Prepositional Phrases with AT, BY and FOR

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Learn Common Prepositional Phrases with AT, BY and FOR in English with Examples.

Prepositional phrases act as single parts of speech. They usually act as adjectives or adverbs.

Preposition Phrases with FOR

• for ages

E.g. I haven’t seen you for ages. Where have you been?

• for breakfast/lunch/dinner   

E.g. What did you have for breakfast today?

• for certain/sure 

E.g. I know for certain that I won’t be here next year.

• for a change   

E.g. We always go there. Let’s go to another bar for a change.

• for ever (or forever) 

E.g. Nobody can live for ever, unfortunately.

• for example   

E.g. You could, for example, walk instead of taking the car.

• for fear of           

E.g. I didn’t tell him for fear of upsetting him.

• for fun  

E.g. I don’t take sport seriously, I do it just for fun.

• for good             

E.g. I’m not coming back. This time I’m leaving for good.

• for granted    

E.g. Don’t take your parents for granted, appreciate them.

• for hire 

E.g. There are cars and vans for hire at the airport.

• for instance        

E.g. You should study another language, for instance, Italian.

• for luck

E.g. I always wear this bracelet for luck.

• for life 

E.g. Working for the government is a job for life.

• for love      

E.g. I definitely don’t do it for the money, I do it for love.

• for a moment    

E.g. For a moment, I thought she was being serious.

• for the moment               

E.g. I’m happy living in London for the moment.

• for nothing         

E.g. I can’t believe it’s closed. I came all this way for nothing.

• for once               

E.g. Late again! For once, can you try to arrive on time?

• for the rest of    

E.g. I could live here for the rest of my life.

• for safekeeping                

E.g. At the gym, I put my stuff in a locker for safekeeping.

• for somebody’s sake       

E.g. Maria was upset so I had to be calm for her sake.

• for the sake of  

E.g. They stayed together for the sake of their children.

• for sale 

E.g. There’s a lovely house for sale at the end of this street.

• for short              

E.g. My name is John but my family call me J for short.

• for the time being           

E.g. I’m happy in my current job for the time being.

• for a visit/holiday             

E.g. I’m in the mood for a holiday. Let’s go somewhere.

• for a walk      

E.g. I needed to calm down so I went for a long walk.

• for a while 

E.g. I haven’t spoken to him for a while.

Prepositional Phrases with AT

• at the age of      

E.g. I learned to drive at the age of 21.

• at the beginning of          

E.g. I joined a gym at the beginning of the year.

• at the bottom of     

E.g. There’s a shop at the bottom of this hill.

• at all costs      

E.g. I need to pass this exam at all costs.

• at one’s desk     

E.g. My manager spoke to me at my desk.

• at the door         

E.g. There’s somebody at the door.

• at the end           

E.g. I’m going to Madrid at the end of month.

• at fault 

E.g. Who was at fault for the accident?

• at first   

E.g. At first, I was happy here but now I’m not.

• at first sight   

E.g. We met at university and it was love at first sight.

• at a glance          

E.g. I knew at a glance that something was wrong.

• at a guess          

E.g. At a guess, 50 people were at the party.

• at hand 

E.g. I always have a pen at hand in case I need to take notes.

• at …km per hour     

E.g. He was fined £150 for driving at 200km per hour.

• at last    

E.g. At last, our bus has arrived. Thank goodness!

• at the latest    

E.g. Cinderella had to be home by 12 at the latest.

• at least 

E.g. It’s cold but at least it’s not raining.

• at length

E.g. My dad could talk at length about Irish history.

• at midday/midnight     

E.g. I went home at midnight as I was tired.

• at the moment 

E.g. I’m living in Ireland at the moment.

• at night 

E.g. I can’t study during the day. I prefer to study at night.

• at once 

E.g. Everybody started talking at once.

• at present  

E.g. At present, I’m working for a multinational.

• at random 

E.g. Numbers are selected at random in a lottery.

• at any rate          

E.g. At any rate, I’m confident I’ll find a job soon.

• at the same time    

E.g. I had fun and improved my English at the same time.

• at school          

E.g. Things were very different when I was at school.

• at short notice   

E.g. She cancelled the meeting at short notice.

• at the table         

E.g. The whole family sat at the table for dinner.

• at times  

E.g. At times, I feel like giving up.

• at the top of       

E.g. Barcelona are at the top of the Spanish league.

• at university   

E.g. I studied economics at university.

• at the weekend    

E.g. I love going out with friends at the weekend.

• at work 

E.g. I’m at work right now so I’ll call you back later.

Prepositional Phrases with BY

• by accident  

E.g. I was so sleepy that I put salt in my coffee by accident.

• by all accounts   

E.g. By all accounts, Seville is a beautiful city.

• by appointment      

E.g. The museum is open at weekends by appointment.

• by the arm/hand              

E.g. He took me by the hand as we walked along the beach.

• by auction        

E.g. We’re selling our antique furniture by auction.

• by birth  

E.g. I grew up in England but I’m Irish by birth.

• by bus/train/plane, etc.                

E.g. Are you going to go there by bus or by train?

• by chance  

E.g. I found some money in my jacket pocket by chance.

• by cheque

E.g. I’ve never paid for anything by cheque.

• by day/night      

E.g. The Eiffel Tower looks spectacular by night.

• by design  

E.g. I became a teacher more by accident than by design.

• by the drozen    

E.g. I always buy eggs by the drozen. A drozen means 12.

• by far  

E.g. Before Sunset is by far my favourite film – I just love it.

• by hand   

E.g. My granduncle built this house by hand.

• by heart    

E.g. At school we had to learn poems by heart.

• by invitation    

E.g. Membership to the club is by invitation only.

• by land/sea/air 

E.g. I get sick whenever I travel by sea.

• by law  

E.g. Dog owners must have a licence for the pets by law.

• by luck  

E.g. They played badly but won the match by luck.

• by means of   

E.g. I was able to afford the car by means of a bank loan.

• by mistake 

E.g. I chose the wrong road by mistake. Now we’re lost.

• by nature            

E.g. German people tend to be quite organised by nature.

• by no means   

E.g. It’s by no means certain that the economy will improve.

• by now 

E.g. If you don’t know me by now, you’ll never know me.

• by oneself          

E.g. I don’t mind spending time by myself.

• by phone  

E.g. Get in touch with me by phone if you need any help.

• by post 

E.g. Do you think it’s safe to send cash by post.

• by request     

E.g. Guided tours of the gallery are available by request.

• by rights     

E.g. By rights, it’s my turn to play but you can go ahead.

• by one’s side   

E.g. He was by her side whenever she needed him.

• by surprise  

E.g. The unusual question took John by surprise.

• by the time      

E.g. I’ll have gone to bed by the time you get home.

• by the way    

E.g. By the way, I won’t be able to come to class next week.

• by word of mouth  

E.g. The best form of advertising is by word of mouth.