Prepositions of Time: at, in, on

Prepositions of Time: at, in, on

We use:

at for a PRECISE TIME
in for MONTHS, YEARS, CENTURIES and LONG PERIODS
on for DAYS and DATES

Look at these examples:

• I have a meeting at 9am.
• The shop closes at midnight.
• Jane went home at lunchtime.
• In England, it often snows in December.
• Do you think we will go to Jupiter in the future?
• There should be a lot of progress in the next century.
• Do you work on Mondays?
• Her birthday is on 20 November.
• Where will you be on New Year's Day?

Notice the use of the preposition of time at in the following standard expressions:

When we say last, next, every, this we do not also use at, in, on.

• I went to London last June. (not in last June)
• He's coming back next Tuesday. (not on next Tuesday)
• I go home every Easter. (not at every Easter)
• We'll call you this evening. (not in this evening)

We also use: DURING, SINCE, FROM / TO, FOR, UNTIL

DURING:

We use during + noun to say when something happens:

during the film - during our holiday - during the night

I fell asleep during the film.

We met a lot of interesting people during our holiday.

English Prepositions

A preposition is a word governing, and usually coming in front of, a noun or pronoun and expressing a relation to another word or element, as in:

• She left before breakfast.
• What did you come for?
(For what did you come?)

Prepositions of Place: at, in, on


In general, we use:
• at for a POINT
• in for an ENCLOSED SPACE
• on for a SURFACE

Look at these examples:

• Jane is waiting for you at the bus stop.
• The shop is at the end of the street.
• My plane stopped at Dubai and Hanoi and arrived in Bangkok two hours late.
• When will you arrive at the office?
• Do you work in an office?
• I have a meeting in New York.
• Do you live in Japan?
• Jupiter is in the Solar System.
• The author's name is on the cover of the book.
• There are no prices on this menu.
• You are standing on my foot.
• There was a "no smoking" sign on the wall.
• I live on the 7th floor at 21 Oxford Street in London.

Notice the use of the prepositions of place at, in and on in these standard expressions:

Use IN, ON, AT to complete the sentences

1.You are ______ a wedding.

2. You are _______ a party.

3. You are ______ France.

4. You are ______ a ship.

5. You are _____ a car.

6. You are ______ the kitchen.

7. My father is _____ work.

8. You are _____ the corner of the street.

9. Your mother is _____ the window.

10. You appear _______ television.

11. A horse is _____ the field.

12. You live _____ Main Street.

13. You are sitting ____ the table.

14. You are ______ the photo.

15. London is ______ the Thames River.

Las preposiciones son literales en inglés. Aquí, IN, ON y AT traducen como EN. Sin embargo, no son intercambiables. Hay que emplear IN como dentro-- ON como encima / sobre y AT cuando ninguno de estas dos anteriores explica literalmente la posición de algo. Ejemplo At a wedding (en una boda- sobre o encima de una boda está descartado)