What is the difference between “in’, “at”, and “on”? How do we use them correctly to talk about position? Take a look at this article and never be confused about them anymore!
Prepositions of place indicate where one thing is in relation to another. When we change the preposition we use, it often changes what the sentence means.
These are some prepositions of place :
- in
- at
- on
- above
- below
- beside
- behind
- in front of
- under
- along
- through
- by
- between
- among
- beyond
Which one to use? Let’s make examples for each of them to understand better.
Prepositions of place
1. In
Use “in” for :
- something/someone inside a large area, like a city, country, park
Examples :
The president is in New York.
(New York is a city.)
She lives in the United States.
(The United States is a country.)
There are some children in the park.
- something/someone inside a building, room, space or container, or another three-dimensional space
Examples :
Alex is sleeping in the bedroom.
(The bedroom is a room.)
They put the table in the manager’s office.
(The manager’s office is in a building.)
Do you have money in your wallet?
- car and taxi
Examples :
She came home in a taxi.
Get in the car now!
2. At
Use “at” for :
- an event
Examples :
He’s at a conference.
I met him at a party.
- exact point
Examples :
Turn left at the corner.
There’s a fly at the bottom of that bottle.
- a place in terms of its function or meeting point
Examples :
He will give a speech at the auditorium.
(The function of an auditorium is to give a speech.)
We play tennis at the sports club.
(A sports club is a place to do tennis and other sports.)
I’ll see you at the restaurant!
(The restaurant is a meeting point.)
Note : “at” + home, work, school expresses activity.
For example :
- Jim is at work.
(Jim is working at his office or other place of work.) - Dean is at school.
(Dean is a student or a teacher. He is studying or teaching there.) - Sam is at home.
(Sam is doing things at his home.)
3. On
Use “on” :
- for a point on a surface
Examples :
She wants to hang these pictures on that wall.
I stepped on the new carpet.
- for a point on a fixed line
Examples :
I met them on the road to Bogota.
We spent a week on the coast of Italy.
- with ceiling and floor
Examples :
My cake fell on the floor.
The spider is on the ceiling!
- for public transport vehicle
Examples :
I cannot sleep on a bus.
She enjoys traveling on trains.
We met them on a plane.
Work in or work at or work on?
Use “work in” to tell a particular type of business or to tell a physical place where you’re working.
Examples :
I work in real estate.
(Real estate is a type of business.)
I work in real estate in that building.
(That building is a physical place.)
Use “work at” to tell a specific name of a place.
Example :
I work in real estate at Redfin.
I work at Redfin.
(Redfin is a real estate company.)
Use “work on” to tell things that you’re doing.
Example :
I’m working on a new project at Redfin.
(A new project is a thing that I’m doing now.)
Can we end the question with at, in, on?
It depends on the question.
For example :
- Where is she at? (wrong)
Where is she? (correct)
- Where does she live in? (wrong)
Where does she live? (correct)
- Where did you hang the pictures on? (wrong)
Where did you hang the pictures? (correct)
Exception for :
- What did you step on? (correct)
What did you step? (wrong)
Explanation :
“Is”, “live”, “hang” don’t need an object to answer.
For “step”, you need an object to step on.
The prepositions “in”, “at”, and “on” not only show place. They can show time too.
For example :
I was born in July.
He will arrive at 1 p.m.
They stay here on the weekend.
How to use them? Head to my blog post about Prepositions of Time.
4. Across
Use “across” to :
- talk about something on the other side
Example :
I can see some friends across the room.
(The friends are on the other side of the room.)
- talk about taking something from one side to the other side with limit or crossing it
Examples :
We will take a boat across the river.
(We travel from one side of the river to the other side.)
The plane flies across the Pacific Ocean.
5. Over
We use “over” :
- when moving to the other side where there is a barrier.
Example :
Mike jumped over the gate.
(There was a gate blocking Mike.)
- when one thing covers another
Example : Put this cloth over the bed.
- when one thing is higher than another
Example : I saw a big bird fly over the lake.
- when moving on a surface
Example : Shall we walk on the road and look for a hotel?
6. Along and through
“Along” is used for something that follows a line or lane.
Examples :
The cat walks along the fence.
We strolled along the beach after lunch.
“Through” as a preposition of place describes a passage or movement within an object, space, or area. Something or someone is entering one side and coming out of the other side of a specific location.
Examples :
She walked through the forest.
The cat crawled through a small hole in the fence.
The subway train travels through the tunnel.
7. Among
“Among” is used to identify something as part of a group. It’s not commonly used to give physical location like the other prepositions. It gives an abstract sense of the place.
“Among” is common in American English, while “amongst” is more common in British English.
Examples :
I cannot find my notebook among these books.
Is there a dictionary among these books?
8. Beyond
“Beyond” indicates something far away, that we may or may not see.
Examples :
She said that the lake is beyond the forest.
Our village is beyond that mountain.
9. By and beside
“By” and “beside” are interchangeable. You can use both of them when you want to tell something or someone is next to a certain thing.
Examples :
She stood by/beside her best friend during the concert.
The cat slept by/beside the fireplace to stay warm.
He always puts the book by/beside his bedside table.
Prepositions of place : precise position
Certain prepositions of place give precise position or location of something in relation to another object. We usually use them to answer questions “where”.
Let’s make some examples.
1. Above
Use “above” when :
- when one thing is higher than another
Examples :
A bird is flying above my cat.
They gave me a room above the kitchen. It’s hot.
- two things are not directly on top of each other
Example : His house is above sea level.
- relating to documents
Example : Write your name above the line.
2. Under and below
“Under” and “below” look similar. They’re the opposite of above. Use them when one thing is lower than another.
Examples :
The kitchen is below/under my room.
The bed is under the cloth.
The sea level is below his house.
Don’t write below the line.
3. Between
“Between” is used to talk about something or someone in relation to two things or places or people.
Examples :
The dog is sleeping between the two pillows on the couch.
The park is located between a school and a library.
He shared the meals between his two siblings.
4. In front of and behind
“In front of” indicates something is facing the other thing.
Examples :
The teacher is standing in front of the class.
Please stand in front of the camera.
“Behind” gives the location of something that is partly or completely hidden by an object in front of it. You usually cannot see something if it’s behind an object.
Examples :
I didn’t see him because he was standing behind the stage during the concert.
The kid is so shy. She always stands behind her mom.
5. Opposite
“Opposite” indicates something is facing or across from something else, like two people sitting and looking at each other.
Examples
Sarah always sits opposite Tom at work.
The blue house is opposite the red house.
What you can do with prepositions of place
After you know the use of those prepositions, now take action. Pick a room and try to identify the positions of every object you can find.
In this way, you can practice your vocabulary and grammar at the same time.
You might realize that your room is messy and you can rearrange the things like :
- Put your books on the shelf.
- Arrange your clothes in the wardrobe
- Pick up the things on the floor
- Hang a good motivation poster on the wall.
Grammar Book Reference
Azar, Betty Schrampfer, et al. Basic English Grammar. Pearson Education, 2014.
DK. English for Everyone: English Grammar Guide: A Comprehensive Visual Reference. DK Publishing (Dorling Kindersley), 2016.
Thomas, Barbara, et al. Grammar and Vocabulary for First and First for Schools Book with Answers and Audio. Cambridge University Press, 2015.
What can I do for you?
We’re not perfect. But at least we’re trying to learn.
Did I forget to include another prepositions of place? Send me messages and I will make this article better for you!