• 72 cards

Preposition Flash Cards to Flip, Quiz and Print

Read the sentence, find the preposition, then turn the card to see its object.

Preposition Flash Cards to Flip, Quiz and Print

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How to practise

Next step Next: all eight parts of speech

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Place 12

  • A dog sat behind the door. behind: behind the door tells where the dog sat. Its object is the door.
  • A kite flew above the park. above: above the park tells where the kite flew. Its object is the park.
  • A sock is under the couch. under: under the couch tells where the sock is. Its object is the couch.
  • Fish swim below the ice. below: below the ice tells where the fish swim. Its object is the ice.
  • I stood between two trees. between: between two trees tells where I stood. Its object is two trees.
  • The keys are inside the bag. inside: inside the bag tells where the keys are. Its object is the bag.
  • The milk is in the fridge. in: in the fridge tells where the milk is. Its object is the fridge.
  • My book is on the desk. on: on the desk tells where the book is. Its object is the desk.
  • She leaned against the wall. against: against the wall tells where she leaned. Its object is the wall.
  • Sit beside your partner. beside: beside your partner tells where to sit. Its object is your partner.
  • We live near the library. near: near the library tells where we live. Its object is the library.
  • We met at the bus stop. at: at the bus stop tells where we met. Its object is the bus stop.
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Movement 12

  • A bird flew over the house. over: over the house tells which way the bird flew. Its object is the house.
  • A duck swam across the lake. across: across the lake tells which way the duck swam. Its object is the lake.
  • A seal dove into the waves. into: into the waves tells where the seal went. Its object is the waves.
  • A sled raced down the slope. down: down the slope tells which way the sled raced. Its object is the slope.
  • The bus drove past our school. past: past our school tells which way the bus went. Its object is our school.
  • The cat leaped onto the sofa. onto: onto the sofa tells where the cat landed. Its object is the sofa.
  • Jog around the cones. around: around the cones tells which way to jog. Its object is the cones.
  • Leaves fell from the tree. from: from the tree tells where the leaves started. Its object is the tree.
  • The puppy ran toward me. toward: toward me tells which way the puppy ran. Its object is me.
  • We drove through a tunnel. through: through a tunnel tells which way we drove. Its object is a tunnel.
  • We hiked along the river. along: along the river tells which way we hiked. Its object is the river.
  • We walked to the park. to: to the park tells where we walked. Its object is the park.

Time 12

  • Call me within an hour. within: within an hour tells how soon to call. Its object is an hour.
  • Finish the page by Friday. by: by Friday tells when the page is due. Its object is Friday.
  • It rained throughout the day. throughout: throughout the day tells how long it rained. Its object is the day.
  • It snows in winter. in: in winter tells when it snows. Its object is winter.
  • Nobody spoke during the movie. during: during the movie tells when nobody spoke. Its object is the movie.
  • Pack your bag before bed. before: before bed tells when to pack. Its object is bed.
  • School starts at eight. at: at eight tells when school starts. Its object is eight.
  • She has waited since noon. since: since noon tells how long she has waited. Its object is noon.
  • Wait until the bell. until: until the bell tells how long to wait. Its object is the bell.
  • We have art on Fridays. on: on Fridays tells when we have art. Its object is Fridays.
  • We played for an hour. for: for an hour tells how long we played. Its object is an hour.
  • We read after recess. after: after recess tells when we read. Its object is recess.

Two and three words 12

  • According to Mom, it is late. according to: according to Mom tells who says so. Its object is Mom.
  • Ana ran ahead of the group. ahead of: ahead of the group tells where Ana ran. Its object is the group.
  • The cat ran out of the room. out of: out of the room tells where the cat went. Its object is the room.
  • The cup is on top of the box. on top of: on top of the box tells where the cup is. Its object is the box.
  • The game ended due to snow. due to: due to snow tells why the game ended. Its object is snow.
  • Have fruit instead of candy. instead of: instead of candy tells what the fruit replaces. Its object is candy.
  • I sit next to Maya. next to: next to Maya tells where I sit. Its object is Maya.
  • Our house is close to a pond. close to: close to a pond tells where the house is. Its object is a pond.
  • Recess ended because of rain. because of: because of rain tells why recess ended. Its object is rain.
  • Rice came along with the soup. along with: along with the soup tells what the rice came with. Its object is the soup.
  • Stand in front of the class. in front of: in front of the class tells where to stand. Its object is the class.
  • We played in spite of the mud. in spite of: in spite of the mud tells what did not stop us. Its object is the mud.

Preposition or adverb 12

  • A hat blew OFF the table. Preposition or adverb? preposition: off has an object here, the table.
  • The bird flew OFF. Preposition or adverb? adverb: off has no object here. It tells where the bird flew.
  • He hid BEHIND a tree. Preposition or adverb? preposition: behind has an object here, a tree.
  • He looked UP. Preposition or adverb? adverb: up has no object here. It tells where he looked.
  • He ran UP the hill. Preposition or adverb? preposition: up has an object here, the hill.
  • It rained, so we stayed INSIDE. Preposition or adverb? adverb: inside has no object here. It tells where we stayed.
  • One runner fell BEHIND. Preposition or adverb? adverb: behind has no object here. It tells where the runner fell.
  • Please sit DOWN. Preposition or adverb? adverb: down has no object here. It tells which way to move.
  • The puppy ran AROUND. Preposition or adverb? adverb: around has no object here. It tells where the puppy ran.
  • She slid DOWN the pole. Preposition or adverb? preposition: down has an object here, the pole.
  • We played INSIDE the gym. Preposition or adverb? preposition: inside has an object here, the gym.
  • We walked AROUND the lake. Preposition or adverb? preposition: around has an object here, the lake.

How this list was compiled: Own work: sentences written for this deck. Every answer was checked as a preposition in its entry in Wiktionary, in entries such as https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/under and https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/in_front_of , and in the Wikipedia article https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_English_prepositions. It was checked that each sentence holds one preposition and that its object follows it. In the last set a word with no object is called an adverb, as Wiktionary and school grammars call it; some newer grammars, and the Wikipedia list, call the same use a preposition without an object. Checked 2026-09-30. Licence: own work

How it works

Preposition flash cards with one short sentence each: A sock is under the couch. The back names the preposition, under, the object that follows it and what the phrase tells: where, when, which way or how.

Read the full guide

Six sets, from place to phrases

Place, Movement and Time hold one-word prepositions such as behind, across and until. Other links has with, without, of and except. Two and three words has in front of, next to and because of. The last set shows a word in capitals with and without an object and asks: preposition or adverb? Turn one card, then pick a set under Show only, or open More options to type the answers.

Print preposition cards for sorting

Turn a card, then press the print button under it for twelve sentences to a sheet. Print double-sided, flipped on the long edge, and under lands behind its sentence. Cut the cards and sort them by what the phrase tells.

  • A preposition always has an object. Ask what? after it: under what? The couch.

Questions and answers

What is a preposition?

A word that links a noun or pronoun, its object, to the rest of the sentence. In The milk is in the fridge, in links the fridge to the milk and tells where it is.

What are some examples of prepositions?

In, on, at, under, behind, between, to, into, through, across, before, after, during, until, with, without, about, of and except are all on the cards, along with phrases such as in front of and because of.

Can a preposition be more than one word?

Yes. In front of, next to, because of, out of, instead of, according to and in spite of each work as one preposition, with a single object after the whole phrase.

How do you tell a preposition from an adverb?

Look for an object. In We played inside the gym, inside has the object the gym, so it is a preposition. In We stayed inside, nothing follows it, so school grammars call it an adverb.

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