What’s the difference between “by” and “until”?
Pay your bills by the end of the month.
I’m usually asleep by 12.
I have to hand in my essay by Friday.
The letter should get there by next week.
She waited until the intermission before she left.
They studied until 2 in the morning.
The trains in London run until midnight.
What’s the meaning of “until” with a negative verb?
The store doesn’t open until 10.
Don’t wait until next week to pay your bills!
What’s the meaning of “during”?
During the game, I was so bored!
I stepped out for a minute during the break.
What are you going to do during your summer vacation?
What’s the meaning of “since”?
What verb tense is used with “since”?
I’ve worked for Chase since last year.
Since childhood I’ve been interested in classical music.
I’ve been playing the piano since 1990.
*Describing the State or Manner of Something: Adjective or Adverb Phrase
at peace, at attention, at risk, at rest, at ease,
*Verbs with "at": Movement, Special Attention, or Facial Expression
stare at, glare at, laugh at, look at, yell at, claw at
shoot at, throw at, aim at, swing at, growl at, snap at
*Emotional Reactions & Responses: Verbs & Adjectives
verbs:
cheer at, clap at, rejoice at, stand up at, cry at, celebrate at
adjectives:
astounded at, shocked at, nervous at, indignant at, upset at
surprised at, speechless at, astonished at, thrilled at, amazed at, horrified at
*Describing Skills, Talents & Abilities: Nouns & Adjectives
adjectives:
good at, great at, super at, bad at, terrible at, skilled at, talented at
nouns:
a whiz at, an expert at, a pro at, a star at, an amateur at, an old hand at
*Time
at 3:30, at midnight, at sunrise, at the beginning, at first, at halftime, at dawn, at dusk, at bedtime, at the same time, at different times, at one time, at once, at the end, at noon
*Numbers: age, level, cost, speed, rate, degree, level
at his age, at the speed limit, at 1,000 feet, at a 25% discount, at 8mph
at age 21, at 33 degrees, at level one, at top speed, at full price
*Proximity - "Beside/Near"
by the window, by the door, by the teacher, by the lake, by the post office, by the microphone, by the taxi stand
*The Way Something Is Done: Certain/Special Means
by check, by fax, by bus, by plane, by taxi
by writing, by cutting, by swimming, by listening, by working hard
*Expressing the "Agent" in a Passive Voice Sentence
Buildings are usually designed by architects.
The play was written by Shakespeare.
The books have been stolen by one of the students.
*Time: Not Later Than, Before a Certain Time
by Wednesday, by the earliest possible date, by the deadline, by next Monday, by the end of the week
*Move Past, Beyond, or Up To: Verbs
walk by, sail by, march by, file by, go by, pass by
fall by, roll by, fly by, drive by, come by, stroll by
*Origin, Source, & Occupation
by nature, by birth, by disposition, by profession, by reputation, by accident
*Alone or Without Help
by + oneself: by myself, by herself, by ourselves, by themselves, by himself
*Belonging, Possession, Connection
the name of the pages of the memories of the hands of the wheels of
the banks of the scenes of the cycles of the pieces of the title of
*Describing Senses and Sizes: Smell, Taste, Texture, Shape, Size, Sound
the smell of the size of the width of the sound of
the taste of the feel of the aroma of the whistle of
the texture of the sight of the flavor of the cry of
*Describing Position with Direction & Place Words
the front of the house the back of the bus
the end of the block the side of the building
the middle of the road the back of the drawer
*Material: Be made of
made of steel made of silk made of cotton made of plastic
*Containers & Sets
containers: a box of, a carton of, a book of, a packet of, a can of, a tin of, a tube of
sets: a series of, a book of, a collection of, a set of, a sequence of
*Measuring Parts of a Whole: Quantities, Sums, Fractions, Groups
a slice of bread, all of us, a piece of pie, a teaspoon of sugar, a pinch of salt, half of them
*Position, Title, Occupation, or Role
head of president of leader of secretary of
manager of town of master of doctor of
*Origin & Membership
people of, animals of, Indians of, countries of, graduates of, citizens of, members of
*Literary, Artistic & Musical Works
works of Shakespeare films of that director the symphonies of Beethoven
*Recorded Works & Documents
an account of a record of a register of a painting of a photograph of
*Expressing Separation: Verbs, Nouns, Adjectives
verbs: get rid of be free of rob of relieve of free of
nouns: a loss of a release of a freedom of a removal of
adjectives: deprived of relieved of cured of free of independent of
*Expressing Reactions & Actions: "Full of Emotion"
words of anger tears of rage a gasp of shock shouts of delight
a smile of chagrin a sigh of relief a look of horror a tear of joy
*Connecting Causes & Results
fear of flying stress of worry anxiety of taking a test love of swimming
*Possessing or Containing
a land of beauty a man of honor the ring of truth a writer of genius
people of power a vow of silence a place of peace a creature of habit
*Filled with or used for a Special Purpose
a time of rest a day of remembrance a moment of silence
an hour of reading a place of relaxation a period of mourning
*Dates & Times
the 15th of April the first day of the month ten minutes of three
the start of June the end of the year the 4th of July
*Emotions & Their Objects
fond of afraid of capable of tired of suspicious of
envious of bored of aware of ashamed of proud of
*Verbs with "of"
approve of smell of despair of repent of beware of
dream of disapprove of think of reek of stink of
*Describing People's Actions: Adjectives
nice of silly of selfish of kind of cruel of rude of
*Help, Benefit, Positive Usage: Direction Something Is Sent Or Given, Reason Something Is Used
I make cookies for my kids.
Bobby had to write a story for school.
The phone call is for you.
*Special Purpose
The desk is for studying.
This path is for cycling.
*Substitution: Thing for Thing & Person for Person
things: I am using this box for a chair.
I sometimes use this coffee table for a desk.
people: Sara does homework for me.
The lawyer's assistant responds to email for him.
*Showing Favor, Support, Defense, Preservation: Verbs & Nouns
verbs: vote for, fight for, run for, work for, cheer for, root for, pray for, campaign for
nouns: respect for, love for, speech for, work for, exchange for, effort for
*Direction of Movement Towards a Destination: Verbs
sail for leave for depart for head for run for sail for
*Intangible Purpose or Goal
for relaxation for amusement for fun for inspiration
for kicks for entertainment for the sake of it for peace of mind
*Desire & Longing: Verbs & Adjectives
verbs: beg for, starve for, plead for, cry for, long for, yearn for, wish for, hope for
adjectives: eager for, greedy for, anxious for, ambitious for, hungry for, thirsty for
*Explaining the Meaning
Green is for go.
Red is for stop.
SF stands for "science fiction."
The Italian word for food is "cibo."
*Payment, Price & Amount
The apples are two for a dollar.
You can watch a movie for almost nothing through the internet.
The elderly travel for lower fares.
I got this new hat for a great price.
*Causes & Effects
causes: congratulate for, apologize for, scold for, punish for, reward for, fail for
results: famous for, good for, necessary for, important for, bad for, helpful for
*Time: Duration & Appointed Time
duration: for 3 hours, for 10 miles, for 2 minutes, for a while, for a bit, for months, for the summer, for the night, for a week, for now, for ages, for a second, for a moment
appointed time: for Thanksgiving, for tomorrow, for tonight, for the year, for the winter
*Touching or Connected to
the tires on the bike the name on the invitation the dog on the rug
sit on the sofa sign on the dotted line wear a ring on your finger
*Movement Toward, Touching or Reaching
throw a pillow on the bed pour milk on the cereal shine light on his face
*Movement Against or Opposing
pound on the roof march on the White House make a raid on the cookie jar
*Position: Next to or At the Edge of
the house on the beach seats on the baseline a line on both sides of the street
*Position: Direction or Nearness
on my left on the right on the far side on the north side
*Using or Through the Use of
watch the news on TV live on fast food travel on a budget
buy a new house on credit arrive on foot chat on the phone
*Regarding a Topic
a speech on a report on a discussion on a seminar on a paper on
thoughts on comments on ideas on news on vote on
*Condition, State & Status
on hold on vacation on course on fire on their best behavior
*Membership & Participation
on the committee on the team on the faculty on the board on the squad
*Following & Resulting from
On hearing the news, he left immediately.
I got the book on request.
On second thought, he realized I was correct.
We made the decision for you on the assumption that you wouldn’t mind.
*Method of Travel (except for cars, trucks, RV’s, small boats)
on a cruise on a ship on a yacht on a sled on a plane on foot
on a bike on a train on a tour on a journey on a flight on the subway
*Days, Dates, Times, & Special Days (or Days Described by an Adjective)
on my birthday on Sunday on the fifteenth on May 28th on the hour
on the first Monday on time on a sunny day on weekdays on cold days
*Containment & Immersion: Physical or Abstract
in the ocean in this area in our imagination in the USA
in the purse in the refrigerator in memory in Chicago
in the sand in the doorway in the paper in your pocket
*"in" + Nouns of Emotion & Reaction
in amazement in awe in pain in anger in sorrow
*State or Condition
in competition in secret in view in a hurry in love
*Using
write a check in pen, draw a picture in blue, decorate in plaid, speak in French
*Portrayed or Shown
The article in the paper was wrong.
The information in the records was accurate.
The character in the book was likeable.
*Wearing Clothes & Accessories
the man in the tall hat, the girl in black, the poor children in rags, the officers in uniform, the model in the designer clothes, the boys in shorts, the dancer in the tutu
*Employment & Participation
That doctor works in medicine.
Their family has been in the theatre for generations.
I just realized that your father works in film.
The girls in the dance club are so busy.
*Divided, Organized or Arranged
in piles in bunches in order in lines in groups in a circle
in stacks in tiers in sections in teams in rows in a block
*Method of Travel: Cars, Trucks, RV’s, small boats
in a car in his RV in the subway car in a canoe in a rowboat
*Time: Season, Year, Month & Time of Day (except dawn, noon, night or midnight)
in summer in 1982 in August in the morning in the daytime