Prepositions Of Place & Precise Prepositional Phrases - Learn To Speak English Like A Native

36,795 views ・ 2019-04-22

English Like A Native


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(cheerful music)
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- Okay, where are you?
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Right.
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How do I get there?
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When describing the location of something,
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or giving directions,
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you will need to use the correct preposition.
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Using the wrong preposition
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can change the meaning completely.
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For example, this young lady is by the sea.
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This young lady is on the sea.
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Oh no, this young lady is in the sea.
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See?
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Which means understand?
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Never mind.
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So let's quickly start with at, in, by, and on.
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Firstly, at.
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At is used to describe a specific point.
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Often used with words like home, or work,
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or a place of study like school, college, university.
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For example, I'm at home.
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She's at work.
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They're at school.
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It's at the back gate.
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In is used when something is within an enclosed space.
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We're in the building.
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I'm in the city.
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You're in the mountains.
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It's in the forest.
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In is also used when you are describing which part
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of the country you are in.
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For example, I'm in the North.
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We're in south Patagonia.
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He works in the Southeast.
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By means close to or next to something.
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For example, I love being by the sea.
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The dog is by the river.
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The hotel is by our favorite restaurant.
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On is used when talking about a surface,
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or when something can be summited or mounted.
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For example, Anna is on the mountain.
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Anna's on the river.
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Anna's on the coast.
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Anna's on an island all by herself.
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(whimpers)
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Also note, if something is close to the coast
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then we would often use the phrase off the coast.
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For example, I saw a small island just off the coast.
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So armed with those few prepositions
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you should basically be able to describe
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where a location is situated.
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My friend lives at home with his mum in north London,
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right by a tube station.
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He used to live on the Isle of Dogs by the river Thames.
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Now, if you're giving or receiving directions
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you will need to know your compass points,
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so let's quickly go over them.
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We have north.
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Northeast.
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East.
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Southeast.
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South.
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Southwest.
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West.
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Northwest.
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And north.
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Make sure with that TH on north and south,
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you are putting your tongue between your teeth.
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I live in the Southeast of England.
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Where do you live?
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Let me know in the comments down below.
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So, now let's look at some more precise
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prepositional phrases to help you with directions.
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Directly opposite.
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I might say that my office is directly opposite your office.
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This means that they are facing each other,
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probably across the road from one another.
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Opposite means on the other side of an area.
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For example, a room.
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They are on the furthest points of the room
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from one another, or on opposite sides of the room.
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Or a road.
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If you are on one side and someone else is on the other,
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then you are on opposite sides of the road.
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Or you can say it's on the opposite side of the city.
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Perhaps you are in south London
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and what you want is in north London.
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It's a long way to go,
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it's on the opposite side of the city.
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You can even say on the opposite side of the world.
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So for me, I think Australia is on the opposite side
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of the world.
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You might say something is diagonally opposite.
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This means it's opposite, it's across the space,
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but it's on an angle.
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Halfway between.
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The shop is halfway between my home and the office.
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This means that the shop is at an equal distance
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from my home and my office.
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It's right in the middle.
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Just to the left of or just to the right of.
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The park entrance is just to the left of the library.
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This means that the entrance to the park
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is close to the library to the left.
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Right next to.
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I guess you could say that the park entrance
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is right next to the library, meaning directly beside it.
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In front of.
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When you come out of the train station
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the bank will be right in front of you.
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This means that the bank will be ahead of you.
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Now, I would like you to practice using these prepositions
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and phrases, so please, write in the comment section
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down below where you live, the area in which you live,
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and give people some indication
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of how to find a place of public interest.
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A theater, or a cinema perhaps.
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Here is my example.
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Despite growing up in the Northwest of England,
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I now live on the opposite side of the country
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in the Southeast.
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My town is very close to central London.
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There are many attractions to visit in the city,
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like the London Eye, for example.
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Situated by the River Thames, diagonally opposite Big Ben,
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it offers some wonderful views over London.
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So there you go.
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Prepositions of place for intermediate English learners.
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If you've found this helpful,
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then do show your appreciation by giving it a thumb.
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If you're looking of more English lessons,
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then why not check out one of these playlists right here.
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And until next time, why not pop the kettle on.
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Let's have a brew.
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Just as a very quick reminder,
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if you're interested in learning English
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with a native English teacher,
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then don't forget to click that subscribe button
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so you don't miss any future uploads.
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Ding dong.
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