Prepositions of time, place and movement. Adjectives and verbs used with fixed prepositions

Prepositions of time:

The preposition at is used in the following descriptions of time:

• with clock times:

• I finished my work at 11.00.

• I always read a book at midnight.

• They came back at 10.20.

• with specific times of day, or mealtimes:

• She doesn’t read at night.

• They did not eat at lunchtime.

• Does he read at bedtime?

• with festivals:

• What are you going to do at Easter?

• I always visit my grandmother at Christmas.

The preposition in is used:

• with months, years, seasons, and longer periods of time:

• They were born in 1879.

• She was here in May.

• He does not like to walk in winter.

• with periods of time during the day:

• She has got a letter in the morning.

• He usually wakes up in the afternoon(s).

• I tried to work in the evening.

• to describe the amount of time needed to do something:

• They want to go to Spain in two weeks.

• You can travel there and back in a day.

• He will come here in a week.

The preposition on is used

• with days of the week, and parts of days of the week:

• We will have a party on Friday.

• He does not go to school on Mondays.

• We are going to the theatre on Wednesday evening.

• with dates:

• They will come on 29 April.

• He was born on 19 November 2001.

Before means that action or something else happened earlier than a certain point of time:

• I did it before Christmas.
• He would like to see her before Friday.

During is used to say when something happens:

• They saw him during the break.
• I was here during the lunch.

After we use when we want to say that one action happened later than another action or something else:

• Did you see her after lunch?
• They will come here after picnic.
• He came here after me.

Between expresses a period of time that separates two points:

• They saw me between 6 and 7 o'clock.
• Will I see you between Monday and Friday?

From is used to express a period of time:

• He will be at home from 3 till 5 o'clock.
• I am going to do this project from Monday till Friday.

Preposition of place:

On is used to show that one object is in a position above another object:

• My pen is on the table.
• He lives on the first floor.

At is used to show an exact position or particular place:

• She is at home.
• He is walking at the seaside.
• I was at the bank.

In means that an object is inside of something.

• There are a lot of toys in the box.
• I saw you in Baker Street.
• I live in New York.

Above means that a subject is higher than something else, but not directly over it:

• Two degrees above zero.
• Do you see a path above the lake?

Below means that subject is lower than something else.

• Two degrees below zero.
• The plane is just below the cloud.

Over means that an object is above or higher than something else, sometimes so that one thing covers the other:

• She held the umbrella over both of us.
• Most of the carpets are over $100.

Under means that an object is lower than (or covered by) something else:

• The dog is under the table.
• The pencil was under the carpet.

Behind means that an object is at the back (of something):

• I hung my coat behind the door.
• I saw it behind the desk.

Between means that an object is "in" or "into" the space which separates two places, people or objects:

• I do not know where I am. Maybe, between the bank and the park.
• The town lies halfway between Odessa and Nikolaev.

Prepositions of Movement

From is used to show the place where someone or something starts:

• I came from London two days ago.
• What time does the flight from Amsterdam arrive?

Into means that an object is towards the inside or middle of something and about to be contained, surrounded or enclosed:

• Will they go into the garden?
• I will put this pen into the box.

Across means that an object has a move from one side to the other of something with clear limits:

• She runs across the field.
• The car is moving across the park.