What are the Amharic prepositions?

The definition of a preposition:

A preposition is a word that shows the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and other word types in a sentence. It often indicates direction, location, time, or manner. ምሳሌ:

• እርሱ ወንበር ላይ ተቀመጠ። He sat on the chair.
• እርሱ ከልጁ ጋር ይጫወታል። He sat on the chair.
• እሱ በዱላ መታት። He hit her with a stick.

In this example, the prepositions are በ, ላይ, ከ, and ጋር.

Amharic prepositions are short words that come after or between nouns, verbs, etc. Let’s look at an example:

• እርሱ ከልጁ ጋር ይጫወታል። He plays with his child.

Now the prepositions in this sentence are “ከ and ጋር” (with). “ከ” is placed before the possessive noun, “ልጁ / his child,” and “ጋር / with” is placed after the possessive noun, “ልጁ / his child.”

Some of the Amharic prepositions are listed below:

1. ለ
2. በ
3. ተ
4. ከ
5. ወደ
6. እስከ
7. እንደ
8. ስለ
9. በስተ
10. ያለ

These are Amharic prepositions or prefixes, and they don’t have direct one-word translations in English. Their meanings depend on the context in which they are used. Here’s a general explanation of each:

• ለ = (le) – to, for, or for the sake of.
  Example: ለኔ (lene) = for me.
• በ = (be) – by, with, in, or at.
  Example: በቤት (be bet) = in the house.
• ተ = (te) – A prefix often used for reflexive or passive verbs. It doesn’t have a direct translation but changes the meaning of the verb.
  Example: ተገለጸ (tegeletṣe) – It has been described/announced.
• የውድድሩ ውጤት ተገለጸ (yewididru wuṭet tegeletṣe) = The result of the competition has been announced.
• ተጀመረ (tejemere) = It has been started.
• ፕሮጀክቱ ተጀመረ (projectu tejemere) = The project has been started.
• ከ = (ke) – from, out of, or since.
  Example: ከኔ (kene) = “from me.”
• ወደ (wede) – to, toward, or in the direction of.
  Example: ወደ ቤት (wede bet) = to the house.
• እስከ = (eske) – until, up to, or as far as.
  Example: እስከ አሁን (eske ahun) = until now.
• እንደ = (ende) – like, as, or according to.
  Example: እንደ አንተ (ende ante) = like you.
• ስለ = (sile) – about, concerning, or because of.
  Example: ስለ አንተ (sile ante) = about you.
• በስተ = (beste) – on the side of, toward, or in the direction of.
  Example: በስተ ሰሜን (beste semien) = to the north.
• ያለ = (yale) – without
  Example: ያለ ውሃ (yale wuha) =  without water

የሰው ልጅ ያለ ውሃ መኖር አይችልም። (Humans cannot live without water.)