Talk:List of English prepositions

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[edit] "With Respect To"

Now perhaps this is just some quirk that I've somehow acquired, but it seems to me "with respect to" is a multi-part preposition just like "with regards to." I've added it, but if I'm being dialectical feel free to remove it. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.235.90.55 (talk) 13:21, 28 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Justification for this page's existence

Yes, I know that Wikipedia is not a dictionary. However, this is not a dicdef, and there's precedent for pages like this (e.g. -onym).

On the other hand, this is rather on the dictionary side, so I'm not opposed to eventual transwikification. But before you shout "transwiki and delete!", please ensure that there is a place for this on the Wiktionary where it won't languish in obscurity. A list of prepositions is useful tool, and therefore it should exist on the Wiki project in some form. There is such an animal at wikt:Wiktionary:By part of speech, but it's woefully inadequate, containing exactly two prepositions!

See wikt:Category:English_prepositions--BrettR 13:26, 9 November 2006 (UTC)

At the very least, if this article is eventually transwikied (which I think is for the best), do not delete this article. Rather, create a soft redirect. While you're at it, the -onym article and its ilk should be moved, too. Thanks, • Benc • 05:30, 15 Sep 2004 (UTC)

Keep!! Keep keep keep!!! This page is important because English has a closed class of prepositions, and it is encyclopedic to document them. This is not a dictionary definition, this is a list of the prepositions in English. eigenlambda 15:29, 5 May 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Possible reorganization

Instead of organizing alphabetically by number of words, it might be more useful to organize this list by function. E.g., attributive, locative, temporal, etc. Only problem is that some prepositions overlap. • Benc • 05:30, 15 Sep 2004 (UTC)

[edit] List of English adpositions?

Isn't it good to rename this article to "List of English adpositions"? At least notwithstanding can be used as a postposition.

"The minister insisted the creek still suffered serious silt problems, heavy rain notwithstanding." - taken from The Australian - All in for fudged dredge grudge match.

- TAKASUGI Shinji 03:18, 10 Mar 2005 (UTC)

I'd leave it under its present title, since prepositions are far more common in English. On a somewhat different subject, why does the current version say that "ago" is usually considered an adverb, but doesn't say anything about "notwithstanding"? For most purposes, the distinction between prepositions and adverbs is spurious anyway; one could conceivably refer to all prepositions and postpositons as adverbs (namely a special class of adverb which happens to require an argument, whereas most adverbs don't). --MarkSweep 03:46, 10 Mar 2005 (UTC)
It seems to me ago, away, and similar words are adverbs rather than postpositions.
intensifier adverb reference point
His house was built very quickly for a traditional-style house.
His house was built much faster than hers.
His house was built far away from here.
His house was built long ago (before now).
They have very similar structures. Ago cannot have an explicit reference point because it contains before now. You can use either ago or before now, but not both. In addition, ago must have an intensifier because pastness is expressed by verb tense, and using only ago is grammatically redundant.
I have found the following messages (only Google caches are available):
Anyway, I agree with you that we should keep the current article title because English has few postpositions. Probably notwithstanding is the only postposition in English, but it is often used prepositionally. The postpositional notwithstanding is not an adverb, because its preceding phrase means a reason, not a degree of notwithstanding-ness. - TAKASUGI Shinji 02:11, 15 Mar 2005 (UTC)
I looked these issues up in Huddleston and Pullum's Cambridge Grammar of the English language. They also use the term "preposition" universally to refer to all kinds of adpositions, saying in essence that the term "preposition" can be used to refer to adpositions generically. Second, they also count "ago" and similar items as postpositions because they take obligatory arguments: one cannot say "His house was built ago" (as opposed to "His house was built before now"); rather "ago" must take an argument as in "His house was built five years ago". I've also added some further postpositions to the article; coming to think of it, there may well be others. --MarkSweep 05:06, 15 Mar 2005 (UTC)

[edit] Why numbered lists?

Before I change it — is there a reason for using numbered lists here? It seems to be that bullets would be more natural. Ruakh 14:27, 2 June 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Dispute of headings

What's with the "preposition-like modifiers of quantified noun phrases"? Why not put "apart from" under 2-word prepositions and but, except, plus, and save under single-word prepositions? Most dictionaries would list these words as prepositions, not "preposition-like modifiers". And note that minus is listed as a preposition here.--Mbenoit 12:09, 5 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Worth

When is the word "worth" used as a preposition? Thanks! Soliloquial (talk) 04:24, 18 January 2008 (UTC)

Wikipedia ain't worth crap. Is that a preposition? lol--71.97.132.221 (talk) 04:17, 17 May 2008 (UTC)

It is a preposition. From worth, Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1), Random House, Retrieved May 18, 2008:

–preposition

  1. good or important enough to justify (what is specified): advice worth taking; a place worth visiting.
  2. having a value of, or equal in value to, as in money: This vase is worth 12 dollars.
  3. having property to the value or amount of: They are worth millions.
- TAKASUGI Shinji (talk) 10:02, 18 May 2008 (UTC)