(I) around or round preposition (m) beside or yet, which one is correct or both? (r) on or by, which one is correct or both?
The Correct Answer and Explanation is:
Here are the correct choices for each sentence from the image:
- (i) round is correct. “Round” is commonly used in British English to express circular motion. “Around” is also acceptable, especially in American English, so both are grammatically correct in this context.
- (m) beside is correct. “Yet” is not a preposition, so it does not fit the structure or meaning of the sentence.
- (r) by is correct. “By chance” is a fixed phrase in English that expresses something happening accidentally. “On chance” is not a standard usage.
Now for the explanation:
Prepositions are functional words used to show the relationship between nouns or pronouns and other elements in a sentence. They often describe direction, time, location, or introduce an object.
In sentence (i), “The moon goes round the sun,” both “round” and “around” are grammatically and semantically correct. They describe motion in a circular path. “Round” is more frequent in British usage while “around” is favored in American English. Despite the preference difference, both convey identical spatial meanings.
Sentence (m), “He sat beside me at dinner,” demonstrates the use of “beside” to indicate position. “Beside” specifically means “next to” and accurately describes someone sitting adjacent to another. “Yet,” on the other hand, functions as a conjunction or adverb, never as a preposition, making it incompatible with this sentence.
In sentence (r), “I met him on the way by chance,” the phrase “by chance” is idiomatic. “By” is the only grammatically accepted preposition in this collocation, conveying that the meeting happened unexpectedly. “On chance” is not recognized in English and would be considered an error.
Understanding these distinctions in preposition use ensures clarity and grammatical precision in writing and speech.
