Prepositions of place: in, on, at and more

In The keys are on the hook, the word on tells you where the keys are. That is the job of a preposition of place: it links a noun to a location. English learners often find these small words hard because every language divides space in its own way. Spanish uses en for both in and on, for example, and many languages have nothing that works exactly like at. This guide explains the three most common prepositions of place (in, on and at), gives a chart of everyday places, and then covers the others you need to describe where things are. For a wider look at this word class, see prepositions.

In, on and at: the basic idea

Think of the three words as a scale from large and enclosed to small and exact. In is for something inside a space with edges: a room, a box, a city, a country. On is for something touching a surface or placed along a line: a table, a wall, a street, a river. At is for a point: a precise spot, an address, or a place where you do something, like a store or a desk.

When to use in

• Inside a room, building or container: The milk is in the fridge. Grace is in the library.
• Inside an area with borders, such as a city, state, country, park or neighborhood: They live in Denver. There's a pond in the park.
• In small vehicles you sit inside: in a car, in a taxi, in a canoe. The dog fell asleep in the car.
• In a liquid, in the air or in the weather: in the water, in the sky, in the rain, in the sun.
• In a line, row or group: We waited in line for an hour. Let's sit in the front row.
• In pictures, books and mirrors: Who's that in the photo? I read about it in a magazine.
• In the corner of a room: There's a tall plant in the corner.
• In some set phrases: in bed, in class, in the hospital (British English: in hospital), in the middle, in the country (outside the city).

When to use on

• Touching a surface, including walls and ceilings: Your phone is on the desk. There's a spider on the ceiling.
• Streets and roads, in American English: We live on Maple Avenue. (British speakers often say in here.)
• Floors of a building: Her office is on the fifth floor.
• Large vehicles you can stand up and walk around in: on the bus, on the train, on a plane, on a ship, on the subway.
• Things you ride by sitting on top: on a bike, on a motorcycle, on a horse, on a skateboard.
• Coasts, rivers and lakes, when you mean beside them: a town on the coast, a cabin on the lake.
• Pages, screens and websites: Look at the chart on page 9. I saw the news on my phone.
• Left and right: The pharmacy is on the left. Keep the river on your right.
• Islands and farms: They spent a week on an island. My uncle grew up on a farm.
• Body parts and clothes: a cut on her hand, a stain on my sleeve, a ring on her finger.

When to use at

• A point or exact spot: Wait for me at the entrance. Someone is at the door.
• An address with a number: She lives at 18 Birch Road.
• A place where an activity happens, such as school, work, a store or a station: He's at work. I'll meet you at the station.
• Events: at a party, at the concert, at a wedding, at the game.
• Positions in a line, room or page: at the top, at the bottom, at the end of the hall, at the back of the room.
• Furniture or equipment you are using: at my desk, at the computer, at the table (sitting by it to eat or work).
• Home: at home, with no the. Is anyone at home?

In, on or at? A quick chart

Use this chart for the places learners ask about most. Where two prepositions are possible, both are given.

Addresses: from big to small

Addresses show the scale clearly. Use in for large areas, on for streets and at for an exact address with a number. Apartments and floors follow their own patterns.

In or on for cars, buses and bikes

Choose by size and how you ride. If you can stand up and walk around inside (a bus, train, plane, ship or subway), use on. If you sit inside a small space and can't walk around (a car, taxi, truck or small boat), use in. If you sit on top (a bike, motorcycle, horse or skateboard), use on. To say how you travel, use by with no article: by car, by bus, by train. For walking, the usual phrase is on foot.

Other prepositions of place

Prepositions that are easy to mix up

• Above or over: both mean higher. Over often suggests covering or crossing (a bridge over the river, a blanket over her knees); above simply means higher (a shelf above the desk).
• Under or below: under usually means directly beneath or covered (under the table); below is common for levels (the apartment below ours).
• Between or among: use between for clearly separate items and among for a group or crowd. See among vs. between.
• Beside or besides: beside means next to; besides means in addition to. See beside vs. besides.
• In front of or in the front of: in front of the car is outside it, ahead of it; in the front of the car is inside it, in the front seat.
• Next to or near: next to means right beside, with nothing in between; near only means not far away.
• In the corner or on the corner: inside a room it's in the corner; where two streets meet it's on the corner or at the corner.
• Opposite or across from: both mean facing on the other side. Across from is more common in American English.

Place or movement: in or into, at or to

In, on and at describe where something is. To show movement to a place, English often uses into, onto and to. The cat is in the box (position). The cat jumped into the box (movement). We're at the beach (position). We're going to the beach (movement). In casual speech, Americans often use in and on for movement too (jump in the pool), and that is fine. For spelling questions, see into vs. in to and onto vs. on to.

Two words need special care. With arrive, use in for cities and countries and at for buildings and points: We arrived in Boston at noon and arrived at the hotel an hour later. With home, use no preposition after verbs of movement: go home, come home, get home, not go to home.

Common mistakes

• I live in Oak Street. In American English, streets take on: I live on Oak Street.
• She is at the kitchen. For inside a room, use in: She is in the kitchen.
• We met in the bus stop. A stop is a point: We met at the bus stop.
• He's sitting in the bus. Buses, trains and planes take on: He's sitting on the bus.
• The picture is in the wall. Use on for surfaces: The picture is on the wall. (In the wall means inside it, like a pipe.)
• I'm going to home. Leave out to: I'm going home.
• Meet me at the fifth floor. Floors take on: Meet me on the fifth floor.
• We arrived to the airport. Use at with arrive and a building: We arrived at the airport.
• The bank is in front of the park, when you mean on the other side of the street. Use across from: The bank is across from the park.