# Dictionary of Spoken Russian/Russian-English/Section 31

§31. PREPOSITIONS
Most prepositions have their object in the g case: около дома "near the house"; for these the dictionary gives no comment. The commonest are без, для, до, из, от, у, из-за, из-под.
Irregularly, some take their objects in other cases; the dictionary tells with which case they are used. With a: про, сквозь, через; with d: к, вопреки; with i: между, над; with l при. A few take different cases in different meanings: with a and i: за, перед, под; with a and l: в, на, о (об); with g, а, and i: с; with a, d, and l: по.
The meanings differ very much from the meanings of English prepositions; this appears plainly in the dictionary, and we give here only a few general comments.
The chief difference between the use of в, за, на, под with а and l (в, на) or i (за, под) appears in expressions of place. With an a object the expression answers the question куда "whereto": он вошёл в комнату "he went into the room," он сел на кровать "he sat down on the bed," он поехал за границу "he went abroad," он бросил книгу под стол "he threw the book under the table." With the other cases the expression answers the question где "where, in what place": он был в комнате "he was in the room," он сидел на кровати "he was sitting on the bed," он жил за границей "he was living abroad," книга лежала под столом "the book was lying under the table."
With most places, в with a means "into," в with l "in," and из (with g) "from (the inside of), out of": мы пошли в театр "we went to the theater," мы были в театре "we were in the theater," мы вернулись из театра "we came back from the theater." But certain nouns instead use на with a and l and с with g: мы пошли на вокзал "we went to the railway station," мы были на вокзале, мы вернулись с вокзала; similarly концерт "concert," рынок "market," собрание "meeting." With persons one uses к (with d), у (with g), от (with g): к Ильиным "to the Ilyins'," у Ильиных "at the Ilyins'," от Ильиных "from the Ilyins'."
In meanings like "so much apiece, so many each," по is used with numbers as follows. Один is d and the noun in concord: он дал им по одному рублю "he gave them one ruble each"; два, три, четыре are a with gs noun: по два рубля, по две копейки "two kopeks each," по четыре яблока, "four apples each." Двести, триста, четыреста are a with gp noun: по двести рублей. The remaining numbers are d with gp (occasionally dp) noun: по пяти рублей "five rubles each"; по сороке рублей, по ста рублей. But the hundreds from 500 on have the second part in gp form: по пятисот рублей. With a по полтора рубля "one and a half rubles each," по полтораста рублей "150 rubles each." The collective numbers also are a with gp noun, even for animates: по двое ножниц "two pairs of scissors each," по трое санёй "three sleighs in each place or group."
Before vowels, о is replaced by об: о чём? "about what?" об армии "about the army"; before [y] occasionally, especially before possessive их: об их деле "about their affair," beside о их деле (but, of course, always о них "about them," §18). Before other consonants об is used in some special expressions: об стену [op stj'nu] "against the wall." A still longer form обо is used in обо мне "about me," обо что, обо всё and occasionally before other forms of весь (§16).
The prepositions без, в, из, к, над, под, с have longer forms with -о added. These are used before the forms мне, мной (мною, §21) and forms of весь that begin with вс- (§16) and before р, л plus consonant: безо всех "without all," во рту "in the mouth," ко мне "to me," надо лбом "over the forehead." Some are used also before other clusters, either always or optionally. Thus, во is used before [v] and [f]: во-время "on time," во Франции "in France"; also in some others: во что "into what," во дворе "in the court," во сне "in one's sleep." Similarly ко двору "toward the yard," ко сну "toward sleep." Before [s, z] со is always used in some combinations: со стола "from the table," со and "out of one's sleep," со звездой "with a star (medal)," and optionally in others: со слезами "with tears"; before [šč] always: со счастьем "with good fortune."
От less commonly has ото: от всех, ото всех "from all."
Of the longer prepositions, перед takes о in передо мной "before me" and occasionally before forms of весь: перед всем, передо всем.
The prepositions до, за, из, на, по, под take the stress before some nouns, which then lose their stress: до земли "toward the ground," за город "outside of town" (whereto), за городом "outside of town" (where), из лесу "out from woods," на пол "onto the floor," по двору "along the yard; across the yard," под гору "downhill." Similarly, one-syllable numbers after за, на, по: за три рубли "for three rubles."
Other one-syllable prepositions take the stress in fewer instances: без толку "without sense," об пол "against the floor," от роду "from birth."