Complex prepositions
Some complex prepositions function in the same way as single ones, ending in a simple preposition.
Two-word prepositions have as second element one of the simple prepositions as, for, from, of, to, with:
+ such as
+ for: as for, except for, but for
+ from: apart from, away from, as from
+ of: ahead of, because of, instead of, regardless of, out of
+ to: according to, close to, contrary to, due to, owing to, thanks to, up to
+ with: along with, together with
Also included are: as against, as regards, rather than:
Once outside, I stood blinking against the glare of the sun.
He has his whole life ahead of him.
Rather than risk an unpleasant surprise, keep a lock on your bicycle.
Three-word prepositions typically consist of a simple preposition + noun + another simple preposition
Four-word prepositions include a definite or indefinite article:
for the sake of in the hands of with the exception of
A few prepositions ending in of have an alternative structure with’s
for the sake of the children on behalf of the committee
for the children’s sake on the committee’s behalf
However, non-personal reference with ’s is limited to exclamative expressions such as for heaven’s sake.
