06 Top and bottom / Through / across / along

Question 1

There’s a monument on top of the hill.

Answer 1

On top of is a preposition.

Question 2

There’s a monument at the top of the hill.

The ship sank to the bottom of the sea.

Answer 2

At the top.
To the bottom.

We can also use top and bottom as nouns in phrases like these.

Question 3

Through the gate.
The water flows through the pipe.
I looked through the telescope.

Answer 3

Through is three-dimensional. You go through a tunnel, a doorway, a crowd of people, and so on.

Question 4

Across the road

You can get across the Channel by ferry.

Answer 4

Across is two-dimensional. You go from one side to the other across a surface such as a lawn or a playground, or a line such as a river or a frontier.

Question 5

We walked through/across the field.

Answer 5

Sometimes we can use either through or across, depending on whether we see something as having three or two dimensions.

Question 6

We cruised along the canal for a few miles.

We walked across the canal by a footbridge.

Answer 6

We use along when we follow a line. You go along a path, a road, a passage, a route, and so on. Compare these sentences.