WITH or BY - Prepositions | Super Easy English 19

Hiya, welcome to Easy English.

Today we're going to be looking at the prepositions;

'by' and 'with'.

But first, here's a little quiz for you,

I want you to tell me;

which of those two prepositions go into the following sentences?

I want to learn English _____ watching Easy English.

And the second one is;

I can watch Easy English's videos _____ subtitles.

Think you got it?

Well, the answer to the first one is;

I want to learn English 'by' watching Easy English.

And the second one is;

I can watch Easy English's videos 'with' subtitles.

Do these prepositions confuse you?

Well, fear not.

I'm going to explain how you can use both of them.

And also in the future,

Easy English is going to start creating more grammar

and vocabulary lessons.

So first and foremost,

let's give you a real basic example

of the differences of the prepositions 'by' and 'with'.

I saw Mitch with a dog.

Using 'with' in this sentence, give emphasis

that the dog and Mitch are together, or that Mitch owns the dog.

I saw Mitch by a dog.

And using 'by' in this sentence, gives emphasis to a location,

that I was next to a dog.

Or, if anything else, just sort of,

signifies that the dog and me are strangers.

But let's go a little bit deeper into both of these prepositions,

and let's start with the preposition 'with'.

Now I believe the uses of the preposition 'with',

can be grouped into five categories:

Together.

Having.

Post-verb.

Feeling.

And agreement.

Let's start with 'together'.

I was in the restaurant with our dog.

She's been with us since she was five months old.

I like to drink beer with my meal.

Cheers!

Now here's some examples of 'having'.

We have a dog with lovely eyes.

I'm looking for a house with a better view.

I want a job with a better salary.

I make curry with coconut milk, because I love sweet things.

Do you want your burger with cheese?

Here's an example of 'post-verb'.

I travelled with my bus, boat, plane, train ticket.

Here's an example of 'feeling'.

I'm telling you this with great sadness.

I'm writing to you with pure anger.

The final category is a way to use 'with',

to show that you agree with someone or that you understand them.

For example, you could say;

''You know that discussion you were just having?

Well, I'm with you on it.

Or if someone's hoping that you've understood them with something,

then you can simply respond back; ''I'm with ya''.

Do you enjoy the videos that myself and Isi make for Easy English?

Do you want to learn English with us?

And do you want to help support us

to continue making videos like this?

Then become an official Easy English member with the link up here.

For just £5 a month, you can help support us

to continue making episodes and in return,

we'll give you learning extras for all of our episodes,

including a transcript, a vocabulary list,

MP3 and video downloads of the episode

and a worksheet; testing your skills

and knowledge of the English language.

The worksheet consists of multiple choice questions,

based around the more extensive vocabulary used

and British slang used in the episode.

And at the end there's a fun, odd-ones-out game.

So if you are interested in learning with Easy English,

become a member now and help support myself and Isi

to continue making episodes.

Now let's move on with how to use the preposition 'by'.

Well, I believe there are six categories they can be defined into.

We've got:

Proximity.

Time.

Person.

Communication and transport.

Pre-verb.

And alone.

Now let's start with 'proximity'.

I want a house by the sea.

I'm waiting by the shops.

The next group for the preposition 'by',

is all connected and related to time.

For example, you could say;

''I need to get home by 9pm''.

Or; ''I have to hand in my homework by Tuesday''.

The next category is 'person'.

I'd like my guitar to be fixed by Mitch.

The guitar was fixed by some other guy.

Nola was scared by the thunder and lightning.

And here's the example of the next topic 'communication and transport'.

I'll contact him by email.

Dear other guy, you broke my guitar.

By text.

Hey other guy, you broke my guitar.

By phone.

Yes hello!?

I demand to speak to the other guy that broke my guitar.

To travel by bus, boat, plane, train.

The next category is called 'pre-verb'

and here are some examples.

I learnt about getting fit by watching YouTube.

I'm losing weight by eating less.

I'm improving my core by exercising.

The last category for the preposition by I like to call 'alone'.

For example;

I'm by myself.

You're by yourself.

We're by ourselves.

They're by themselves.

He's by himself.

Or one is by oneself.

So hopefully this has been a good guide,

for you to figure out when to use the prepositions 'by' and 'with'.

Now before we finish, I have three test questions,

I want you to answer in the comments below.

Are you ready?

Here's sentence one;

I can't make these episodes without you,

I just can't do it _____ myself.

Here's sentence number two... and a little life-hack by the way;

did you know that you can make

iced coffee _____ frozen coffee ice cubes?

And here's sentence three;

do you want milk _____ your tea?

Let us know your answers in the comments below.

And also what you thought of this episode,

d'you want to see more grammar and vocabulary episodes

like this in the future, for beginner and intermediate learners?

Let us know and we'll see you next week, te-ra.