Man kann die Präpositionen überwiegend in zwei Gruppen einordnen:
Ortspräpositionen und Richtungspräpositionen
Ortspräpositionen sind:
(in etwa in der Reihenfolge ihrer Häufigkeit)
by, near = bei, an My school is near the station.
over = über The plane is flying over the airport.
under = unter The child is sitting under the table.
at = bei He is waiting at the door.
in = in, drinnen She is in the house.
behind = hinter She is waiting behind her friend.
in front of = vor The car is parking in front of the house.
between = zwischen Tim is standing between John and Mike.
opposite = gegenüber The cinema is opposite the supermarket.
round = um herum They are sitting round the table.
beside = neben The girl is walking beside her mother.
above = oberhalb Mike lives in the appartement above ours.
below = unterhalb John lives in the one below!
Richtungspräpositionen sind:
to = hin (in, ins etc.) I go to school. (to town, to my friends, etc.)
into = hinein He is going into the supermarket.
out of = heraus Other people are coming out of it.
on, onto = auf, drauf The cat jumps on the couch.
off, from = runter, weg A bit later she jumps off again.
across = über He is walking across the street.
up / down = rauf, runter They are walking up / down the hill.
along = entlang We are driving along the road.
after = hinter(her) The policeman is running after the thiefs.
through = durch He is coming through the door.
past = vorbei The bus drives past the bus stop.