Important Prepositions You Should Know

Prepositions are words which begin prepositional phrases. A prepositional phrase is a group of words containing a preposition, a noun or pronoun object of the preposition, and any modifiers of the object. -Townson

I'm bringing you some very important prepositions which everyone should know especially if one is not a native speaker of English language.

Commonly Used Prepositions
Abstain from	Account for
Accuse of	Accustomed to
Adapted to	Addicted to
Approve of	Associated with
Aware of	Benefit from
Blame for	Capable of
Compatible with	Composed of
Consist of	Content with
Contrary to	Contribute to
Convert to	Cope with
Count on	Dedicate to
Dependent on	Deprived of
Derive from	Devoid of
Devote to	Differ from
Distinct from	Distinguish from
Emerge from	Equal to
Exempt from	Exposed to
Famous for	Fed up with
Focus on	Get rid of
Hinder from	Indifferent to
Infer from	Insist on
Involve in	Irrespective of
Keen on	Lead to
Notorious for	Obliged to
Obsessed with	Oppose to
Peer at	Persist in
Prevent from	Prone to
Recover from	Refrain from
Respond to	Responsible for
Short of	Spend on
Stem from	Succeed in
Suffer from	Superior to
Susceptible to	Tend to
Vote for	Worry about
Yield to	fond of

Don't miss: List of Commonly Used Idioms with Translation (Part-I)

Let's now move one step further and learn about using prepositions according to certain rules.

For time
Prepositions	Usage	Examples
ago	certain time in past	5 days ago, 56 minutes ago
at	night weekend specific point of time	- - at 10:04 am
before	earlier than specific time	before 2010
by	up to a specific time	by 10 o'clock
for	time period	The cabinet is elected for 5 years.
in	months seasons time of day after a period of time year	in March in Spring in the morning in 3 hours in 2016
on	days of the week	on Friday
past	for telling time	19 past ten
since	from a specific time	since 1992

Prepositions for Places/Positions

Positions of red ball with respect to the box/black ball

Don't miss: Tips to Master Reading Comprehension & Précis Writing

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Tips to Master Reading Comprehension & Précis Writing

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Reading Comprehension

Reading Comprehension is one of the most important questions (in Pakistani Educational System) if one is taking a linguistics exam in which one has to read a passage and answer the questions asked relevant to that passage. Comprehension means to extract the hidden information. We have been doing this all our lives; read a lesson and answer the question asked at the end of the lesson.
I'll cover some important step one must follow to master reading comprehension and, of course, excel in the examination.

Step 1:-

Skim through the passage multiple times in order to get a gist of it and get to know its main idea. This step is often called earmarking. Earmarking is done to find the thesis sentence of the paragraph. Skimming makes you aware of which information is where in the paragraph. Make sure you underline important phrases / words.

Step 2:-

After you've read the piece of text and marked some important information, you are now able to answer the questions. Read the questions carefully and recall the main idea which you had got from Step 1 The question asked can be of following four types:

1. Specific Point Questions
2. Main Idea
3. Inference or  Indirect Questions
4. Words' Meanings

Specific point questions are those which you can answer by just copying some part of the passage. The main idea of the passage can also be asked which is not a big deal if you've done Step 1 with a lot of care. Inference questions are the most important ones. Inference questions are those which you have to answer by understanding the indirect meaning of the text (which comprehension really is all about) and answer in your own words.

Step 3:-

Now, you know the passage well and have read the questions, you can now search for the answers from the passage. This step is called scanning. In scanning, the information gathered in Step 1 enables you to answer the questions.

I've discussed Step 1 in other 2 steps also, this makes it clear how important is to read and understand the paragraph before moving on.

Quick Tip:
      After enough practice, you can perform Step 2 in the beginning and then perform Step 1 and Step 3 together. This would save a lot of time.

Don't miss: List of Top Educational Websites

Précis Writing

Précis writing, like comprehension, is very important when it comes to showing one's writing skills. Précis means to write the main idea of something in one's own words by concizing the original text. Précis writing has no steps to follow, instead it has some tips one should always remember while writing a précis:

• Read the passage carefully and count the number of words or make a wild guess
• The précis should not be more than one-third of the original text
• Facts, figures, and dates are supporting the main text, so they can be omitted
• Repeating ideas must be excluded
• Always write the writer's point of view 
• Never try to merge your own ideas into the original theme
• Try to use one-word substitutions as much as possible
• Adverbs should be used instead of long explanations

Quick Tip:
      Beginners can divide the original text into as many parts as they like and then precise each part one by one. Summing these parts` précis will get the job done!

Don't miss: How To: Get Fluency In English

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List of Commonly Used Idioms with Translation (Part-II)

An idiom is a phrase or a fixed expression that has a figurative, or sometimes literal, meaning. An idiom's figurative meaning is different from the literal meaning. -Wikipedia

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If you have missed the first part of this post, you should check the first part out before going any further.

Don't miss: Some Commonly Used Idioms With Translation (Part-I)

Here comes the second part:

Commonly Used Idioms
Idioms	Sentences
The lion's share (ذیادہ حصہ)	You will get the lion's share in the profit.
To add insult to injury (زخم پہ نمک چھڑکنا)	My remarks added insult to injury and he left the party.
To and fro (اِدھر اُدھر)	The lion was moving to and fro in the jungle.
To be at a loss (مشکل میں پھنسا)	I am at a loss and do not know what to decide.
To be at large (آزاد)	The robber is still at large.
To be taken back (منسوخ کرنا)	I was taken back to know her dishonesty.
To bear the brunt of (نقصان اُٹھانا)	Pakistan could not bear the burnt of Indian Army.
To beat about the bush (اِدھراُدھرکی باتیں کرنا)	All the students beat about the bush to waste time in the classroom.
To blow one's trumpet (اپنی بڑائ خودکرنا)	I do not like him because he always blows his own trumpet.
To break the ice (بات شروع کرنا)	There was pin-drop silence in the room then Haider broke the ice.
To break the news (ضروی اطلاع دینا)	An unknown man broke the news of Watson's murder.
To bring home to (قائل کرنا)	I brought him home to the importance of education.
To burn the midnight oil (رات کو کام کیلئے جاگنا)	He burnt the midnight oil near the examination and go through.
To burry the hatchet (صلح کرنا)	Let us burry the hatchet and be partners again.
To call a spade a spade (صاف صاف کہنا/کانےکوکاناکہنا)	If you call a spade a spade, you will pick up quarrels with many.
To call in questions (شک کرنا)	Their demands cannot be called in questions.
To call to mind (یادکرنا)	He could not call to his mind who had borrowed his book.
To carry the day (میدان مارنا)	Babar carried the day at Panipat.
To carry weight (وزن/اہمیت رکھنا)	His arguments carry weight.
To catch one red-handed (رنگے ہاتھوں پکڑنا)	The police caught the thief red-handed.
To come of age (بالغ ہونا)	He will take care of his property after coming of age.
To cry for the moon (کھیلنے کو چاند مانگنا)	Do not cry for the moon, you can't get her.
To cut a sorry figure (ناکام رہنا)	She cut a sorry figure in her maiden speech.
To cut the quick (جزباتی متاثر کرنا)	Your remarks cut him to the quick.
To die in harness (نوکری کے دوران مرنا)	Our Prime Minister Mr. Liaqat Ali Khan died in harness.
To eat humble pie (معزرت کرنا)	I had to eat humble pie for your misconduct.
To eat one's words (الفاظ واپس لینا)	You should eat your words that you have just spoken.
To egg on (حوصلہ افزائی کرنا)	His friends egged him on and he continued his struggle.
To end in smoke (بےکار ہونا)	All my plans ended in smoke.
To fall back upon (انحصار کرنا)	After her husband's death, she had no one to fall back upon.
To fall flat (کارآمدنہ ہونا)	My advice fell flat upon him.
To find fault with (تنقید کرنا)	Tayyab always finds fault with others.
To follow suit (نقل کرنا)	The master ran after the thief and his servants followed suit.
To get into hot water (مصیبت میں پڑنا)	By picking a quarrel with the man, you will get into hot water.
To get on one's nerves (تنگ کرنا)	I do not like her at all because she is always getting on my nerves.
To get over (قابوپانا)	At last he got over his difficulty.
To get rid of (جان چھڑانا)	You should get rid of bad habits.
To get wind of (افواہ سننا)	He got wind of the attack and ran away in time.
To go to the wall (بےکار ہوجانا)	By moving in a bad company, he went to the wall.
To hit the mark (مقصدحاصل کرنا)	Ali hit the mark and got his aim.
To hold water (وزن رکھنا)	Your argument does not hold water.
To keep up appearance (سب ٹھیک ہونےکادکھاوا کرنا)	They are very poor but they keep up with appearance.
To leave in the lurch (مصیبت میں ساتھ چھوڑنا)	Good friends will never leave you in the lurch.
To look after (خیال رکھنا)	Children must look after their parents when they get old.
To lose heart (دل برداشتہ ہونا)	Do not lose heart, go on working.
To make amend for (تلافی)	You should make amend for this loss.
To make both ends meet (گزارہ کرنا)	Now-a-days, poor people hardly make both ends meet.
To make light of (اہم نہ سمجھنا)	He made light of my counsel and was ruined.
To nip in the bud (برائ روکنا)	We should nip the evil in the bud.
To play a second fiddle (معاونت کرنا)	A servant should play a second fiddle of his master.
To pocket insult (بےعزتی برداشت کرنا)	He could not pocket insult and slapped him.
To read between the lines (توجہ سے پڑھنا)	I read between the lines and did not sign the agreement.
To rise to the occasion (موقع)	He rose to the occasion and become successful.
To see eye to eye with (متفق ہونا)	I do not see eye to eye with you in this matter.
To show the white feather (بزدلی دکھانا)	He showed the white feather when the enemy came.
To steal a march upon (پیچھے چھوڑنا)	He kept on working and stole a march upon others.
To swallow the bait (کوئ بات مان لینا)	He is very simple and can easily swallow the bait.
To take heart (حوصلہ حاصل کرنا)	He took heart and passed the test.
To take the chair (سربراہی کرنا)	THe principal took the chair in the meeting.
To take to heart (دل پر لینا)	He took his father's death to heart.
To take to task (بُرابھلاکہنا)	He was taken to task for making a mischief.
To talk shop (کاروبارکی باتیں کرنا)	He always talks shop and disliked by others.
To the letter (الفاظ کے مطابق)	The village boys obey the orders of their teachers to the letter.
To turn a deaf ear to (دھیان نہ دینا)	He always turns a deaf ear to his parents' advice.
To turn over a new leaf (سُدھرجانا)	The sinner turned over a new leaf after his meeting with the preacher.
To turn the corner (بیمارکاٹھیک ہونا)	God be thanked, the patient has turned the corner.
To win laurels (داد وصول کرنا)	The soldier fought bravely and won laurels.
Tooth and nail (پوری قوت کےساتھ)	We shall fight tooth and nail to defend our country.
Through thick and thin (ہر طرح کے حالات میں)	I shall help you through thick and thin.
Throw to the dogs (پھینک دینا)	He has thrown many books to the dogs.
Under a cloud (مشکل میں)	All his friends left him when he was under a cloud.
Walk with God (خداکی رضاسے جینا)	Those who walk with God live perfect lives.
When pigs fly (کوئی ناممکن بات)	He will start working hard when pigs fly.
With flying colours (شان و شوکت کے ساتھ)	The conquerer entered the city with flying colours.
Yeoman service (موثر)	Quaid-e-Azam gave Yeoman service to the nation.

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List of Commonly Used Idioms with Translation (Part-I)

An idiom is a phrase or a fixed expression that has a figurative, or sometimes literal, meaning. An idiom's figurative meaning is different from the literal meaning. -Wikipedia

Image Source: StockSnap

Idioms play a vital role in our daily life conversations to make our words more eloquent. Idioms are even more important when it comes to writing books, articles etc. Here are some popular idioms that are commonly used in conversations:

Commonly Used Idioms
Idioms	Sentences
A beggar description (ناقابلِ یقین)	Her beauty is beggar description.
A bird's eye view (سرسری نظر)	You had a bird's eye view of this article and moved on.
A bolt from the blue (ناگہانی آفت)	His father's untimely death is a bolt from the blue for him.
Abide by (پابندی کرنا)	You should abide by your promise.
Above board (ظاہر)	His honesty is above board.
A broken reed (ناقابلِ اعتبار)	Do not tell him your secrets because he is a broken reed.
A casting vote (فیصلہ کن)	My vote proved a casting vote.
A dead letter (منسوخ شدھ قانون)	CENTO Pact is a dead letter now.
At daggers drawn (پکےدشمن)	Although they are brothers yet, they are at daggers drawn.
A fair weather friend (مطلب پرست)	His fair weather friend left him in trouble.
A far cry (دورکاشور)	My request was a far cry, no one listened to me.
A fly in the ointment (جلن)	My enemy's presence in the function was a fly in the ointment for me.
A cock and bull story (جھوٹی کہانی)	He amused us with cock and bull stories.
At one's beck and call (اشارے پرناچنا)	My servant is at my beck and call.
A bone of contention (جھگڑے کا سبب)	This property is a bone of contention between the two brothers.
A hard nut to crack (مشکل کام)	Do not take it easy, it is a hard nut to crack.
A jack of all trades (ہرفن مولا)	He is a jack of all trades but master of none.
A maiden speech (پہلی تقریر)	He was very confident in his maiden speech.
A wild goose chase (بے سود کام)	To appear in the examination without preparation is a wild goose chase.
All in all (حاکم کل)	He is all in all in his office.
All moonshine (دکھاوا)	They talk much about their wealth, but it is all moonshine.
Against a rainy day (برے دن کے لیےَ)	You should save something against a rainy day.
Against the grain (ناگوار)	It is against my grain to cheat a friend.
An axe to grind (اپنا مفاد دیکھنا)	Selfish people always have an axe to grind.
A gala day (خوشی کا دن)	14th August is a gala day in the history of Pakistan.
A hot potato (مشکل کام)	Energy crisis issue is a hot potato to deal with in Pakistan.
A man of letters (عالم)	Allama Iqbal was a man of letters.
A man of parts (مختلف علوم کا ماہر)	Aristotle was a man of parts.
A penny for your thoughts (خاموشی کی وجہ پوچھنا)	'A penny for your thoughts', 'Oh! I was just thinking about my job interview.'
Apple of discord (فسادکی جڑ)	This property is an apple of discord between the two families.
Apple of one's eye (آنکھ کا تارا)	She is the apple of her parent's eye.
At the eleventh hour (آخری وقت پر)	The doctor was called in at the eleventh hour.
At arm's length (دور رکھنا)	He is a bad boy, keep him at arm's length.
At the drop of a hat (فوری طور پر)	Ali is always ready to play football at the drop of a hat.
Back to the drawing board (دوبارہ آغاز کرنا)	It didn't work; back to the drawing board; I flunked Chemistry this year.
Ball is in someone's court (حقِ فیصلہ دینا)	I've told your what I want, ball is in your court now.
Bark up the wrong tree (غلط نظریہ رکھنا)	Coach has nothing to do with the attitude of players, people are barking up the wrong tree.
Beat around the bush (ٹال مٹول کرنا)	Stop beating around the bush and answer me!
Beside the mark (اِدھر اُدھر)	Nobody listened to him because his talk was beside the mark.
Bread and butter (دال روٹی)	I'm satisfied with my bread and butter.
Blue blood (شاہی)	He will not do such a bad deed because blue blood runs in his veins.
By virtue of (کے ذریعے)	He was successful in the election by virtue of his good qualities.
By fits and starts (غلط طریقے سے)	This boy cannot get good marks in the examination because he works by fits and starts.
Bad blood (مخاصمت)	A bad man creates bad blood among friends.
Bed of roses (آسان)	Life is not a bed of roses.
Below the mark (ناقص)	He failed in the examination because his writing work was below the mark.
Black sheep (کالی بھیڑ)	He is the black sheep of his class.
Bosom friend (دلی دوست)	Sheharyar is my bosom friend.
Break a leg (کامیابی کی دعا)	Study well for the exam son, break a leg!
Burning question (اہم مسلہ)	Kashmir is burning question between Pakistan and India.
By and by (آہستہ آہستہ)	You will know everything by and by.
By hook or by crook (کسی نہ کسی طرح)	He passed the examination by hook or by crook.
By leaps and bounds (دن دگنی رات چُگنی)	Korea is making progress by leaps and bounds.
Capital punishment (سنگین سزا)	The killer got the capital punishment from the Court.
Cheek by jowl (بہت قریب)	I shall go with you cheek by jowl.
Cold reception (محبت کے بغیر)	He was given a cold reception at his arrival.
Cost an arm and a leg (بہت مہنگا ہونا)	IPL tickets cost us an arm and a leg.
Crocodile tears (مگرمچھ کے آنسوُ)	She killed her husband and now she is shedding crocodile tears.
Eye wash (دکھاوا)	His offer to help me is just an eye wash.
Face the music (نتیجہ بھگتنا)	You will face the music for your mistake in the meeting.
Far and wide (دور دور)	People from far and wide came to see the fair.
Few and far between (کبھی کبھی)	They visit my house few and far between.
For good (ہمیشہ کے لیےَ)	He has left the city for good.
For the sake of (کے لیےَ)	Please help me for the sake of God.
For want of (کمی)	She could not complete her education for want of money.
French leave (سکول سے بھاگنا)	Many students were on French leave during the last month.
From hand to mouth(مشکل گزربسرکرنا)	Ahmad lives from hand to mouth for want of money.
From scratch (شروع سے)	Quaid-e-Azam built Pakistan from scratch.
Heart and soul (دل لگا کر)	He is working with heart and soul to learn programming.
Hobson's choice (پیشکش یاکچھ نہیں)	It is the Hobson's choice because it is the only job that I can get.
High spirits (خوش)	We were in high spirits when we went to Khanpur.
Hit the books (پڑھائی کرنا)	You should leave now and hit the books.
Hue and cry (شوروغل)	Students raised hue and cry in the classroom.
In a fix (بُری حالت میں)	He is in a fix and needs your help.
In black and white (تحریر)	He gave me orders in black and white.
In cold blood (بے رحمی سے)	The robber killed the rich man in cold blood.
In full swing (بڑےزوروں پر)	The fair was in full swing in the evening.
In the nick of time (بالکل قریب)	We reached the station in the nick of time and caught the train.
In the long run (آخرکار)	Do not lose heart, you will win in the long run.
Ins and outs (اصل حقائق)	I know the ins and outs of my problems.
Inspite of (باوجود)	Inspite of hard work, he failed.
Kick the bucket (انتقال کرنا)	Bolivar kicked the bucket in 1830 at the age of 47.
Kith and kin (رشتےدار)	One should be kind to one's kith and kin.
More or less (تقریبا٘)	More or less 1000 people have read this post.
Neck and neck (برابر برابر)	Ali and Shahzaib were neck and neck in the Linguistic contest.
Neck or nothing (تخت یا تختہ)	Neck or nothing we shall do it.
Null and void (بےکار)	This law has been declared null and void by the United Nations.
On the spur of the moment (اُسی وقت)	I could not answer his question on the spur of the moment.
On the eve of (کےموقع پر)	She was very happy on the eve of her marriage.
Off and on (اکثر)	He visits my blog off and on.
Once for all (ہمیشہ کے لیےَ ایک بار)	I have told you once for all not to keep the company of bad boys.
Once in a blue moon (کبھی کبھار)	Some people visit my blog once in a blue moon.
Part and parcel (ضروری حصہ)	Computer is a part and parcel of every home.
Piece of cake (بےحدآسان)	Getting through that test was a piece of cake.
Pros and cons (نفع نقصان)	One must consider the pros and cons before taking any step.
Red carpet (پُرجوش استقبال)	We gave the leader a red carpet welcome.
Spick and span (بناٹھنا)	They always remain spick and span at parties.
Scratch someone's back (مددکرنا)	He promised to scratch my back.

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Don't miss: How to: Get Fluency in English

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How to: Get Fluency in English

We know that English is the most important language and no one can deny this fact. The English language is progressing day by day and has become an international language and is the language of science and technology. In this state of life, English is getting a more and more importance in our daily life. So friends it is important now to learn English for everyone, and I want you to speak English!
Now I will teach you three basic steps to learn English at home, just practice and start talking in English. Just follow these step and talk, talk and talk in English. Following are the three steps:

Reading

Reading is the first step in learning English. Reading is really helpful in improving your vocabulary and helps you in identifying different words. Do not just read but also keep those words in your mind. You're are not bound to any course book or any other specific books, you can read any English book or any other book that is written in English you can choose a book of your own choice. You can read English novels, magazines, newspapers etc. Keep on reading books of different kinds it will not even improve your English but also improve your knowledge.

Don't miss: Useful Tips for Studying Efficiently

Speaking

Speaking is the most important step in learning English. People mostly feel shy in speaking English as they have a psychological problem that they afraid of talking in English as they think that they do not know English. Friends do not feel shy in talking English, this will develop your confidence, and will help you in communication with people. You would talk fluently and you would be able to attend any type of meeting. Try to speak English with everyone either he/she is younger or older than you. Just speak now and then whenever you got a chance.
A poll was conduction on Google + asking people to mention the reason for their poor English. The poll result clearly shows how important it is to practice English by speaking as much as possible.

Listening

Listening is the final step of learning English. So listen to songs, watch movies and news and dramas. This will not just help you in understanding people of different parts of the world but also improve your accent. The accent is the major part of the way you talk and people will really like you and will appreciate you.

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