Below are explanations for the two Prepositional Phrase Samples:

Prepositional Phrases from The Brothers Karamazov

It came to pass that, settling permanently in Paris he, too, forgot the child, especially when the Revolution of February broke out, making an impression on his mind that he remembered all the rest of his life.

As the interactive exercise instructs, the first step is to highlight any words that could be a prepositional phrase:

It came to pass that, settling permanently in Paris he, too, forgot the child, especially when the Revolution of February broke out, making an impression on his mind that he remembered all the rest of his life.

There appears to be four prepositional phrases in this sentence:

1. IN PARIS: adverbial - modifies the non-finite verb phrase and states where he was SETTLING
2. OF FEBRUARY: adjectival - follows immediately after and modifies REVOLUTION
3. ON HIS MIND: adjectival - follows immediately after and modifies IMPRESSION
4. OF HIS LIFE: adjectival - follows immediately after and modifies REST, which is nominal (follows immediately after a definite article)

Challenge Sample from The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

When Dorothy was standing in the doorway, she could see nothing but the great gray prairie on every side. The sun had baked the plowed land into a gray mass, with little cracks running through it. Even the grass was not green, for the sun has been burning the tops of the long blades for decades, until they were the same gray color to be seen everywhere.

Again, the first step is to highlight any words that might be a prepositional phrase:

When Dorothy was standing in the doorway, she could see nothing but the great gray prairie on every side. The sun had baked the plowed land into a gray mass, with little cracks running through it. Even the grass was not green, for the sun has been burning the tops of the long blades for decades, until they were the same gray color to be seen everywhere.

For this sample, there appears to be seven prepositional phrases in this passage:

1. IN THE DOORWAY: adverbial - modifies the Main Verb and states where she WAS STANDING
2. ON EVERY SIDE: adverbial - modifies the Main Verb - can move or delete
3. INTO A GRAY MASS: adverbial - modifies the Main Verb - can move or delete
4. WITH LITTLE CRACKS (RUNNING THROUGH IT): adjectival - follows immediately after and modifies MASS (although can also modify LAND) - non-restrictive (comma as KEY MARKER)
5. THROUGH IT: adverbial - modifies the adjectival present participle RUNNING
6. OF THE LONG BLADES: adjectival - follows immediately after and modifies TOPS
7. FOR DECADES: adverbial - modifies the Main Verb - can move or delete

Tips to Keep in Mind

Like the discussion on the prepositions page, the KEY MARKER for identifying prepositional phrases is the preposition followed by a nominal (noun, phrase, or clause). You must, however, analyze in context, as you can see in the second sentence above where FOR is both coordinating conjunction and preposition: FOR THE SUN HAS BEEN BURNING . . . and FOR DECADES. In the first, a clause follows FOR, and in the second, only a nominal (DECADES). When identifying the function of prepositional phrases, proximity should be the first consideration. Oftentimes, a prepositional phrase will be adjectival if it follows immediately after a noun. Adverbial prepositional phrases will most often provide extra information about time or place, but the key tests for determining if prepositional phrases are adverbial are always movement and deletion.

If you have questions about these sample analyses, please contact your instructor or start a conversation in your work group.