An Analysis of By from the Perspective of Spatial Metaphor Abstract Preposition is the core spirit of English language. So it is no exaggeration that the status of English prepositions is relatively high, although the number of them is minor. Both of the usage and meaning of English prepositions are complicated and various, which consequently become the difficult points for English learners. Two facts have shown to explain why English prepositions are too complex to acquire: Firstly, each preposition does not just contain a single meaning; Secondly, it does not exist alone in most instances, but collocates with other words like nouns or verbs to become fix-used prepositional phrases.

 English prepositions can be classified by many criteria. One of the classification is to pide English Prepositions into spatial prepositions and non-spatial prepositions. Spatial prepositions are used to indicate the spatial positions and relationships, say, in, at, on, over, under, through and by, etc. All these prepositions have their original meanings- spatial meanings. This paper is to do research on non-spatial usage that is based on spatial usage and is projected from spatial domains. It can be seen from descriptions and findings of former scholars that, from the perspective of spatial metaphor, the studies of English prepositions like at, on, under are much discussed and the findings are concrete, however, the analysis of by is rare. The main task of this paper is not only to study the background of research, or to have a knowledge of many definitions of academic terms, but also to have a thorough analysis of by from the perspective of spatial metaphor, so as to excavate the influence and function of it towards culture understanding and English learning.

Keywords: English prepositions, by, spatial metaphor, spatial prepositions 47401

 英语介词by的空间隐喻视角分析摘  要介词的地位在英语中尤为重要，是英语中的“灵魂”。英语的介词虽然数量上并不多，但用法和意义都非常复杂与多样，是英语学习者的难点之一。介词如此难以掌握的原因，一是大多数介词都有好几种不同的意义；二是介词不仅仅单独出现，它往往能与多种词如名词、动词等搭配，这使得介词的使用更加复杂。

在这些英语介词中，有一类介词被称之为“空间介词”， 它们能表示空间位置和关系，比如in, at, on, over, under, through, by等，它们都具有最初的空间意义。本文研究的不是其原始的空间意义，而是其基于空间意义的非空间意义，即从空间投射到比如时间、程度等非空间域的一个空间隐喻意义。根据对以往学者研究的总结与分析，at, on,  under 的空间隐喻研究已经相对成熟，但by的空间隐喻分析相比于却较少。故本文结合介词学习背景，从当今语言学术语入手，从空间隐喻的角度分析介词by，探讨其介词空间隐喻以及对语言学习、文化理解的作用。

毕业论文关键词：英语介词, by；空间隐喻；空间介词

Contents

1. Introduction 1

1.1 Background of the Study 1

1.2 Purpose and Significance of the Study 1

1.3 Layout of the Study 2

2. Literature Review 3

2.1 Studies on Spatial Prepositions 3

2.1.1 Definition of Spatial Prepositions 3

2.1.2 A Review of Former Studies on Spatial Prepositions 3

2.2 Studies on Spatial Metaphor 3

2.2.1 The Definition of Spatial Metaphor 3

2.2.2 Different Views of Spatial Metaphor