Preposition meaning
The definition of a preposition is a word or phrase that connects a noun or pronoun to a verb or adjective in a sentence.
An example of preposition is the word "with" in the following; "I'm going with her."
noun
To position or place in position in advance.
Artillery that was prepositioned at strategic points in the desert.
verb
A word or phrase placed typically before a substantive and indicating the relation of that substantive to a verb, an adjective, or another substantive, as English at, by, with, from, and in regard to.
noun
In some languages, a relation or function word, as English in, by, for, with, to, etc., that connects a lexical word, usually a noun or pronoun, or a syntactic construction, to another element of the sentence, as to a verb (Ex.: he went to the store), to a noun (Ex.: the sound of loud music), or to an adjective (Ex.: good for her)
noun
To place in a location before some other event occurs.
It is important to preposition the material before turning on the machine.
verb
Advertisement
(grammar) Any of a closed class of non-inflecting words typically employed to connect a noun or a pronoun, in an adjectival or adverbial sense, with some other word: a particle used with a noun or pronoun (in English always in the objective case) to make a phrase limiting some other word.
noun
Any construction of similar function (Ex.: in back of, equivalent to behind)
noun
Origin of preposition
- Middle English preposicioun from Old French preposicion from Latin praepositiō praepositiōn- a putting before, preposition (translation of Greek prothesis) from praepositus past participle of praepōnere to put in front prae- pre- pōnere to put apo- in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
- From Latin praepositio, from praeponere (to place before); prae (before) + ponere (to put, place); compare French préposition. (See position, and compare provost.) So called because it is usually placed before the word with which it is phrased, as in a bridge of iron, he comes from town, it is good for food, he escaped by running.
From Wiktionary
- From pre- + position
From Wiktionary