When you want to know where someone is, you will usually ask: Where are you?
However, in the US, someone might ask Where are you at? or even Where you at?These are not grammatically correct, but they are very common in informal speech.
Prepositions of place (a.k.a. prepositions of location) are words that we use to create phrases that describe where something happens or where something is. In a prepositional phrase of place, a nounNo definition set for nounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. provides a location, and the preposition connects a person, place, thing, or action to that location. For example:
My lunch was on the table.
Look around the room you’re in right now and think about the things in it. Choose two items and consider how their position is related to each other. For example, is there a coffee cup on your desk? Do you have a pencil near your computer? Is a family member or pet sitting close to you? All of these descriptions use prepositions of place.
In this post, we’ll look at the most common English prepositions of place (at, on, in), how they’re used to make prepositional phrases, and how those prepositional phrases are used in English sentences.
We can use a preposition of place together with a nounNo definition set for nounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., noun phraseNo definition set for noun phraseLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum., or pronounNo definition set for pronounLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. to create a prepositional phrase of place:
preposition of place
noun phrase
under the sink
over the garden wall
on my desk
You can then use the prepositional phrase of place to describe the location of another noun or the location of an action (verbNo definition set for verbLorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.). The prepositional phrase of place usually follows the noun or action it’s describing:
The cleaning spray is under the sink.
The book on my desk is the one I need for class today.
We sat on the garden wall and listened to the birds.
At, on, and in are the three most basic prepositions we use to describe location in English. Let’s jump in and take a closer look at each of these prepositions.
We use at to describe a specific location or point in space.
Imagine you’re looking at a map — when you point to something on the map, it is a specific location and we use at + the specific location to create a prepositional phrase:
Can you meet me at the library?
The concert is at the performing arts center.
I’m at the beach. Where are you?
We also use at with addresses and intersections:
My mom lives at 295 River Road.
The taxi dropped me off at 83rd and Park.
Even though we think of at as a point, we often use it to describe places that have three-dimensions, such as a building. In these cases, we use at because we’re thinking of the location of the building, and not the building itself.
In a similar way, we sometimes use at with events because we are thinking of the event as a spot or point on a map:
I’m speaking at a conference next week.
Can you meet me at the party?
When you want to know where someone is, you will usually ask: Where are you?
However, in the US, someone might ask Where are you at? or even Where you at?These are not grammatically correct, but they are very common in informal speech.
We use on to describe the position of something that is touching a surface or a line.
A surface is something that is both long and wide and is usually flat, like the surface of a table, the surface of a road, or the surface of a planet.
Here’s a picture of my desk. A desk is a surface - it is wide and long. So we can use on to describe something that is touching the desk:
I usually keep my laptop on my desk.
The lamp on my desk needs a new lightbulb.
The wall is also a flat surface with length and width. So even though it is a vertical surface we can say:
The pictures on the wall show my friends and family.
Sometimes we use on for something that is “touching” a line as well:
He is walking on a tightrope.
The laundry is drying on the line.
We often use on before streets and rivers. We are thinking of these as lines that a building, city, or other location can touch:
I live on Main Street.
London is on the Thames.
The Empire State Building is on W 34th Street.
How to decide whether to use on or at? It depends if it is on a line or at a point.
My house is on Main Street.
My house is at 1440 Main Street.
We use on to discuss the type of vehicle that we use to travel somewhere because we are thinking of the vehicle as a surface that moves us from one place to another.
on a bus
on a plane
on a boat
on a skateboard
on a horse
on a bike
When we are discussing cars, we use in, not on, because we view a car as an enclosed space, not a surface. You can also use in with other enclosed vehicles if you want to focus on your experience of being inside that vehicle:
on a plane
in a plane
Communication networks (such as radio, TV, and phones) are a means of transporting information. The information uses them like a vehicle, therefore we use on with automated modes of communication:
I talked on the phone.
I saw it on TV.
I heard it on the radio.
My brother’s picture was on Facebook.
I spent time on the internet.
However, we do not use on with physical media, like books, newspapers, or letters. Use in with all physical media or with versions of these that are now online (e.g. emails, articles, posts, etc.)
❌ I read it on a book.
✅ I read it in a book.
❌ My brother’s picture was on the newspaper.
✅ That was in the newspaper.
❌ I saw that on the email.
✅ I saw that in the email.
We use on with television (TV), but in with movies or episodes. Why?
A television transports information, so we use on:
I saw my favorite actor on TV today.
A movie/episode contains the story, so we use in instead!
My favorite actor is in a new movie.
We use in to describe positions within enclosed spaces that typically have width, height, and depth.
The children like to play in the garden.
The key is in the top drawer.
Sometimes these are used for spaces that we view in our minds as having these qualities.
My brother’s picture was in the newspaper.
Did you know that we also view clothing as containers or enclosed spaces? Because we think of clothes this way, we use in to describe someone wearing certain clothes:
I think you look best in the blue shirt.
The woman in the black dress is on her phone.
Use this to help you remember when to use at, on, and in:
But at, on, and in aren’t our only prepositions of place! Let’s move on and take a look at some other common prepositions of place.
There are many other prepositions of place that we can use to describe spatial relationships. Some are individual words, others are longer phrases that we use like prepositions.
In this section we’ll introduce how these words and phrases are used to describe spatial relationships, but remember that some of these prepositions can also have other meanings! Check out our post on prepositions in English to learn more!
You might notice that sometimes there are two different options that are very close in meaning. Though there may be slight differences in usage, usually you can just use either option if it is appropriate!
One-word prepositions of place | |
---|---|
above at a higher place, usually not touching the other object
| |
behind near the back side or far side of something
| |
below in a lower position than something, usually not touching
| |
beneath under something, usually touching or covered by it
| |
beside at the side of something
| |
by near, usually on the same surface
| |
near a relatively short distance from something
| |
opposite placed face to face on both sides of a line or space
| |
over at a higher place not touching or covering something
| |
under at a lower position than something, sometimes covered by something
|
Phrases used as prepositions of place (= “compound prepositions”) | |
---|---|
on top of at a higher position than something, always touching the item below it
| |
in front of near the front of something
| |
next to near the side of something
| |
close to a short distance from something
| |
across from placed face to face on both sides of a line → less formal than opposite
| |
far from a long distance from something
|
These longer phrases that we use as prepositions of place are called compound prepositions, because they involve multiple words that work together. Sometimes you can change one of the words in these phrases in ways that slightly change the meaning.
✅ We waited in front of the book store for our friend to arrive.
✅ The mystery section is at the front of the book store.
Prepositions of place are words we use to create prepositional phrases that describe the location or position of something in relation to something else. We can create these prepositional phrases with a preposition + noun, and these phrases can be used to modify nouns and verbs.
The most common prepositions of place are at (for specific points and events), on (for stacked surfaces, modes of transportation, and modes of communication), and in (for enclosed spaces, including clothing).
We can also use other prepositions (like below, under, above, and more) and longer phrases (like across from, next to, in front of, etc) to create prepositional phrases of place.
Let’s take another quick look around the room - now that you’ve learned about different prepositions to describe the locations and positions of things, try describing the positions of some things around you!
And when you’re ready for some extra practice, check out these activities on using prepositions of place!