Prepositions of Place

A preposition of place is a word which helps to

describe where something or somebody is. A preposition of place
describes the location of something.

at
Specific point or place
We can use “at” to describe a very specific point or place. 

If something is at a point, (it could be a building) we use ‘at’:

at the airport at the door
at the table at the bus stop
at the cinema at the top
at the bottom at the pub
at the traffic lights at the front
at the back at school
at university at the window
at the hospital at the piano

The postman is at the door.

There is a supermarket at the end of the street.

Conclusion, for buildings, we use “at” for a general description of where

somebody has gone and we use “in” to specifically say the person is
inside the building.

An exact address
 

An exact address is an address with the name of the street and also the
number of the street. Example:

Mark lives at 55 Oxford Street.

If we do not know the exact address. If we only know the name of the
street, then we use “on” as the preposition:

Mark lives on Oxford Street.

Events
We use the preposition “at” to describe being present at an event.
Examples:

I was at a party last night.

Where is David?
He is at a concert.

A stop on a journey
We stopped at a small village.
The train from Manchester to London stops at Birmingham.

in
Enclosed space / a large place with boundaries
We use the preposition “in” for an enclosed space or a place which is
surrounded by boundaries. Examples:

The dog is in the garden.

I have an apple in my bag.

David’s car is in the car park.
Let’s go for a walk in the forest.

Basics:
If something is contained inside a box or a wide flat area, we use ‘in’:
in the newspaper in a house
in a cup in a drawer
in a bottle in a bag
in bed in a car
in London in England
in a book in a pub
in a field in the sea
in my stomach in a river
Towns or cities
A very common use of the preposition “in” is for towns and cities. In
english, we do NOTuse “at” for towns and cities:

I was born in Manchester. 

Jane lives in London. 

Jane lives at London. 

Where is Mark?
He’s in Birmingham today.

on
For a surface
The preposition “on” is often used to describe a surface. Examples:

There’s a clock on the wall.

If something is on a line or a horizontal or vertical surface, we use ‘on’:

on the table on the wall
on the floor on the window
on my face on a plate
on the page on the sofa
on a chair on a bag
on the river on a t-shirt
on the ceiling on a bottle
on a bike on his foot

Attached to
If something is physically attached or joined to something else, then we
use the preposition “on”. Example:

She is wearing a ring on her finger.

Close to a river
If something is directly next to a river, then we use the preposition “on”:

London is on the River Thames.

 left, right
 a floor in a house
 used for showing some methods of traveling
 television, radio

Here are some more common ones that don't really fit:
- on TV - on the radio
- on the bus - at home
- on a train - at work
- on a plane

Prepositions of movement show movement from one place to another place.

These prepositions always describe movement and we usually use them with
verbs of motion.

The most common preposition of movement is the preposition to, which describes

movement in the direction of something, for example:

 How do you go to work?

 He drove to London in five hours.
 Nobody came to the party

across: movement from one side to the other side of something

 It took us three days to drive across the desert.

 The dog ran across the road and nearly got hit by a car.

around: movement passing something in a curved route, not going through it

 A big dog was sleeping on the floor so she had to walk around it.
  They walked around the town for an hour.

away from: indicating the point where a movement begins 

 The mouse ran away from the cat and escaped.

down: movement from a higher point to a lower point of something

 They ran down the hill to the stream below.

 He climbed down the ladder to the bottom of the well.

from: indicating the point where a movement begins

 We flew from Bangkok to London.

 The police took my driving licence from me.

into: movement to an enclosed space; movement resulting in physical contact

off: movement away from (and often down from) something

 Please take your papers off my desk.

 The wineglass fell off the table and shattered on the floor.

on to, onto: movement to the top surface of something

 They went up on to the stage.

 Move the kettle onto the counter.

out of: indicating the enclosed space where a movement begins

 Take your hands out of your pockets and help me!

 He went out of the room to smoke a cigarette.

to: movement in the direction of something

 Could you give this to Kob please?

 Does this train go to London?

through | thru (AmE): movement in one side and out of the other side of

something

 The train goes through a tunnel under the hill.

 Hey! You just went thru a red light!
towards | toward (mostly AmE): movement in the direction of something

 The night sky got brighter as they drove toward the city.

 At last she could recognize the person coming towards her.

under: movement directly below something

 The mouse ran under the chair.

 Submarines can travel under water.

up: movement from a lower point to a higher point of something

 Jack and Jill ran up the hill.

 The boat takes two hours going up the river and one hour coming down.

 James Bond came into the room and took his gun out of his pocket.
 He walked around the table and moved toward the window.
 They saw someone running away from the school, past a car
and towards the road.
 They went up on to the roof.
 He jumped off the platform and ran over the rails just before the train
arrived.
 The prisoners squeezed through the window, ran across the grass and
escaped under the fence.
 Jack and Jill walked up the hill. Pretty soon they were tumbling downthe
hill.
 Did you walk here from home?
 They didn't go to school yesterday.