PREPOSITION : AT, ON, and IN. ITS MEANING AND USES
preposition of time and prepositoon of placeAT, ON, IN with the time
e.g. At 9 o'clock, at noon, at midnight,
at noon, at sunset, at bedtime,
at dinner(time), at New year's, at Easter.
ON is used with days and dates (intermediate unit of time)
e.g. on Sunday, on Tuesday, on 5 June,
on 10 July 2016
IN is used with months , years, centuries, and seasons (large unit of time)
e.g. in August, in December 2015,
in the next century, in Autumn.
Look at these examples :
1. They have class at 11 a.m.
2. The drugstore closes at midnight.
3. Maria went to the movie at dinner.
4. There will be no class on Sunday.
5. We start our lesson on 10 August.
6. I will leave in November.
7. What will we do in the future?
Note that in some varieties of English, people say "on the weekend" and "on Christmas"
Notice the use of the preposition of time in and on in the following expressions !
in the morning on Tuesday morning
in the mornings on Saturday mornings
in the evening on Sunday evening
AT, ON, AT + address
Sue : "Where do they live"?
Susan : "John lives at 50 state street,
Tom lives on Lincoln street,
Alice lives in Detroit
Note : Use At with house number.
Use On with street name.
Use In with cities, states, or countries.
1. They have class at 11 a.m.
2. The drugstore closes at midnight.
3. Maria went to the movie at dinner.
4. There will be no class on Sunday.
5. We start our lesson on 10 August.
6. I will leave in November.
7. What will we do in the future?
Note that in some varieties of English, people say "on the weekend" and "on Christmas"
Notice the use of the preposition of time in and on in the following expressions !
in the morning on Tuesday morning
in the mornings on Saturday mornings
in the evening on Sunday evening
AT, ON, AT + address
Sue : "Where do they live"?
Susan : "John lives at 50 state street,
Tom lives on Lincoln street,
Alice lives in Detroit
Note : Use At with house number.
Use On with street name.
Use In with cities, states, or countries.
AT, ON, AT with the places
AT
Indicate Specific places
1. I met him at campus.
2. I will meet her at the restaurant.
3. He works at a hospital.
See the differences in the following pairs
1. a. I met him at campus
(it means 'He could be anyplace at
campus, could be not inside campus')
b. I met him in campus
(it means 'He was really inside
campus')
2. a. I will meet her at the restaurant.
(It means 'she could be beside, next
to, or behind restaurant')
b. I will meet her in the restaurant
(It means "she was inside the restaurant')
Note : In British English we will find "at the
weekend OR "at weekends"
ON
A. to indicate a device or machine, such as
a phone or a computer.
1. Your secretary is on the computer
now.
2. The girl is on the phone right now
3. I will be on TV tonight.
B. to indicate a part of the body
1.The stick hit me on my shoulder.
2. He kissed me on my check.
3. He put a ring on my finger,
C. to indicate the state of something.
1. Our campus is on fire.
2. Everything in this supermarket is on
sale.
IN
A. with countries
1. My grandparents live in Greece.
2, This company is located in Japan,
B. with the names of town or city names
1. My uncle has a house in Tokyo.
2. I was born in Texas.
C. Other uses of IN
1. to indicate a location or place
1. I'm currently staying in a hotel
2. She looked at me directly in the
eyes,
3. Glodok is in Jakarta.
2. to indicate a shape, color, or size.
1. Your painting is mostly in green.
2. all of you must stand in a circle.
3. you can find it in three different
sizes
3. to indicate a belief, opinion, interest or
feeling.
1. I believe in one God.
2. We are interested in this film.
1. a. I met him at campus
(it means 'He could be anyplace at
campus, could be not inside campus')
campus, could be not inside campus')
b. I met him in campus
(it means 'He was really inside
campus')
campus')
(It means 'she could be beside, next
to, or behind restaurant')
b. I will meet her in the restaurant
(It means "she was inside the restaurant')
to, or behind restaurant')
b. I will meet her in the restaurant
(It means "she was inside the restaurant')
Note : In British English we will find "at the
weekend OR "at weekends"
weekend OR "at weekends"
ON
A. to indicate a device or machine, such as
a phone or a computer.
1. Your secretary is on the computer
now.
2. The girl is on the phone right now
3. I will be on TV tonight.
B. to indicate a part of the body
1.The stick hit me on my shoulder.
2. He kissed me on my check.
3. He put a ring on my finger,
C. to indicate the state of something.
1. Our campus is on fire.
2. Everything in this supermarket is on
sale.
IN
A. with countries
1. My grandparents live in Greece.
2, This company is located in Japan,
B. with the names of town or city names
1. My uncle has a house in Tokyo.
2. I was born in Texas.
C. Other uses of IN
1. to indicate a location or place
1. I'm currently staying in a hotel
2. She looked at me directly in the
eyes,
3. Glodok is in Jakarta.
2. to indicate a shape, color, or size.
1. Your painting is mostly in green.
2. all of you must stand in a circle.
3. you can find it in three different
sizes
3. to indicate a belief, opinion, interest or
feeling.
1. I believe in one God.
2. We are interested in this film.
Exercises
Fill in the gaps in this paragraph with the prepositions - in, on, or at After you finish, look at the answers below in bold.
- Jack was born _____ Bronx _____ June 21st _____ 3 o'clock _____ the morning.
- Bronx is _____ the state of New York _____ the United States.
- Now, she goes to classes _____ the university.
- He usually arrives _____ the morning _____ 9 o'clock.
- _____ weekends, he likes driving to her uncle's house _____ Canada.
- His uncle lives _____ Toronto.
- He usually arrives _____ 9 _____ the evening and leaves _____ Monday morning.
- _____ Sunday, they often meet friends _____ a restaurant.
- _____ night, they sometimes go to a disco.
- _____ summer, _____ July for example, they often go to the countryside.
A
