1. Look at this sentence: ‘She is sad about leaving.’ The word ‘about‘ is a preposition here, and the object of this preposition is ‘leaving‘. ‘Leaving‘ here is a kind of noun called a gerund.
Look at this sentence: ‘Don’t talk about my friends!‘ The object of the preposition is the noun phrase, ‘my friends‘.
Often, the object of a preposition is a gerund or a noun phrase.
2. Look at this extract from The Cook (Chapter 6). Find sentences with prepositions (and objects of prepositions):
It was now 2.30pm. Lunch finished an hour ago and she still felt happy about watching all the children eat her food. She took off her apron: now it was time to talk to the headmistress. She said goodbye to the dishwashers and left the kitchen. Soon, she was in the headmistress’s office outside her door. She knocked and went in.
3. Choose a suitable preposition to complete these sentences. What are the objects of the prepositions?
a. Candy slept ______ a park last night.
b. The boys were arguing ______ football.
c. The headmistress gave some money ______ Candy.
d. Candy sat ______ an all-night cafe.
e. Everyone stared _____ the knife ______ Candy’s hand.
f. Candy was unhappy ______ where she slept.
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