sun rose in the East.
6. I broke the plates.
7. The play lasted an hour.
8. This pen costs five rupees.

II. The Conjugation of Verbs

To Conjugate a Verb means to give its four Principal forms :

Present	Past
Past Participle	Present Participle

If the Past or Past Participle is formed from the Present Tense by changing the Vowel of a Verb ; as—
Take, took, taken and do, did. done
the Verb is said to be a Strong Verb.
If the Verb requires the addition of ‘ecf, ‘d’ or ‘f to form their Past and Past Participles, they are called Weak Verbs ; as—
Finish, finished, finished : die, died, died and build, built, built.

Group I
(Where no ‘n’ is added to the Past Participle)

Present	Past	Past Participle	Present Participle
Abide	abode	abode	abiding
Awake	awoke	awoke	awaking
Become	became	become	becoming
Begin	began	begun	beginning
Dig	dug	dug	digging
Drink	drank	drunk	drinking
Fight	fought	fought	fighting
Find	found	found	finding
Hold	held	held	holding
Lie	lied	lied	lying
Ring	rang	rung	ringing
Run	ran	run	running
Shine	shone	shone	shining
Sing	sang	sung	singing
Sit	sat	sat	sitting