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539 Glossary for any unfamiliar terms

From utterance to discourse | 187

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Prepositions 94m

Prepositional meaning is often obvious in context and prepositions may not be

necessary:

A: Where does she live?

B: Don’t know. The south I think.

(understood: In the south …)

A: Where is the post office actually?

B: Top of Churchill Street, on your right.

(understood: At the top …)

Absence of prepositions is particularly common in informal styles, in expressions

which refer to place and especially to time, including expressions of duration and

frequency:

I’ve got to make a number of trips this May, 

Dubai, Hong Kong , Berlin just for

starters.

(understood: … to Dubai, to Hong Kong, to Berlin …)

She’s been like that 

two or three days a week.

(understood: She’s been like that for two or three days a week.)

Why don’t you both pop round 

Saturday evening?

(understood: Why don’t you both pop round on Saturday evening?)

In informal speech prepositions often do not occur in expressions of measurement

and in precise expressions of time:

He’s 

the same level as you.

(understood: He is at the same level as you.)

A: What time are we meeting?

B: Ten o’clock. Is that okay?

(understood: At what time …, At ten o’clock …)

Stranded prepositions (

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) may sometimes be unnecessary with expressions

of place and time:

They have 

no place to go.

(understood: They have no place to go to.)

You’ve got less than an hour 

to finish the job.

(or, more formal: … less than an hour in which to finish the job.)