Temporal Prepositions

(Under Development)

This discussion of the temporal class of prepositions is based on an examination of the temporal senses identified in The Preposition Project (TPP) with the Pattern Dictionary of English Prepositions (PDEP), along with sections 9.33 to 9.42 in Quirk et al. There are 62 temporal senses under 50 prepositions. Temporal prepositions establish a temporal relationship between the complement and some other sentence element, sometimes the governor and sometimes the subject or some other object. A temporal prepositional phrase usually occurs as an adjunct, a postmodifier, or predication adjunct; occasionally, the phrase itself can be the complement of a temporal preposition. Temporal prepositions can be divided into two main subclasses: time position and duration. (See Preposition Classes for how this class relates to other classes. For the supersenses (unlexicalized categores for prepositions), see PrepWiki; the PDEP database is being kept synchronized with this project, as they are assigned to TPP senses.)

Time Position Dimensions

The most basic time element expresses the time when some event takes place. In the temporal patterns used to express time points, the preposition complement has the ontological category Time Point. The time point may be specified as:

• a clock time or clock expression (6:30 p.m., 10, noon),
• a time period viewed as a specific time point (the evening, Monday, Christmas), and
• an event or activity that specifies particular time points (birth, becoming director, decision).

• Simple time point: the governor occurs at the time expressed by the complement, 'pon (17(8)) (day), 'pon (18(8a)) (occasion or activity), about (6(n)), around (6(n)), as of (1(1)) (reference time), at (2(2), circa (1(1)) (approximately), during (2(1a)) (time point within period), in the course of (2(2)) (time point within period), on (17(8)) (day), on (18(8a)) (occasion or activity), on the stroke of (1(1)) (precisely), round about (1(1)) (approximately), upon (17(8)) (day), upon (18(8a)) (occasion or activity)
• Time origin: the complement expresses a beginning time point, as far as (2(n)), as from (1(1)), frae (3(2)), frae (5(3a)) (date of creation), from (3(2)), from (5(3a)) (date of creation), since (1(1))
• Time finished: the complement expresses an ending time, and the governor will generally express a time origin, by (17(4)) (end of a time period), through (11(4)), thro' (11(4)), thru (11(4)), up to 2(1a)
• Time preceding: the governor occurs prior to the time expressed by the complement, 'gainst (4(2)) (event in future), afore (1(1)), against (4(2)) (event in future), agin (4(2)) (event in future), ahead of (3(1b)), before (1(1)), come (1(1) (event or time in future), ere (1(1)), fore (1(1)), in advance of (1(1)), near (2(2)) (shortly before), near to (2(2)) (shortly before), nigh (2(2)) (shortly before), o' (18(9)) (clock hour), of (18(9)) (clock hour), pending (1(1)) (event in future), preparatory to (1(1)) (event or act in future), previous to (1(1)), prior to (1(1)), this side of (1(1)) (time, date, event), till (1(1)), to (4(1c)) (clock hour), toward (3(1b) (close or closer to), towards (3(1b) (close or closer to), until (1(1)), unto (2(2)) (until), while (1(1))
• Time following: the governor occurs following the time expressed by the complement, after (1(1)), after (3(1b)). beyond (4(2)), following (1(1)) (complement may be a cause or reason), gone (1(1)) (past), past (3(2)), subsequent to (1(1))

Duration Dimensions

Durative prepositions answer the question How long? and describe a period of time. In the temporal paterns used to express duration, the preposition complement has the ontological category Time Period. Durative prepositions fall into the following subcategories:

• Period when something persists or happens: across (1(1)-1), after (2(1a)), after (4(1c)) (time following departure or action of), ahead of (2(1a)) (complement is experiencer of event in governor), along (2(1a)) (path of progress), alongside (3(1b)) (same time), as (2(2)) (stage of life), at (3(2a)) (time periods), at (4(2b)) (period defined by activity), between (2(2)) (starting and end points), betwixt (2(2)) (starting and end points), by (20(6)) (period when something happens), down (5(2)), during (1(1)), for (12(10)), in (3(2)), in (4(3)) (period in future till something happens), in front of (4(n)) (complement is experiencer of event in governor), in the course of (1(1)), inside (5(2)) (provides a maximum time frame), inside of (2(1a)) (provides a maximum time frame), into (1(1)-1), mid (2(1a)), o'er (14(5)), over (14(5)), round (9(n)) ('the clock', time period), through (7(2)), throughout (2(1a)), thro' (7(2)), thru (7(2)), under (9(4a)) (during the rule of), within (6(3)) (provides a maximum time frame)

Selection Criteria

For the most part, temporal prepositions are recognized based only on the properties of the complement. Selectors for the complement look at the complement itself (hr or c). Many of these can be recognised with the WordNet lexical name (ln) noun.time or noun.event. Others can be recognized by using the part of speech (pos) cd (i.e., recognizing cardinal numbers) or vbg (i.e., participial ing phrases expressing events). Since temporal expressions can usually be found with almost any kind of governor, developing criteria for the governor is less successful.

References

1. Quirk, R., Greenbaum, S., Leech, G., and Svartik, J. 1985. A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language. Longman: New York, pp. 687-95.