CHAPTER 2 Introduction to the Parts of Speech^45
The preposition under introduces the phrase under the porch. What does this prep-
ositional phrase tell you? It tells you where the termites were found. The preposi-
tional phrase describes the verb found; thus it acts as an adverb.
Written Practice 2-12
Find the prepositional phrase in each of the following sentences. Tell which word
the prepositional phrase describes. The fi rst one is done for you.
- A new bank opened in town.
in town describes opened - Don’t position all the furniture against the walls.
- One bottle inside the carton was smashed.
- Please place the key between the doors.
- I opened the car door and left my coffee cup on top.
- Please tell me more about Larry.
- I’m teaching a class in the adult school.
- We heard children laugh at the park.
- The new program on TV has a huge audience.
- The logs in the fi replace burned brightly.
We’ll return to prepositional phrases in a later chapter. They are often the source
of common errors in sentences because they come between the subject and the
verb.