Prepositions

Master prepositions in English: place, time, direction, and verbs with prepositions. Essential for expressing spatial and temporal relationships.

Level A2-B1-B2-C1-C2⏱️ 60 min📋 Requires: Basic vocabulary, Understanding of nouns and verbs

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Prepositions are words that show the relationship between a noun or pronoun and other words in the sentence. They indicate location, time, direction, cause, and other relationships.

📋 Quick Reference

1Place: in, on, at, under, over, between

2Time: in, on, at, for, since, during

3Direction: to, from, into, out of, through

4Cause: because of, due to, thanks to

5They are always followed by nouns/pronouns

They show where something or someone is in relation to another object or place.

Main Prepositions of Place

Preposition	Use	Example	Meaning
in	Inside enclosed spaces	in the room	in the room
on	On surfaces	on the table	on the table
at	Specific point	at the station	at the station
under	Below	under the bed	under the bed
over	Above (without touching)	over the bridge	over the bridge
between	Between two things	between the cars	between the cars
next to	Next to	next to the park	next to the park
behind	Behind	behind the house	behind the house

🇪🇸 Spanish:

El libro está en la mesa

🇬🇧 English:

The book is on the table

📝 Translation:

The book is on the table

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Estoy en la cocina

🇬🇧 English:

I am in the kitchen

📝 Translation:

I am in the kitchen

🇪🇸 Spanish:

El gato está debajo de la silla

🇬🇧 English:

The cat is under the chair

📝 Translation:

The cat is under the chair

Using In, On, At for Place

When to use each one:

Examples:

In: enclosed spaces (in the car, in the room)
On: surfaces (on the table, on the wall)
At: specific points (at home, at school, at work)

💡

Remember: "At home" is an exception — we use "at" even though it is an enclosed space.

They show when something happens in relation to time.

Main Prepositions of Time

Preposition	Use	Example	Meaning
in	Months, years, seasons	in January, in 2023	in January, in 2023
on	Specific days, dates	on Monday, on July 4th	on Monday, on July 4th
at	Specific times	at 3 PM, at night	at 3 PM, at night
for	Duration	for 2 hours, for a week	for 2 hours, for a week
since	From a specific point	since Monday, since 2020	since Monday, since 2020
during	During a period	during the summer	during the summer
until	Until a moment	until 5 PM	until 5 PM

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Voy al trabajo los lunes

🇬🇧 English:

I go to work on Mondays

📝 Translation:

I go to work on Mondays

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Nací en 1990

🇬🇧 English:

I was born in 1990

📝 Translation:

I was born in 1990

🇪🇸 Spanish:

La reunión es a las 3 PM

🇬🇧 English:

The meeting is at 3 PM

📝 Translation:

The meeting is at 3 PM

Using In, On, At for Time

When to use each one:

Examples:

In: longer periods (in January, in the morning)
On: specific days (on Monday, on Christmas Day)
At: specific moments (at 3 PM, at midnight)

⚠️

Exceptions: "At night", "at the weekend", "in the morning/afternoon/evening".

They show where something or someone is moving to or from.

Prepositions of Direction

Preposition	Use	Example	Meaning
to	Toward a place	go to school	go to school
from	From a place	come from Spain	come from Spain
into	Enter a place	walk into the room	walk into the room
out of	Leave a place	get out of the car	get out of the car
through	Through	walk through the park	walk through the park
across	Across	walk across the street	walk across the street
up	Upward	go up the stairs	go up the stairs
down	Downward	go down the hill	go down the hill

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Voy a la tienda

🇬🇧 English:

I go to the store

📝 Translation:

I go to the store

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Vengo de la oficina

🇬🇧 English:

I come from the office

📝 Translation:

I come from the office

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Camino por el parque

🇬🇧 English:

I walk through the park

📝 Translation:

I walk through the park

✅

Tip: "To" shows movement toward a place; "from" shows movement away from a place.

Some verbs are always followed by specific prepositions.

Common Verbs with Prepositions

Verb	Preposition	Example	Meaning
listen	to	listen to music	listen to music
look	at	look at the picture	look at the picture
wait	for	wait for the bus	wait for the bus
depend	on	depend on you	depend on you
believe	in	believe in God	believe in God
think	about	think about it	think about it
talk	to/with	talk to my friend	talk to my friend
arrive	at/in	arrive at the station	arrive at the station

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Escucho música todos los días

🇬🇧 English:

I listen to music every day

📝 Translation:

I listen to music every day

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Espero el autobús

🇬🇧 English:

I wait for the bus

📝 Translation:

I wait for the bus

🇪🇸 Spanish:

Pienso en mi familia

🇬🇧 English:

I think about my family

📝 Translation:

I think about my family

⚠️

Important! These combinations are fixed. You cannot change the preposition.

❌

Error: "I am in Monday" ❌
Correct: "I am on Monday" ✅
For specific days we use 'on'

❌

Error: "I listen music" ❌
Correct: "I listen to music" ✅
The verb 'listen' always goes with 'to'

❌

Error: "I go to home" ❌
Correct: "I go home" ✅
With 'home' we do not use 'to'

❌

Error: "I am at the bed" ❌
Correct: "I am in bed" ✅
To be in bed we use 'in'

1. Fixed prepositions

Some verb-preposition combinations are fixed.

Examples:

Listen to (listen)
Wait for (wait)
Believe in (believe in)

2. No preposition

Some verbs do not need a preposition.

Examples:

Go home (go home)
Arrive here (arrive here)
Enter the room (enter the room)

3. Difference between 'in' and 'at'

'In' for enclosed spaces, 'at' for specific points.

Examples:

In the car (in the car)
At the car (by the car)
In the hospital (in the hospital as a patient)
At the hospital (at the hospital as a visitor)

← Back to Theory

Prepositions

What are Prepositions?

📋 Quick Reference

Prepositions of Place

Using In, On, At for Place

Prepositions of Time

Using In, On, At for Time

Prepositions of Direction

Prepositions with Verbs

Common Mistakes

Important Rules

1. Fixed prepositions

2. No preposition

3. Difference between 'in' and 'at'