6.98 Prepositional phrases show the place or object that is the starting point of a movement.
The following prepositions are used: away from, from, off, and out of.
The coffee was sent up by the caterer from the kitchens below.
She turned and rushed out of the room.
He took his hand off her arm.
from before prepositions and adverbs
6.99 From is also used before another preposition or before some adverbs to talk about the starting point of a movement.
I had taken his drinking bowl from beneath the kitchen table.
…goods imported from abroad.
Thomas had stopped bringing his lunch from home.
From is used before the following adverbs:
above
abroad
anywhere
behind
below
beneath
downstairs
elsewhere
everywhere
here
home
inside
next door
nowhere
outside
overseas
somewhere
there
underneath
upstairs
Prepositional phrases after nouns
6.100 As well as being used after verbs, prepositional phrases can be used after nouns to give information about place.
The muscles below Peter’s knees were beginning to ache a little.
The chestnut trees in the back garden were a blazing orange.
They stood and watched the boats on the river.
…the clock in her bedroom.
…the low wall round the garden.
…the black shapeless masses to the left and right of the road.
6.101 Prepositional phrases can be added after roads, routes, and so on, to specify them by indicating their destination or direction.
…the main road from Paris to Marseilles.
…the road between the camp and the hospital.
…the road through the canyon.
Similarly, doors, entrances, and so on can be specified by adding prepositional phrases indicating where you get to by going through them.
He opened the door to his room.
…at the entrance to the library.
Prepositional phrases are also used after nouns to say where someone or something comes from.
…a veterinary officer from Singapore.
…an engineer from Hertfordshire.
Other uses of prepositional phrases
6.102 Prepositions are often used to talk about things other than place as well, for example to talk about a time, a way of doing something, or a feeling or quality. The following paragraphs from 6.103 to 6.110 describe these uses briefly, and give cross references to fuller explanations elsewhere.
The following prepositions are only or mainly used to indicate things other than place:
after
as
despite
during
except
for
like
of
since
until
referring to time
6.103 Although the main use of prepositional phrases is to talk about position or direction, they are also used to refer to time.
I’ll see you on Monday.
They are expecting to announce the sale within the next few days.
The use of prepositions to talk about time is explained in paragraphs 4.100 to 4.108.
referring to the way something is done
6.104 Prepositional phrases are also used to say something more about the way in which an action was performed, or the way in which it should be done.
‘Oh yes,’ Etta sneered in an offensive way.
A bird can change direction by dipping one wing and lifting the other.
He brushed back his hair with his hand.
Prepositional phrases such as on foot or by bus can be used to talk about a method of travelling.
I usually go to work on foot.
I travelled home by bus.
The use of adverbs to talk about the way things are done is explained in the section beginning at paragraph 6.36.
6.105 You can also use prepositional phrases to give more information about the feelings of the person performing the action.
Fanny saw with amazement that the letter was addressed to herself.
like and as in comparison
6.106 You can use the preposition like to show that someone or something behaves in a similar way to someone or something else.
She treated me like a servant.
She shuffled like an old lady.
There is more information about comparison in general in the section beginning at paragraph 2.103.
6.107 You can also use like and as to say that someone or something is treated in a similar way to someone or something else. The noun phrase after like or as describes the person or thing affected by the action, not the person or thing doing the action.
My parents dressed me like a little doll.
Their parents continue to treat them as children.
She treated her more like a daughter than a companion.
You can also use expressions such as like this or like that to refer to a particular manner of doing something.
If you’re going to behave like this, the best thing you can do is to go back to bed.
How dare you speak to me like that?
The use of like and as in subordinate clauses is explained in paragraphs 8.78 to 8.80.
6.108 You can say that one way of doing something has as much of a quality as another way of doing something, by using as followed by an adverb followed by another as. The second as is followed by a noun phrase, a pronoun, an adverbial, or a clause.
The company has not grown as quickly as many of its rivals.
She wanted someone to talk to as badly as I did.
circumstances of an action
6.109 You use prepositional phrases to say something about the circumstances of an action.
‘No,’ she said with a defiant look.
…struggling to establish democracy under adverse conditions.
reason, cause, or purpose
6.110 Prepositional phrases can also be used to say something about the reason for an action, or the cause or purpose of it.