PREPOSITIONS

At as a preposition of place
• At – to talk about a place we think of as a point
rather than an area, and about an event where
there is a group of people. It shows a general
location.
e.g. I arrived at New Street Station at 5.30.
There were very few people at John’s party.

• We use at before an address and in or on before

the name of a road.
• e.g. They’ve opened an office at 28 Lees Road.
• The church is in/on Park Road.
Note: on the corner of a street
In the corner of the room
 In as a preposition of place

• With the place or area to show that someone or

something is inside it.
e.g. She’s in the third room on the left.

Note: I had a hard day at the office.

I’ll be back in the office at three.

On as a preposition of place
• To show that someone or something is on a flat
surface
e.g. His name is on the door.
Snow fell on the hills.
 Expressions:

• at the front/back, at the top/bottom, at the

seaside, at the station/airport, at
home/work/school;
• in the picture/photo, in a queue/line, in
hospital/prison, in the mirror;
• on the left/right, on the first floor, on the
map, on the Sava, on the phone/the
computer, on television/the radio…
 Across/over
• a position on the other side of, or getting to the other
side of a bridge, road, border, river, etc.:
e.g. The truck came towards them across/over the
bridge.

Note 1: We use over rather than across when we talk

about reaching the other side of something that is
high, or higher than it is wide:
e.g. He hurt his leg as he jumped over the wall.

Note 2: We use across rather than over when we talk

about something we think of as a flat surface, or an
area such as a country or sea, :
e.g. He suddenly saw Sue across the room.
 Along
• When we talk about following a line of some kind (a path, a
road, a river, a beach, a canal, etc.)

e.g. I'd seen them walking along the road past my window
several times before.
Through
• to emphasise that we are talking about movement in a three
dimensional space, with things all around, rather than a two
dimensional space, a flat surface or area:

e.g. He pushed his way through the crowd of people to get to her.
He enjoyed the peace and quiet as he walked through the forest.
 Over/ under/ below/ above

• All four words can be used for positions in

a management hierarchy.
• e.g. Above me is the Sales Director. Under
me there are four sales staff.
 Above/below
• mean 'higher/lower than'
• can be used without an object
e.g. The floor above/below us is occupied by an insurance company. From
the mountain I could see the lake below.

Over/under
• mean 'directly above/below'
• both need an object
e.g. We flew right over Windsor Castle on our way into Heathrow.
There's still a lot of oil under the sea.

• Over can also be used for movement. In this case it is like

'across',
e.g. We have to go over/across to the other side of the street.
• Over can also mean 'covering'.
e.g. They've put a plastic sheet over the hole in the roof.
 Between

• With two or more people or things that we see as individual or

separate.
e.g. She held the diamond between her thumb and forefinger.

• When we talk about comparisons and relationships

( a difference between, a connection between..., a friendship between...)
e.g. What are the differences between rugby league, rugby union and American
football?
e.g. They are wrong to claim that there is a connection between unemployment
and crime.
Among

• We use among when we see the people or things as part of a

group or mass.
e.g. He stood among all his friends in the room and felt very happy.

Note: You can't say that you are among two people or things and when you talk about
comparisons and relationship
 By, beside, close to, near (to), next (to)

These all mean 'not far away'. We can often use either near (to) or
close to:
e.g. The plant often grows close to / near (to) the banks of rivers.

We use beside, by, or next to to say that one thing or person is at

the side of another:
e.g. Colin sat beside / by / next to her with his legs crossed.
 At as a preposition of time

We use at with points of time or periods of time that we think of as points. We

use at:
• with exact points of time:
e.g. at midday at midnight at 3 o'clock at 8.15

• with short holiday periods, such as Christmas, Easter, the weekend, etc.:
e.g. I'll see you at Easter. We often go walking at the weekend.

• with mealtimes, such as breakfast, lunch, dinner, etc.:

e.g. That morning at breakfast, my brother told us he was getting married.

• with night when we mean 'when it is night' or 'each night':

e.g. People can't go out on the streets at night any more, it's so dangerous.

Note 1: When we talk about a particular night we use in the night:.

e.g. I felt very restless in the night and had to take a sleeping tablet.

Note 2: The phrase at the moment (= now); but notice that we say in a
moment (= in a short period of time):
e.g. John's in Korea at the moment. • I'll be with you in a moment.
 In as a preposition of time
• With names of seasons, months and years
e.g. In March in 1978 in winter
• With parts of the day:
e.g. in the morning/ afternoon/ evening
On as a preposition of time
• With days of the week
e.g. on Wednesday
• With dates
e.g. on July 3rd

Note: At Christmas but : On Christmas Day

 During, for and throughout

• We use during or in to talk about something that

happens within a particular period of time:
e.g. The population of the city has actually fallen during the last
decade.
We can also use throughout to express a similar
meaning:
e.g. We had enough firewood to keep us warm during (the whole
of) the winter, (or...warm throughout the winter.)

• We use for to say how long something continues, and

during to say when something takes place:
e.g. You can only come in for a few minutes, (not ...during...)
I felt ill for a couple of days, but was fine after that, (not ...during...)
 By, until
• We use by when we say that something will happen or
be achieved either before a particular time or at that time
at the latest
e.g. She learned German by the age of 16. (She could speak it
fluently when she reached that age.)
• We use until when we say that something will continue
up to a particular time.
e.g. She learned German until the age of 16. (Then she stopped
learning it.)
•In negative sentences, until means 'nor before':
e.g. You mustn't open your presents until your birthday.

Note: In informal English we can use till instead of until.

1 A man with a scarf ___his neck is ___ a lift. He is leaning ____the wall
of the lift. The lift is coming up from the street _____.
2 In a moment the man will walk ____ the lift doors and ____the office. He
will put his jacket ___ the coat stand which is ____ the lift.
3 There is a man waiting for the lift. He has pressed the button to go___.
4 On the other side of the lift doors is Jane. She is walking ____ ____ the
lift _____ the room _____ the photocopier ______ a meeting room.
5 Jack is _______ the photocopier. _______ the photocopier is a shelf. He
is moving the boxes of paper ______the shelf ______the floor.
6 Sue and Mark are sitting at their desks _______ each other. Their
computers are ________ them on their desks. ________them is a
waste-paper bin and the photocopier is ________Sue.
7 Mark has put his coat _______ the back of his chair. Sue's bag is
______ her chair.
8 Sue is putting a letter ______an envelope and Mark is taking
something _____ _____ his drawer.
apply ___
concentrate ____ afraid of fed up ____
insist ____ proud ____
refer ____
amazed ____
approve ____
consist ____
fond ____
know ____ satisfied ____
rely ____ bored ____
believe ____ interested ____
cooperate ____ serious ____
lead ____ disappointed ____
specialise ____ keen ____
belong ____ shocked ____
decide ____
doubtful ____
listen ____
suffer ____ nervous ____
benefit ____ surprised ____
depend ____ enthusiastic ____
object ____
sympathise ____ optimistic ____
compete ____ suspicious ____
focus ____ excited ____
pay ____
pessimistic ____
take care ____
comply ____ tired ____
hope ____ Fascinated _____
qualify ____ pleased _____
wait ____ worried _____
• Underline the correct word.

1 Look in the Appendix at/by the end of the report.

2 When I got in/on the plane someone was sitting in my seat.
3 What a fantastic view! The sky above/over and the sea below/under.
4 Next week I'll be at/in Hungary for a few days.
5 Turn into Western Avenue and you'll see our offices on/at your left.
6 You can't miss it. The restaurant is exactly by/opposite the cinema.
7 I often work in/at home in the evening.
8 I bought this tie in/at Madison Avenue.
9 She'll be here in a few minutes - she's just at/on the phone at the moment.
10 The power socket is over there, by/at the door.
11 This graph isn't labelled properly. Write the units by/next to the X axis.
12 I went to visit my son in/at hospital yesterday.
13 Put a sheet above/over the machine to stop it getting dusty.
14 Siena is quite near/by Florence.
15 I'll see you tomorrow at ten thirty, in/by my office.
16 It's a large block. Our offices are at/on the fifteenth floor.
17 I saw Simon at/in the station while I was waiting for a train.
18 I must have been standing in/at the queue for half an hour.
19 You'll see our offices - they're by/near a furniture store, (the next block)
20 You'll see our offices - they're by/near a furniture store, (the next building)
Complete the sentences with in, at or on.

1 I live .......... Manor Road, ........ number 295.

2 You shouldn't really park............the pavement.
3 I had a lovely meal............the plane.
4 I'd like to live............the country when I retire.
5 Go to the end of the road, and you'll see the bank............the right.
6 I'll be arriving............your offices............Barcelona at three.
7 Lisbon is............the middle of Portugal,............the coast.
8 I'll meet you............the front of the building in ten minutes.
9 I wonder what's............television this evening.
10 The size of the text............the screen is very small. Couldn't it be bigger?
11 I live............a small village............the road to Dover.
12 ............the beginning of my career I worked in marketing.
13 It was a very well-run meeting. Erika was............the chair.
14 I wasn't looking............the mirror and I nearly had an accident.
15 She works............Seville,............the University.
16 The sales figures? Yes, I have them right here...............my hand.
17 I waited patiently............the back of the queue.
18 I think I left my briefcase............the chair............the restaurant.
19 I'm off sick at the moment, but I should be back............work next week.
20 The last Finance Minister is still...............prison.
Underline the correct word.

1 I think we should ask them for /about /with more information.

2 Can you supply us for/about/with enough parts for 5,000 vehicles?
3 You remind me about/of/for someone I know.
4 If I forget, remind me about/of/for it again at the end of the meeting.
5 The management blamed the union against/from/for causing the strike.
6 I'm writing to inform you for/about/on our new range of products.
7 We might have to split the order for/in/into two separate shipments.
8 Can you thank Mr Mateus about/for/with all his help?
9 I'd like to congratulate Patricia on/for/about winning Employee of the
Month.
10 This safety feature prevents the operative against/from/with suffering any
injury.
11 This year we'll be investing more than £4m on/in/to plant and new
machinery.
12 This year we'll be spending more than £4m on/in/to plant and new
machinery.
Underline the correct word.

1 I'm really angry about/with them for not letting us know sooner.
2 I've spoken to Robert and I'm reasonably happy with/for all the
arrangements.
3 I'm really happy with/for Maggie, she deserved to get promoted.
4 I'm a bit annoyed about/with all this confusion with the wrong invoices.
5 I'm a bit annoyed about/with them for sending the wrong invoices.
6 I'm sorry about/for what happened yesterday.
7 I'm sorry about/for arriving so late - I got delayed in traffic.
8 I feel very sorry about/for Frances. She didn't deserve to be treated like
that.
9 Low inflation is good at/for/with every sector of the economy.
10 She'd be excellent in Human Resources, she's really good at/for/with
people.
11 Richard, can you help us with this translation? You're good at/for/with
French.
12 If you need to refer the decision upwards, who are you responsible for/to?
13 As head of department, how many staff are you responsible for/to?
14 Who is responsible for/to the Scandinavian market?