This article is part of our Complete English Grammar Practice Guide — explore all grammar topics with interactive exercises.
Prepositions are small words that cause enormous problems. Even advanced learners who handle complex grammar effortlessly often hesitate over whether to say "interested in" or "interested about", "arrive at" or "arrive to", "on Monday" or "in Monday". This guide covers all the main preposition patterns systematically, so you can stop guessing and start using them with confidence.
1. What Are Prepositions?
A preposition is a word that expresses the relationship between two elements in a sentence — typically the relationship between a noun (or pronoun) and another part of the sentence. Prepositions most often express relationships of time, place, direction, cause, manner, or possession.
The book is on the table. (place)
She arrived at noon. (time)
We walked through the park. (movement)
He succeeded by working hard. (manner)
This is a gift for you. (purpose/recipient)
English has around 150 prepositions, but a small core — at, in, on, to, for, from, with, by, about, of, over, under, between, through, across, along, into, onto, towards — handles the vast majority of real usage. The most troublesome ones for learners are at, in, and on, because these three small words cover a huge range of meanings and their choice depends on context rather than a single logical rule.
Unlike nouns or verbs, prepositions cannot be translated directly between languages. The preposition that works in your native language will often be wrong in English, and vice versa. The only solution is to learn English prepositions as part of English phrases, not as equivalents of words in another language.
2. Prepositions of Time
The three most important prepositions of time are at, in, and on. Each one is associated with a different level of time specificity:
| Preposition | Used with | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| at | Specific clock times; holiday periods; specific points | at 3 pm, at noon, at midnight, at Christmas, at Easter, at the weekend (BrE), at the moment |
| in | Months; years; decades; centuries; seasons; parts of the day | in March, in 2024, in the 1990s, in the 20th century, in summer, in the morning/afternoon/evening |
| on | Specific days; dates; named days | on Monday, on 15 April, on my birthday, on Christmas Day, on New Year's Eve, on a rainy afternoon |
A helpful memory device: think of at as a point on a clock, on as a specific day on a calendar, and in as a larger container of time (a month, year, or season). This image covers most cases.
Other important time prepositions:
- for — a duration of time: for three days, for two hours, for years
- since — from a point in the past to now: since Monday, since 2019, since I was a child
- during — within a period: during the meeting, during summer, during the war
- by — not later than: by Friday, by noon, by the end of the month
- until / till — up to a point: until midnight, till tomorrow
- within — inside a time frame: within a week, within 24 hours
- before / after — relative position in time: before lunch, after the meeting
I'll see you on Monday.
She was born in 1995.
The class starts at 9 o'clock.
I'll see you in Monday. (common error)
She was born on 1995. (years need "in")
3. Prepositions of Place and Location
The same three prepositions — at, in, on — also govern location, but with a slightly different logic:
| Preposition | Used for | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| at | A specific point or address; events; institutions (as activities) | at the door, at 10 Baker Street, at school (studying), at work, at the station, at the top |
| in | Enclosed spaces; cities; countries; regions; the sea/world | in the room, in London, in France, in the garden, in a car (enclosed), in bed |
| on | Surfaces; floors; named roads/streets; transport (open/public) | on the table, on the wall, on the second floor, on Oxford Street, on a bus/train/plane, on a horse |
Other frequently used place prepositions:
- above / over — higher than: the light above the table; clouds over the city
- below / under / beneath — lower than: below sea level; under the bed; beneath the surface
- beside / next to — at the side of: sit beside me; the shop next to the bank
- between — in the middle of two things: between the two chairs; between London and Paris
- among — surrounded by (more than two): hidden among the trees
- in front of / behind — position relative to a reference: in front of the cinema; behind the door
- opposite — facing: the hotel opposite the station
- near / close to — not far from: near the park; close to the city centre
4. Prepositions of Movement
Movement prepositions describe direction and path. They often pair with verbs of motion (go, walk, run, drive, fly, move):
- to — direction towards a destination: go to school, travel to France, walk to the station
- into — movement from outside to inside: walk into the room, get into the car, fall into a hole
- onto — movement from below/outside onto a surface: jump onto the platform, step onto the stage
- out of — movement from inside to outside: get out of the car, walk out of the building
- through — movement from one side to the other, passing inside: walk through the park, drive through the tunnel
- across — movement from one side to the other of a surface: swim across the river, walk across the road
- along — movement in a line parallel to something: walk along the beach, drive along the motorway
- around / round — movement in a circle or changing direction: walk around the lake, turn round the corner
- towards — moving in the direction of (without necessarily arriving): walk towards the exit
- away from — moving in the opposite direction: run away from the noise
- past — movement beyond a point: drive past the school, walk past the shop
- over — movement above and across: jump over the fence, fly over the mountains
She walked through the forest. (inside, from one side to the other)
He swam across the lake. (surface, from one side to the other)
They drove along the coast road. (parallel to the coast)
She jumped over the wall. (above and beyond)
5. Fixed Prepositions After Verbs and Adjectives
One of the most problematic areas for learners is that many English verbs and adjectives require a specific preposition that simply must be memorised — there is no logical rule. These are called prepositional verbs and dependent prepositions (or collocations with prepositions).
Fixed Prepositions After Adjectives
These adjective + preposition collocations are among the most frequently tested in exams and most frequently misused in conversation:
- interested in — I am interested in history.
- good at — She is good at maths.
- bad at — He is bad at cooking.
- afraid of — Are you afraid of spiders?
- proud of — They are proud of their work.
- aware of — She is aware of the risks.
- responsible for — He is responsible for the project.
- famous for — Italy is famous for its food.
- ready for — Are you ready for the exam?
- similar to — Your idea is similar to mine.
- married to — She is married to a doctor.
- different from — English is different from French.
- satisfied with — He is satisfied with the result.
- worried about — I am worried about the exam.
- excited about — She is excited about the trip.
- surprised at/by — I was surprised at/by the news.
- disappointed with/by/about — She was disappointed with the result.
Fixed Prepositions After Verbs
Many verbs also require a fixed preposition before their object:
- listen to — Listen to the teacher.
- look at — Look at this picture.
- wait for — Wait for me.
- apply for — She applied for the job.
- depend on — It depends on the weather.
- concentrate on — Concentrate on your work.
- agree with — I agree with you.
- deal with — We need to deal with this problem.
- apologise for — He apologised for being late.
- belong to — This bag belongs to her.
- believe in — Do you believe in luck?
- consist of — The team consists of five people.
- result in — The delay resulted in extra costs.
- refer to — Please refer to the guidelines.
For more grammar practice, try the Complete the Sentence exercise on LexFizz, where you fill in the correct preposition in context. The Grammar Quiz also includes preposition questions at multiple levels.
Never try to learn prepositions in isolation — always learn them as part of a phrase or sentence. Instead of memorising "interested = in", learn the whole chunk: "be interested in something". This way, you also absorb the grammatical pattern at the same time.