Line英会話クラス
Lesson Plan September 1, 2023
Topic: At, In & On (Place & Position)
In this lesson we will cover the different uses of the prepositions of place and position at, in and on.
Section A: AT
We use “at” for a specific location or very near a specific location
at the corner
at the top of the page
at the end of the street
We also use “at” in some special expressions
at home (NOT at house)
at work
at school
at the top
at reception
Section B: ON
We use “on” when we are talking about a surface
on the wall
on the celing
on a page
on the floor
We also use “on” for public transport (especially vehicles where you can stand and move around)
on a bus
on a plane
on a train
There are also some special expressions
on an island
on the left
on the internet
Section C: IN
We use “in” when we are talking about an enclosed space
in a building
in a box
in my pocket
We also use “in” when we are talking about larger open spaces, which often have boundaries
in the garden
in a city
in France
There are also some special expressions which use “in”
in a newspaper
in the sky
in a book
Section D
We can use “in”, “at” or “on” depending on the context
I was in a shoe store yesterday. (= inside a building)
Turn left at the supermarket. (= giving directions)
There’s still a little water in the bottle. (= inside a container)
Did you read the label on the bottle? (= on the surface of a container)
There’s somebody at the door. (= somewhere near a door)
I can’t quite read that the sign on the door says. (= on the surface of a door)
Lesson Notes
We use the structure have something done when we arrange for somebody to do something for us; informal English we can use got
The walls were very dirty so I had them painted.
My washing machine is working again. I managed to have it fixed.
I got my haircut this week.
Dollop; a large, shapeless mass of something, especially soft food
She placed a generous dollop of sour cream on top of her baked potato
I like to add a dollop of fruit preserves to my morning oatmeal
The cafeteria staff plopped a dollop of mashed potatoes on my tray.
IN and AT for buildings
You can often use “in” or “at” with buildings. So you can say …
I bought some ice cream (in / at) the supermarket.
I had a delicious dinner (in / at) the restaurant down the road last night.
We usually say “at” when we say where an event takes place; a concert, a film, a party, a meeting etc
We went to a movie at the Kawasaki Art Centre.
The meeting took place at the company’s head office in Akihabara.
There was a robbery at the supermarket late last night.
IN and ON for locations
We use “in” with cities, towns, villages and countries.
She lives in a small town.
His home is in the south-east of Poland.
We use “on” with rivers, roads, and coasts
Komae is on the Tama River.
Chiba is on the east coast of Japan.
