Ending a sentence in a preposition

Try to avoid ending a sentence in a preposition.

1. As a rule, a sentence should not end in a preposition. (However, as shown later in this section, there are several factors to consider.)

Examples:

That is a situation I have not thought of.

(The word "of" is a preposition. Writers should avoid ending sentences in
prepositions. This is because, a preposition should sit before a noun.)

She is a person I cannot cope with.

(The word "with" is a preposition.)

It is behaviour I will not put up with.

(This example ends in two prepositions: "up" and "with".)

2. Where possible, you should avoid ending a sentence in a preposition. However, after shuffling the words so that the preposition is not at the end, the re-structured version often sounds contrived and unnatural.

Examples:

That is a situation of which I have not thought.

(This version is technically better than the one above. In this example, the
word "of" sits before "which" (a type of noun; see lesson "Pronouns".)

She is a person with whom I cannot cope.

It is behaviour up with which I will not put.

(This example sounds extremely contrived.)

3. Often, the best solution is to re-word the sentence:

Examples:

That is a situation I have not considered.

(There are no prepositions in this sentence, and it has the same meaning.)

It is behaviour I will not tolerate.

YOUR CHOICE

In summary, if you cannot find an alternative without a preposition, you have a choice whether to leave the preposition at the end or to re-structure your sentence. The first example below is technically incorrect, because the sentence ends in a preposition. The second example sounds, for many people, too contrived.

She is a person I cannot cope with.

She is a person with whom I cannot cope.

Either can be used. There are no hard and fast rules on this subject. However, most grammarians would select option 1 when speaking but option 2 when writing.

Associated lessons:

What are prepositions?
The object of a preposition
Verbs with prepositions - succinct writing