PREPO

SITIO

NS AS

MODIFIERS

PREPOSITIONS …

Act like adjectives and adverbs---they describe nouns and other parts of speech

ADJECTIVE PHRASES

They describe nouns or pronouns.Example:

The tiny bug on the window sill is a jumping spider.

the phrase describes which bug!

ADVERB PHRASES

Modifies a verb, adjective or an adverb (sound familiar?)

Example:Jumping spiders live in many places.

in many places describes where they live(a verb)

MORE EXAMPLES

These kinds of spiders are famous for their eight eyes. (The phrase tells you what they are famous for---famous is an adjective)

They jump far for their size. The phrase for their size tells you how their size affects how far they go. (far is an adverb!)

MULTIPLE PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES

In a sentence with several connected prepositional phrases, the phrase modifies(most of the time) the object of the phrase preceding it.

Example: A spider sat on the tip of a twig in a tree.

(The tip is where he sat, the tip is on a twig and the twig is in tree.)

PLACEMENT OF PREP PHRASES

Prepositional phrases should be placed as close to what they modify as possible otherwise you get sentences like this:

With eight hairy legs, the bird chased the spider.

(Which one has eight legs? Pretty creepy bird!)

Under the chair, the man placed the book.

(Is the man or the book under the chair?)