संबंधसूचक (Preposition)

हिंदी में पढ़ें

Preposition — The Small Words That Decide Big Marks

Imagine this: you write *"I have been waiting since two hours"* in your exam. It sounds perfectly fine to a Hindi speaker's ear — "मैं दो घंटे से इंतज़ार कर रहा हूँ।" But the examiner marks it wrong. The correct sentence is *"I have been waiting for two hours."* One tiny word — *since* vs *for* — and one mark gone.

That is the power of prepositions. They are the smallest words in English grammar, yet they appear in almost every error-spotting, fill-in-the-blank, and sentence-improvement question in SSC CHSL, RRB NTPC, and similar exams. Master them, and you convert your weakest area into guaranteed marks.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this chapter, you will be able to:

1. Identify the correct preposition of time, place, direction, and agency in any sentence.
2. Apply the 12 Golden Rules that cover the vast majority of exam questions.
3. Spot the examiner's favourite traps — especially the *since/for*, *in/at/on*, and *between/among* confusions.
4. Correct the typical errors Hindi speakers make because of direct translation.

1. What Is a Preposition?

A preposition is a word placed before a noun or pronoun to show its relationship with another word in the sentence.

• The book is on the table. (relationship between *book* and *table*)
• She came after lunch. (relationship between *came* and *lunch*)

Think of a preposition as a bridge — it connects two ideas and tells you *how* they are connected: in time, in place, in direction, or in manner.

> 🧠 Active Recall: Without looking back — what two things does a preposition connect? Give one example of your own.

2. Prepositions of Time — *at, on, in, since, for*

This is the most-tested family. Learn it as a pyramid:

Mnemonic 🎯 — "A Point, A Day, A Period":
AT a point (5 pm), ON a day (Monday), IN a period (July / 2024 / the evening).

Since vs For — the examiner's favourite trap

• Since → point of time (when it *started*): since Monday, since 2010, since childhood.
• For → period/duration of time (how *long*): for two hours, for five years, for a long time.

• ✅ He has lived here since 2015.
• ✅ He has lived here for nine years.

> 🧠 Active Recall: Fill in the blanks — (a) I have known her ___ March. (b) I have known her ___ six months. *(Answers: since, for)*

3. Prepositions of Place — *at, on, in*

• In a city/country (in India, in Mumbai) but at a specific address (at 12, MG Road).
• On the left/right, on the river bank, on the map.

Between vs Among

• Between → two persons/things: The secret is between you and me.
• Among → more than two: Distribute the sweets among the children.

> 🧠 Active Recall: Which is correct — "Divide the property between the three brothers" or "among the three brothers"? *(Answer: among — more than two.)*

4. Prepositions of Direction & Movement

• To → destination: She went to school.
• Into → movement inside: He jumped into the river. (Compare: He is in the river — already inside, no movement.)
• Towards → in the direction of: The dog ran towards me.
• Across → from one side to the other: They swam across the Ganga.
• Through → passing within: The train passed through the tunnel.

> 🧠 Active Recall: What is the difference between *in* and *into*? *(In = position inside; into = movement from outside to inside.)*

5. Other High-Yield Prepositions

• By / With (agency vs instrument): The letter was written by Ram with a pen. (*by* = doer, *with* = tool)
• Beside / Besides: Sit beside me (next to). Besides English, she knows French (in addition to).
• Above / Over: *above* = higher than (not touching); *over* = directly higher, often covering or touching.
• Below / Under: *below* = lower than; *under* = directly lower, often covered.
• Ago / Before: He came two days ago (from now). He had come two days before (from a past point).

⚠️ Examiner's Trap Box

Trap 1 — "Since two hours": Hindi "दो घंटे से" tempts you to write *since*. Wrong. Duration takes for: *for two hours*.

Trap 2 — "Married with": Correct form is married to, not *married with*. Similarly: *angry with* a person, *angry at* a thing; *good at*, *interested in*, *afraid of*, *depend on*.

Trap 3 — "Discuss about": *Discuss* never takes *about*. ✅ We discussed the plan. ❌ We discussed about the plan. Same with *comprise* (no *of*), *enter* (no *into* a room), *reach* (no *to* a place).

🔁 Linguistic Bridge — Hindi से English

Why does this happen? Hindi uses postpositions (के, में, से, पर) that come *after* the noun, and one Hindi word often maps to several English prepositions. "से" alone can be *from, since, by, with* — so direct translation fails. Learn prepositions as fixed partnerships with verbs and adjectives, not as translations.

6. The 12 Golden Rules of Prepositions

1. At = exact time; on = day/date; in = month/year/season/part of day.
2. Since = point of time; for = period of time.
3. In = rest inside; into = movement inside.
4. Between = two; among = more than two.
5. By = doer/agent; with = instrument.
6. Beside = next to; besides = in addition to.
7. Verbs like *discuss, enter, reach, comprise, order, request* take no preposition before their object.
8. Married to, angry with (person), good at, interested in, afraid of, depend on, consist of, listen to — fixed pairs; never translate from Hindi.
9. Ago counts back from now; before counts back from a past moment.
10. On foot (not *by foot*), but by bus/train/car (no article).
11. At night but in the morning/afternoon/evening.
12. A preposition is followed by a noun/pronoun in the objective case: *between you and me* (never *between you and I*).

Summary Table — One-Page Revision

Review after 2 days: Cover the tables above and write from memory — (1) the time pyramid, (2) since vs for, (3) five verbs that take no preposition, (4) the fixed pairs *married to, angry with, good at*. Then attempt Practice Set 1.