WREN & MARTIN's English grammar-Quick Reference — Prepositions of Place and the Relations They Express:

 

Quick Reference — Prepositions of Place and the Relations They Express:

Preposition	Relation Expressed	Example
in	Enclosed within a space or container	in the box / in the room / in the city
at	At a specific point or location	at the door / at the station / at the corner
on	Resting on a surface	on the table / on the wall / on the floor
above	At a higher level; not necessarily touching	above the clouds / above the mantelpiece
over	Directly above; covering; across	over the bridge / a roof over our heads
under	Directly below; covered or sheltered by	under the bed / under the tree
below	Lower than; at a lesser level	below sea level / below the window
beside	Next to; at the side of	beside the river / beside me
between	In the middle of two specific things	between the two buildings
among	In the midst of three or more things	among the crowd / among the trees
behind	At the back of; further back than	behind the door / behind the curtain
in front of	Directly before; facing	in front of the mirror / in front of the class
near	Close to; not far from	near the school / near the station
opposite	Facing; on the other side of	opposite the bank / opposite me
beyond	Further than; on the other side of	beyond the mountains / beyond the gate
inside	Within the interior of	inside the building / inside the envelope
outside	Beyond the boundaries of	outside the room / outside the city
against	In contact with; leaning on	against the wall / against the fence
along	Moving beside or following a line	along the corridor / along the river
across	From one side to the other of	across the road / across the field
through	Inside and out the other side of	through the tunnel / through the forest
around	On all sides of; encircling	around the table / around the building
beneath	Below; under; lower than	beneath the surface / beneath the stairs
by	Close to; next to	by the window / by the sea
off	Away from a surface; detached from	off the shelf / off the coast