前置詞としての”ペンディング” ― pending

前置詞といえば、onとかin、at、around、below、aboveなどなど、お馴染みのものがすぐに思い浮かぶかと思いますが、


pending


が前置詞の1つであることをご存知でしょうか？

ABC presenter Andy Muirhead, host of the Collectors program, has been charged with child pornography, the broadcaster has revealed.

（中略）

The AFP said computer equipment was seized from the 34-year-old's home in Hobart during a search on Tuesday.

An ABC spokeswoman said the corporation was notified by Muirhead's management late yesterday that he had been charged with a serious offence.

"Mr Muirhead will not present the Collectors on ABC TV or the breakfast program on ABC Local Radio in Tasmania pending the outcome of the legal proceedings," she said.
(Tim Clarke. ABC host faces child pornography charge. Sydney Morning Herald. June 11, 2010.)


American Heritage Dictionaryによると、


prep. 1. While in the process of; during. 2. While awaiting; until.


とあります。

意味的には、"until"や"while"などの接続詞に近いのでしょうが、"pending"の後に来るのが名詞句なので、扱いは前置詞ということになります。