Errors with prepositionsare among the most difficult errors to catch. Preposition use in English is very complex. For every rule, there seems to be an exception. There are many errors involving prepositions, and they are more difficult to spot.
Prepositions are used in the following ways:
In adverbial phrases that show time, place, and other relationships: in the morning, on Central Avenue, to the park, by a student
After certain nouns: a cause of, a reason for, a solution to.
After certain adjectives and participles: different from, aware of, disappointed in.
After certain verbs: combine with, rely on, refer to.
In phrasal prepositions (two- or three-word prepositions): according to, together with, instead of.
In certain set expressions: by far, by and large (in general), at large, on occasion, on and off, at last, to boot, from now on, etc..
There are two main types of preposition errors that you may come across: