Yes, you can end a sentence with a preposition. “Which drawer did you put the key in?” is grammatical and natural. “In which drawer did you put the key?” asks the same question in a more formal way. Choose the version that fits the reader and the sentence.
What is preposition stranding?
A preposition often sits in front of its object, as in does in “You put the key in the top drawer.” If you ask which drawer, the phrase which drawer goes to the front of the question. You can leave in after the verb and its object, or move in to the front with which drawer. Leaving the preposition behind is called preposition stranding. [Cambridge English Grammar Today on preposition placement]
Stranding also works inside a sentence. In “The drawer we keep the keys in is locked,” in ends the clause we keep the keys in. It still tells you how the drawer relates to keep the keys.
Ending a sentence with a preposition in everyday and formal writing
| Situation | Everyday wording | More formal wording |
|---|---|---|
| Asking about a thing | Which policy does this exception apply to? | To which policy does this exception apply? |
| Asking about a person | Who should I send the form to? | To whom should I send the form? |
| Describing a thing | The procedure that we agreed on starts Monday. | The procedure on which we agreed starts Monday. |
| Describing a person | She’s the editor I spoke with. | She’s the editor with whom I spoke. |
In a formal document, an opening phrase such as to which policy can put the relationship up front. If you move a preposition before a relative pronoun, use whom for a person or which for a thing. In the procedure example, that works with on at the end of the clause. The formal version needs on which. [Cambridge on relative pronouns and prepositions]
In conversation and ordinary prose, the stranded version often reads more smoothly. It fits an email as easily as it fits a conversation. Short follow-up questions can strand a preposition too. If a colleague says, “I forwarded the form,” you might ask, “Who to?” [MLA Style Center on final prepositions]
If a house style or assignment asks for a different construction, compare a formal version with a plain rewrite. In a form, “Who should receive this?” may be easier to scan than either version with send.
Particles, fixed expressions, and passive sentences
The same word can do different jobs. In “Which bridge did they walk over?” over is a stranded preposition. It relates the walk to the bridge. In “Read the draft over,” over is a particle in read over, meaning to read something again or review it. Try “Read over the draft” or “Read it over.” The draft is what you read. In the bridge example, the bridge is the object of over. [Cambridge on phrasal and prepositional verbs]
Keep familiar expressions intact. In “That’s a delay we can put up with,” up is a particle and with is the stranded preposition. Keep put up with if it fits the voice. In a more formal report, “We can tolerate that delay” says the same thing without a forced rearrangement.
Notice what a passive sentence puts first. “That’s an issue we’ve already dealt with” has a stranded preposition in a relative clause. “The issue has already been dealt with” strands the same preposition in a passive sentence. If the reader needs to know who acted, name the person or team in an active version, as in “The support team has already dealt with the issue.” [How to choose between active and passive voice]
When should you move or remove the preposition?
- Keep it if it carries the meaning. “Which address did you send it to?” asks for the destination. “Which address did you send?” asks which address you sent as information.
- Move it when the relationship is easier to follow up front. In a survey, “On which date did you receive the notice?” puts the requested detail near the start. “Which date did you receive the notice on?” still works.
- Remove it if your sentence works without it. “Where is the meeting?” is a concise choice in edited prose. “Where is the meeting at?” occurs in casual speech. Here where already asks for the location.
- Rewrite the whole sentence if the alternatives sound stiff. “Could you tell us which concerns this proposal responds to?” can become “Which concerns does this proposal address?” Both versions keep the question about the proposal’s purpose.
Read the sentence aloud, then check that your edit still answers the same question. A final preposition often earns its place by keeping the relationship clear and the sentence natural.
Practice choosing where the preposition goes
- “Which desk did you leave the folder on?” Rewrite the question in a more formal style.
- “She’s the colleague to whom I sent the notes.” Rewrite it for an ordinary email.
- “The editor looked it up.” What job does up do?
- “Which room did you leave it in?” What does the question lose if you delete in?
- “Where is the printer at?” Edit it for an office directory.
Show five answers with explanations
- “On which desk did you leave the folder?” On moves with its object, which desk.
- “She’s the colleague I sent the notes to.” The relative clause leaves to at the end and drops the optional relative pronoun.
- It’s a particle in look up. The editor searched for information about it. With a full noun phrase, you can write “The editor looked up the date” or “The editor looked the date up.”
- It loses the link between the room and the act of leaving the item there. Keep in, move it with its object (“In which room did you leave it?”), or ask “Where did you leave it?”
- “Where is the printer?” The word where already asks for its location.
Where did the rule against final prepositions come from?
English writers were already stranding prepositions when the poet and critic John Dryden objected to the construction in 1672. Latin influenced how some writers of that era judged English syntax. In 1762, the grammarian Robert Lowth described stranding as a feature of conversation and familiar writing while preferring a preposition before its object in elevated prose. The advice has a history as a preference about style. [Nuria Yáñez-Bouza’s research on preposition stranding]
Modern style authorities recognize both placements. The Chicago Manual of Style rejects the blanket prohibition, and the MLA Style Center explains why the final position often sounds natural. [Chicago’s guidance] · [MLA’s guidance]
See how other familiar rules hold up in common grammar myths, or practice choosing in, on, and at in the guide to prepositions of time and place.
