PREPOSITIONS
Prepositions can be tricky for English learners. There is no definite rule or formula for choosing a
preposition. In the beginning stage of learning the language, you should try to identify a
preposition when reading or listening in English and recognize its usage.
AT: Used to indicate a place:
There is a party at the club house.
There were hundreds of people at the park.
We saw a baseball game at the stadium.
Used to indicate an email address:
To refer to an address:
They once lived at number 12 South George’s Street.
To be near something:
She waited for me at the door.
To be at an event:
At a conference, at the party
Used to indicate an activity
He laughed at my acting.
I am good at drawing a portrait.
refer to activities which involve a group of people:
Were you at Lisa’s party? (also at the cinema, at the theatre)
To refer to a position or location which we see as a point:
I was sitting at my desk.
A fisherman waited near his nets at the side of the quay. (position as a point)
There was no one at the information desk. (location as a point)
To talk about locations at companies, workplaces when we see them as a place of activity:
How many people are working at Microsoft?
Did you once work at Intel?
The ancient manuscript, The Book of Kells, can be seen at Trinity College, Dublin.
With school/college/university (educational institutions):
She always did well at school.
To talk about public places where we get treatments, such as a hairdresser’s or doctor’s
surgery:
I can’t meet at four. I’ll be at the hairdresser’s until five.
To refer to most shops:
Look what I bought at the butcher’s today.
To be inside a particular institution for a particular reason:
At the hospital, at school.
WARNING: We say at school, at college but in class: What did you study at college?
We’re not allowed to have mobile phones in class.
Not: … at class.
We use at to refer to activities which involve a group of people:
I didn’t know anyone at the party.
There was a demonstration at the opening of the exhibition
In specific contexts, we use at with numbers.
Talking about prices:
At 80 pounds a night for a double room, the hotel is good value.
Talking about speeds:
According to the police, he was driving at 120 mp¿h. (m ph means ‘miles per hour’).
NOTE 1: We use at after a verb when we are talking about directing something towards another
person or thing, often with verbs of perception and communication (smile at, shout at, wave at):
He threw the ball at the wall.
She was waving at the crowd.
NOTE 2: When we talk about buildings, we often use at the to refer to the building itself. When we
refer to the activity that happens in the building, we don’t use the after at or in:
The taxi dropped me at the school. (referring to the building)
I hated being at school. (referring to the activity within the school not the building)
NOTE 3: What’s the difference between AT and IN? The preposition AT is used to describe the fact
of a person or thing being at a geographical location, while IN indicates that the person or thing is
actually inside the structure or place.
For example: I was in the university but then I went out for a walk. I was at university today and
had 3 classes.
WITH TIME
We use at:
With particular points on the clock:
I’ll see you at five o’clock.
With particular points in the day:
The helicopter took off at midday and headed for the island.
With particular points in the week:
What are you doing at the weekend?
Do we say AT the weekend or ON the weekend?
What is the difference?
AT the weekend is used in British English
ON the weekend is used in American English
I play football AT the weekend. – British English
I play football ON the weekend. – American English
With special celebrations:
At the New Year, millions of people travel home to be with their families (but we say on your
birthday).
We don’t use at with the question What time …? in informal situations:
What time are you leaving? (preferred to At what time are you leaving?)
Used to point out specific time:
I will meet you at 12 p.m.
The bus will stop here at 5:45 p.m.
IN: to be inside a closed space, whether abstract or specific:
In the box, in the car, in the film
compass directions:
In the North, in the South.
cities and countries:
In New York, in Russia.
Used for unspecific times during a day, month, season, year:
She always reads newspapers in the morning.
In the summer, we have a rainy season for three weeks.
The new semester will start in March.
Used to indicate a location or place:
She looked me directly in the eyes.
I am currently staying in a hotel.
My hometown is Los Angeles, which is in California.
Used to indicate a shape, color, or size:
This painting is mostly in blue.
The students stood in a circle.
This jacket comes in four different sizes.
Used to express while doing something:
In preparing for the final report, we revised the tone three times.
A catch phrase needs to be impressive in marketing a product.
Used to indicate a belief, opinion, interest, or feeling:
I believe in the next life.
We are not interested in gambling.
When to Use the Preposition "In"
Use "in" with months of the year:
I was born in April.
She left for school in September.
Peter will fly to Texas in March.
With seasons:
I like skiing in winter.
He enjoys playing tennis in spring.
They take a vacation in summer.
With countries:
He lives in Greece.
The company is located in Canada.
She went to school in Germany.
With city or town names:
He has a house in New York.
I was born in Seattle.
He works in San Francisco.
With times of the day:
I wake up early in the morning.
She goes to school in the afternoon.
Peter sometimes plays softball in the evening.
ON: to be located on a surface: lying on the table, sitting on the sofa
• to be located directly next to a river: on the coast, on the shore, on the beach
• to be located on a road: on my way, on this path, on the road
• to be located inside a vehicle, public transport: on the train, on the bus
• floors: on the 5th floor
• directions: on the left/right
• TV, radio: on the TV, on the radio
PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES THAT SHOW LOCATION
ON: used to express a surface of something: I put an egg on the kitchen table, The paper is on my
desk.
a specific street (on Seventh Avenue)
an electronic medium (on the Internet)
Used to specify days and dates:
The garbage truck comes on Wednesdays.
I was born on the 14th day of June in 1988.
Used to indicate a device or machine, such as a phone or computer:
He is on the phone right now.
She has been on the computer since this morning.
My favorite movie will be on TV tonight.
Used to indicate a part of the body:
The stick hit me on my shoulder.
He kissed me on my cheek.
I wear a ring on my finger.
Used to indicate the state of something:
Everything in this store is on sale.
The building is on fire.
We use on:
to refer to a position on any surface:
I know I left my wallet on the table.
to describe a position along a road or river or by the sea or by a lake:
Dublin is on the east coast of Ireland.
to talk about a floor in a building:
They live on the 15th floor!
to talk about being physically on public transport:
I was on the train when she phoned. (but to talk about ways of travelling, we use by: I went to
Rome by train.)
We use in:
to talk about locations within a larger area:
I know my book is somewhere in this room. Can anyone see it?
to talk about workplaces when we see them as a physical location:
She works in an open-plan office. (but we use on when we talk about a farm: I’ve always wanted
to work on a farm.)
with class:
He found it difficult to concentrate in class.
IN: in a particular space (in the apartment), a geographic location (in New York City), or a print
medium (in the newspaper)
AT: at a particular place (at the store) or location (at the center)
PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES THAT SHOW TIME
At, on and in (time)
We use on:
with dates:
We moved into this house on 25 October 1987.
with a singular day of the week to refer to one occasion:
I’ve got to go to London on Friday.
with a plural day of the week to refer to repeated events:
The office is closed on Fridays. (every Friday) In informal situations, we often leave out on before
plural days:
Do you work Saturdays?
with special dates:
What do you normally do on your birthday?
We use in:
with parts of the day:
I’ll come and see you in the morning for a cup of coffee, okay?
with months:
We usually go camping in July or August.
with years:
The house was built in 1835.
with seasons:
The garden is wonderful in the spring when all the flowers come out.
with long periods of time:
The population of Europe doubled in the nineteenth century.
At or on?
We use at to talk about public holidays and weekends, but when we talk about a particular special
day or weekend, we use on.
Compare
We never go away at the New Year because the On New Year’s Day, the whole family gets
traffic is awful. together.
I’ll go and see my mother at the weekend if the The folk festival is always held on the last
weather’s okay. weekend in July.
*Note that American English speakers usually say on the weekend.
In or on?
We use in with morning, afternoon, evening and night, but we use on when we talk about a
specific morning, afternoon, etc., or when we describe the part of the day.
Compare
I always work best in the morning. I often get The ship left the harbour on the morning of
tired in the afternoon. the ninth of November.
In the evening they used to sit outside and
It happened on a beautiful summer’s evening.
watch the sun going down.
At or in?
In the night usually refers to one particular night; at night refers to any night in general:
I was awake in the night, thinking about all the things that have happened.
‘It’s not safe to travel at night,’ the officer said.
At the end or in the end?
We use at the end (often with of) to talk about the point in time where something finishes. We
use in the end to talk about things that happen after a long time or after a series of other events:
At the end of the film, everyone was crying.
Not: In the end of the film …
I looked everywhere for the book but couldn’t find it, so in the end I bought a new copy.
At the beginning or in the beginning?
We use at the beginning (often with of) to talk about the point where something starts. We usually
use in the beginning when we contrast two situations in time:
At the beginning of every lesson, the teacher told the children a little story.
In the beginning, nobody understood what was happening, but after she explained everything very
carefully, things were much clearer.
See also:
At
Other uses of in with time
We use in to say how long it takes someone to do something:
He was such a clever musician. He could learn a song in about five minutes.
We use an apostrophe -s construction (in a year’s time, in two months’ time) to say when
something will happen. We don’t use it to say how long someone takes to do something:
I won’t say goodbye because we’ll be seeing each other again in three days’ time. We can also say
in three days, without time, in this example.
He ran the marathon in six hours and 20 minutes.
Not: He ran the marathon in six hours and 20 minutes’ time.
Time expressions without at, on, in
We don’t normally use at, on or in before time expressions beginning with each, every, next, last,
some, this, that, one, any, all:
He plays football every Saturday.
Are you free next Monday at two o’clock?
Last summer we rented a villa in Portugal.
We use on:
to refer to a position on any surface:
I know I left my wallet on the table.
to describe a position along a road or river or by the sea or by a lake:
Dublin is on the east coast of Ireland.
to talk about a floor in a building:
They live on the 15th floor!
to talk about being physically on public transport:
I was on the train when she phoned. (but to talk about ways of travelling, we use by: I went to
Rome by train.)
We use in:
to talk about locations within a larger area:
I know my book is somewhere in this room. Can anyone see it?
to talk about workplaces when we see them as a physical location:
She works in an open-plan office. (but we use on when we talk about a farm: I’ve always wanted
to work on a farm.)
with class:
He found it difficult to concentrate in class
ON: on a specific day (on Wednesday) or date (on June 20)
IN: in a part of a particular day (in the evening), a specific month (in June), a specific year (in 1965),
or a specific period of time (in two hours)
AT: at a particular time (at 6:30, at midnight) by by a particular time (by the end of next week)
the main points that we need to remember.
“At” is used in reference to specific times on the clock or points of time in the day.
“In” usually refers to period of time.
And “on” is used with dates and named days of the week.
And “by” is used specifically with an end point of time and it means no later than
On :
On (refers a surface of something)- I kept the dishes on the dining table.
On (specifies days and dates)- I will come on Monday.
Radha was born on 15th August.
On (refers TV or other devices)- She is on the phone.
My favorite movie will be on TV now.
On (refers the parts of the body) — I keep wearing my wedding ring on my finger.
On (to refer a state)- The products available in the store are on sale.
At :
At (to indicate a place)- There are a good number of people at the park.
At (to refer an email address)- Please mail in detail @ (at) [email protected]
At (to refer a time) — Meet me at 5 p.m. tomorrow.
At (indicate one’s activity)-John laughed at my acting in the play.
In :
In (to indicate a location)- I am in my friend’s place now.
In (used while doing something) — The tagline should be catchy in marketing a product.
In (to indicate opinion, belief, feeling, etc.)- I believe in hardworking.
In (specify day, month, season, year) — I prefer to do Maths in the morning.
The new academic session will commence in March.
In (to indicate color, shape and size) — This dress comes in four sizes.
To :
To (to indicate the direction, place)- The friends went to the restaurant.
I am heading to my college.
To (to indicate relationship) — Do not respond to the annoying persons.
Your answer is important to me.
To (to indicate a limit) — The old newspapers were piled up to the roof.
To (to refer a period) — I am here from 10 to 5.
Of :
Of (to indicate relating to, belonging to) — I always dreamed of being famous.
Of (to indicate reference) — This is a picture of my last birthday.
Of (to specify the number or an amount) — A good number of people understand Hindi.
For :
For (to indicate the reason or because of) — I am really happy for you.
For (to indicate the duration or time) — I attended the session for one year only.
For (specify the use of something) — She is preparing for her final exam.
When to Use the Preposition "On"
Use "on" with specific days of the week or year:
We'll meet on Friday.
What do you do on New Year's Day?
He played basketball on March 5th.
American English - "on the weekend OR on weekends"
When to Use "At"
Use "at" with specific times of the day:
Let's meet at 7 o'clock.
He has a meeting at 6:15.
She went to a party at night.
Use "at" with specific places in a city:
We met at school.
Let's meet him at the restaurant.
He works at a hospital.
British English - "at the weekend OR at weekends"
When to Use the Preposition "To"
Use "to" with verbs which show movement such as go and come.
He goes to school.
She returned to the store.
They are coming to the party tonight.
Fill in the Blanks Quiz
Fill in the blanks with the correct preposition—in, on, at, or to.
1. Janet was born _____ Rochester.
in
on
at
to
2. I am going _____ the dentist _____ 9:00 a.m.
at, at
on, to
to, at
in, on
3. Theo's birthday is _____ September 7th.
in
on
at
to
4. Rochester is _____ the state of New York.
in
on
at
to
5. _____ Saturday, they often meet friends _____ a restaurant.
In, at
On, in
On, at
At, to
6. _____ night, they sometimes go _____ a disco.
At, in
At, to
In, on
In, at
7. _____ weekends, she likes driving _____ her friend's house
At, to
On, in
On, to
At, at
8. She usually arrives _____ the morning _____ 8 o'clock.
in, at
on, at
to, in
at, at
COMMON ADJECTIVE + PREPOSITION COMBINATIONS
according to excited about
accustomed to familiar with
addicted to followed by
angry about (something) angry at (someone) fond of
angry with (someone) full of
ashamed of guilty of
aware of have respect for
based on in accordance with
capable of independent of / from
committed to in regard to
composed of interested in
concerned about / with involved in / with
connected to known as / for
content with limited to
dedicated to made of / from
dependent on / upon different from / than married to
disappointed in opposed to
due to preferable to
engaged to proud of
related to tired of
responsible for worried about
resulting from
satisfied with
scared of
similar to
SAMPLE VERB + PREPOSITION COMBINATIONS
account for consent to
agree on (something) agree with (someone) consist of
apologize to convince (someone) of (something)
apply for / to count on
approve of decide on / upon
argue with (someone) depend on / upon
arrive at / in disagree with
ask for dream about / of (aspiration)
believe in forget about
belong to get rid of
blame (someone) for (something) blame happen to
(something) on (someone)
hear about / from / of
borrow from
hope for
call on / upon
insist on / upon
care about / for
invite (someone) to laugh at listen for / to
compare to / with
look at
compliment (someone) on
look for
come from
look forward to
concentrate on
object to
participate in see about
plan on speak to / with
provide for stare at
provide with substitute for
recover from succeed at / in
remind (someone) of talk about / of
rely on talk of
reply to think about
respond to think of
result in wait for / on
search for
INSERT THE CORRECT PREPOSITION OF PLACE.
1. Mozart was born _______ Salzburg _______ 1756.
2. My dream is to be ___ Times Square ____ New Year’s Eve.
3. Travelling ___ the West feels like magic. We left Moscow ___ 12:00 pm ____ 25th of October
and arrived ___ Los Angeles ___ 2:00 pm ___ the same day.
4. — When did you hang that picture _______ the wall? — Oh, I did it ___ yesterday. I think it
looks nice next ____ the window.
5. Margot hated sitting ____ the desk ___ 8 hours straight and that’s why she quit her job. She
moved from the East coast to the West, ___ the whole country.
6. Mr Smith’s office is _____ the 10th floor.
7. There is a cute artisan shop ____ this street but it is closed _____ the weekend.
8. There might be both heavy rain and snowfall ____ Russia ____ December.
9. How different do you think the life will be ____ the 22nd century?
10. I’ve been waiting for you____ an hour ____ the train station. Where are you?
11. Parents are not allowed to wait for their kids ____ school. They should gather outside.
12. CVS, the nearest drug store, is ____ the end of the road ____ the left.
13. Don’t believe everything you see ___ TV.
14. First, our train arrived ____ France and 4 hours later we were ____ Portugal.
15. I need to be ___ NYC ___ tomorrow morning. I have a meeting there ____ the 5th Avenue.
16. The choice of appetizers was wide but there were no desserts ____ the menu.
17. I can’t hear you, I am ___ the bus.
18. There was a fire ____ our office building yesterday.
19. — Where are the kids? — They are already ____ school.
20. Get ____ the car and let’s get going!
