A Syntagmatic Analysis of Prepositional Usage Among Students of Federal College of Education, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria

Hauwa Salihi Ateequ

doi:10.56201/ijelcs.vol.11.no6.2026.pg30.39

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A Syntagmatic Analysis of Prepositional Usage Among Students of Federal College of Education, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria

Hauwa Salihi Ateequ

Abstract

This study examines the syntagmatic patterns of prepositional usage among NCE I students of Federal College of Education, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria. It specifically identifies and classifies the major syntagmatic patterns in which prepositions occur with nouns, pronouns, verbs and adjectives, and examines inappropriate selection, omission, substitution and addition within these syntactic environments. The study is anchored in Saussure’s Syntagmatic Theory which explains how linguistic units combine linearly to form meaningful structures. A qualitative research design is adopted, with a population of 2,000 NCE I students enrolled during the 2025/2026 academic session. Using purposive sampling, 60 students are selected for the study. Data are collected through written compositions and semi-structured oral tasks and analysed through syntactic and syntagmatic interpretation. Findings reveal that students use prepositions in identifiable patterns, particularly preposition–noun, preposition–pronoun, verb–preposition and adjective–preposition combinations. However, difficulties occur mainly through inappropriate preposition addition and substitution, as evidenced in constructions such as discussed about the issue, married with a nurse and good in English. The study concludes that students’ prepositional difficulties are closely associated with inappropriate combinations of prepositions and surrounding grammatical elements. It recommends context-based teaching, increased practice with verb–preposition and adjective–preposition combinations, and the use of students’ actual errors in grammar instruction. The study contributes to syntactic research by providing evidence of prepositional usage within a Nigerian college-of-education context.

Keywords

PrepositionsPrepositional UsageSyntagmatic AnalysisSyntactic PatternsEnglish learners.

References

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A Syntagmatic Analysis of Prepositional Usage Among Students of Federal College of Education, Yola, Adamawa State, Nigeria

Abstract

Keywords

References

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