ESL Inventory

Prepositions of Movement: Examples & Exercises

Prepositions of Movement describe movement or the direction of movement, try this exercise first:

EXERCISE: Prepositions of Movement

Choose the correct preposition of movement to fill the gaps.

1 / 10

The cat jumped ___ the table to chase the mouse on the floor.

2 / 10

The boy got ___ the car.

3 / 10

She was looking for the bus stop but walked ___ without noticing it.

4 / 10

They drove ___ the city since the highway was closed.

5 / 10

We walked ___ the street to see the Christmas decorations.

6 / 10

He was able to leave and then ran ___ the building in flames.

7 / 10

The man walked ___ the bank, but didn’t get in.

8 / 10

The bird flew ___ the roof then sat on the chimney.

9 / 10

He drove ___ the bridge to get to the other side.

10 / 10

They swam ___ the river.

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Was this too hard? See below uses and examples, then try more exercises to practice.

Prepositions of Movement – Infographic

infographic shows prepositions of movement using an owl, a chair, a table, a bridge, a river, a tunnel, and a box.
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Prepositions of Movement – Table

PrepositionUseExamples
upMoving to a higher placeHe’s going up the street.
downMoving to a lower placeHe’s going down the street.
offAway from a place of positionHe jumped off the table.
ontoMoving to a surfaceHe jumped onto the table.
out ofExiting a spaceThey went out of the house.
intoEntering a spaceShe walked into the room.
alongFollowing a path, parallel toWe walked along the river.
acrossMoving from one side to anotherShe ran across the street.
pastGoing by somethingThe car drove past the house.
overMoving above somethingThe plane flew over the city.
aroundSurrounding somethingThat road goes around the city.
towardsIn the direction of somethingHe ran towards the car.
away fromThe opposite direction of somethingHe ran away from the car.
throughIn and Out somethingLet’s go through the forest.
underMoving underneath somethingThe subway goes under the city.

Examples:

  • We walked along the beach during sunset.
  • He ran towards the park.
  • She went out of the room when the phone rang.

Preposition of Place or Movement?

Prepositions of place tell us where something or someone is. They describe a static position and answer the question “Where?” For example, “The cat is under the table,” or “The book is on the desk.”

Prepositions of movement, on the other hand, describe a change of position, they show movement from one place to another and answer the question “Where to?” For example, “The cat went into the box,” or “She climbed onto the roof.”

Some pairs are especially tricky:

  • in / into — “in” is static (“She is in the room”), while “into” shows motion (“She walked into the room”).
  • on / onto — “on” is a location (“The vase is on the table”), but “onto” means movement to a surface (“He jumped onto the table”).

So, remember: place = no movement, movement = a change of location.

Go to Prepositions of Place page

Exercises on Prepositions of Movement

EXERCISE: Prepositions of Movement (Round 2)

Choose the correct preposition of movement to fill the gaps.

1 / 10

The goat jumped ___ the fence and escaped.

2 / 10

The people marched ___ the avenue.

3 / 10

The dog ran ___ the house because of the storm.

4 / 10

The man fell ___ the boat.

5 / 10

She got ___ the bus at the right stop in front of the museum.

6 / 10

The ball rolled ___ the room but the door was closed.

7 / 10

The road goes ___ the railway line, that’s why there’s a tunnel.

8 / 10

She took the box ___ the closet and placed it on the table.

9 / 10

The train went ___ the station without stopping.

10 / 10

The microphone rolled ___ the stage and stopped.

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