Welcome to your first step in mastering English grammar! Today, we’re going to learn about prepositions of place and time. Don’t worry, it sounds complicated, but it’s actually quite simple. We’ll focus on the most common and useful prepositions: in, on, and at. Understanding these little words will help you speak and understand English much better, especially when talking about where things are and when things happen. Let’s get started and make learning English grammar fun and easy!

What are Prepositions of Place and Time?

Prepositions are like little helpers in sentences. They tell us about the relationship between things. Prepositions of place tell us where something is. Think of them as location words. Prepositions of time tell us when something happens. They are like time markers.
In this lesson, we will focus on how to use in, on, and at for both place and time. These are very common in everyday English, so learning them well is a great way to improve your English for beginners skills and boost your spoken English practice.

Prepositions of Place: IN, ON, AT

Let’s start with prepositions of place. Imagine you are describing where things are in your house or your city. In, on, and at are super useful for this!

IN for Place

We use IN for:

• Enclosed spaces: Think of something being inside walls or borders.
• Example: The book is in the bag. (The bag is an enclosed space)
• Example: She lives in a small house. (The house is enclosed by walls)
• Example: My pen is in my pocket. (The pocket is like a small container)
• Cities, countries, and continents: Larger areas are often used with IN.
• Example: I live in London. (London is a city)
• Example: She is from Italy. She lives in Italy now. (Italy is a country)
• Example: Africa is a big continent. Elephants live in Africa. (Africa is a continent)
• Water: When something is surrounded by water.
• Example: Fish live in the sea. (The sea is a large body of water)
• Example: He is swimming in the pool. (The pool is filled with water)

Remember: IN is for being inside something or in a larger area.

ON for Place

We use ON for:

• Surfaces: When something is touching a surface.
• Example: The book is on the table. (The book is touching the table’s surface)
• Example: The picture is on the wall. (The picture is attached to the wall’s surface)
• Example: There is a spider on the ceiling! (The spider is walking on the ceiling’s surface)
• Streets and roads: When we talk about being on a specific street.
• Example: My house is on Main Street. (Main Street is a road surface)
• Example: The shop is on Oxford Street. (Oxford Street is a street surface)
• Public transport: When you are traveling using buses, trains, or planes.
• Example: I am on the bus now. (You are on the surface of the bus, inside it)
• Example: She is on the train to Paris. (She is traveling on the train)
• Example: They are on a plane to New York. (They are traveling by plane)

Remember: ON is for being on a surface or on streets and public transport.

AT for Place

We use AT for:

• Specific points or addresses: When we are talking about an exact location.
• Example: Meet me at the bus stop. (A specific point where buses stop)
• Example: She is waiting for you at the entrance. (A specific point of entry)
• Example: Our office is at 123 Main Street. (A specific address)
• Home, school, work, and university: These are considered specific places or institutions.
• Example: I am at home. (Your house as a specific location)
• Example: The children are at school. (The school building as a specific place)
• Example: He is at work today. (His workplace as a specific location)
• Example: She is studying at university. (The university building as a specific place)
• Events: When you are at a specific event.
• Example: They are at a party. (A party is a specific event)
• Example: We are at a concert tonight. (A concert is a specific event)
• Example: She is at a meeting. (A meeting is a specific event)

Remember: AT is for specific points, addresses, and institutions like home, school, work, and events.

Prepositions of Time: IN, ON, AT

Now, let’s look at prepositions of time. We use in, on, and at to talk about when things happen. The rules are a little different from place, so let’s learn them step-by-step!

IN for Time

We use IN for:

• Months, years, centuries, and seasons: Longer periods of time.
• Example: My birthday is in July. (July is a month)
• Example: I was born in 1990. (1990 is a year)
• Example: This happened in the 20th century. (20th century is a century)
• Example: We go swimming in summer. (Summer is a season)
• Parts of the day: Morning, afternoon, evening (but NOT night!).
• Example: I drink coffee in the morning. (Morning is a part of the day)
• Example: We eat lunch in the afternoon. (Afternoon is a part of the day)
• Example: They watch TV in the evening. (Evening is a part of the day)
• Weeks: When talking about weeks in general.
• Example: I will see you in two weeks. (Weeks as a period of time)
• Example: We are going on holiday in a week. (Weeks as a period of time)

Remember: IN for longer periods of time like months, years, seasons, and parts of the day (except night).

ON for Time

We use ON for:

• Days of the week: Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc.
• Example: I go to English class on Mondays. (Monday is a day of the week)
• Example: She works on Fridays. (Friday is a day of the week)
• Example: We relax on the weekend. (Weekend refers to days of the week)
• Dates: Specific days of the month.
• Example: My birthday is on the 5th of July. (5th of July is a specific date)
• Example: The meeting is on May 20th. (May 20th is a specific date)
• Special days and holidays: Like Christmas Day, New Year’s Day.
• Example: We eat turkey on Christmas Day. (Christmas Day is a special day)
• Example: They celebrate on New Year’s Day. (New Year’s Day is a holiday)

Remember: ON for specific days of the week, dates, and special days.

AT for Time

We use AT for:

• Specific times: Clock times.
• Example: The lesson starts at 9 o’clock. (9 o’clock is a specific time)
• Example: Dinner is at 7 pm. (7 pm is a specific time)
• Night and midnight: Specific times of the night.
• Example: I sleep at night. (Night is considered a specific time period in contrast to parts of day)
• Example: The party finished at midnight. (Midnight is a specific time)
• Weekend (in some cases – especially British English): Can be used instead of ‘on the weekend’.
• Example: What do you do at the weekend? (Weekend as a general time period)
• Specific moments or short periods:
• Example: At the moment, I am busy. (A short, specific period)
• Example: At lunchtime, we eat together. (Lunchtime as a specific, short period)

Remember: AT for specific times, night, and short periods.

Let’s Practice!

Fill in the blanks with in, on, or at:

1. The cat is sitting ___ the sofa.
2. We are going to Paris ___ June.
3. The meeting is ___ 2 pm.
4. She lives ___ a big city.
5. They play football ___ Sundays.
6. My keys are ___ my bag.
7. See you ___ the cinema!
8. He was born ___ 1985.
9. We eat breakfast ___ the morning.
10. The picture is ___ the wall.

Answers to Practice Exercises

1. The cat is sitting on the sofa.
2. We are going to Paris in June.
3. The meeting is at 2 pm.
4. She lives in a big city.
5. They play football on Sundays.
6. My keys are in my bag.
7. See you at the cinema!
8. He was born in 1985.
9. We eat breakfast in the morning.
10. The picture is on the wall.

Practice Speaking with Lingofrnd

Now that you’ve learned about prepositions of place and time, it’s time to practice speaking! Using prepositions correctly will make your English sound much more natural and clear. Do you want to practice using in, on, and at in real conversations?
Lingofrnd is your AI spoken English teacher, ready to help you practice! You can practice using prepositions of place and time in fun and engaging conversations. It’s a great way to improve your spoken English practice and build confidence in speaking English.

Visit Lingofrnd.com to learn more and start practicing today!
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Keep practicing, and you’ll become a preposition pro in no time! Learning English grammar can be easy and fun, especially when you focus on practical usage. Keep up the great work!