Prepositions | English Grade 9 CBSE

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The kinds of prepositions

Prepositions do different jobs — they point to place, time, direction and more. Tap each term to see what it does, with an original example you can copy.

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The three big ideas

Prepositions of place — show where something is: in, on, under, between, beside. The lamp is on the desk; the shoes are under the chair.
Prepositions of time — show when something happens: at, on, in, before, after. The bus leaves at seven; we rest after lunch.
Prepositions of direction — show movement: to, into, towards, across, through. The runner sprinted towards the finish line.
Tip — first decide the job (place, time or direction); that already narrows down which preposition fits.

in — for large areas and long periods: in India, in the city, in May, in the morning.
on — for surfaces and days/dates: on the table, on the wall, on Monday, on 5 March.
at — for exact points and clock times: at the gate, at the corner, at 5 p.m., at noon.

Worked example. Fill the blanks: “We arrived ___ Monday ___ 9 ___ the morning.”

Step 1 — “Monday” is a day, so it takes on → on Monday.

Step 2 — “9” is an exact clock time, so it takes at → at 9.

Step 3 — “the morning” is a part of the day, so it takes in → in the morning.

Answer: We arrived on Monday at 9 in the morning.

Common mistake: in, on and at are not interchangeable. We say “on Monday”, never “in Monday”; and “at 5 p.m.”, never “on 5 p.m.” Match the preposition to the kind of word that follows.

Prepositional phrase — a preposition + a noun (with any words in between): preposition + noun. In “The book on the shelf is mine,” the phrase on the shelf tells us which book.
It adds detail — a prepositional phrase can describe a noun (the house beside the river) or a verb (she sang with great joy).
Fixed pairs — some words always take a particular preposition. You must learn these as a set: good at, afraid of, listen to, depend on, proud of.
Tip — when unsure of a fixed pair, recall a short example you trust: “I am afraid of the dark,” “We depend on the rain.”

Where you'll meet it

Prepositions, at work

Writing clear directions

Travel writing and everyday directions live on prepositions. “Walk across the square, turn left at the temple, and the shop is beside the gate.” Get the prepositions right and a stranger can follow your route — get them wrong and they end up lost.

Correct everyday English

Filling forms, texting plans, answering in exams — you constantly choose in / on / at and fixed pairs. “The meeting is on Friday at 10 in the morning” reads as fluent, confident English; the same line with the wrong prepositions instantly sounds off.

Check yourself

Competency quiz

Modelled on the competency-based pattern — MCQ, assertion–reason and a case study, testing whether you can use prepositions in original sentences, not just recall a rule.

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