A proposition about prepositions

Prepositions are among the most misused words in the English language. Just remember the golden rule: you must never end a sentence with a preposition.

The most common prepositions are "about," "above," "across," "after," "against," "along," "among," "around," "at," "before," "behind," "below," "beneath," "beside," "between," "beyond," "but," "by," "despite," "down," "during," "except," "for," "from," "in," "inside," "into," "like," "near," "of," "off," "on," "onto," "out," "outside," "over," "past," "since," "through," "throughout," "till," "to," "toward," "under," "underneath," "until," "up," "upon," "with," "within" and "without."

There's an old joke that illustrates the folly of ending a sentence in a preposition and shows you how to avoid doing so. It goes something like this --

Peggy has just enrolled at the university. As she strolls across campus on her way to class, she spots a few girls sitting around a table talking and stops to introduce herself.

"Hello, I'm Peggy Towner from Chicago. Where are you all from?"

One of the girls seated at the table wrinkles her nose, and all of the girls look at Peggy like she has a bird sitting on her head.

The girl who wrinkled her nose finally responds, "We're from a place where we don't end our sentences with a preposition."

Peggy, always quick on her feet, thinks a moment and replies, "Oh, I see. Where are you all from, bitch?"

So, you see, by knowing how to use prepositions, we can go out into the world and make new friends everywhere we go.