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12/02/2018 admin

AT, IN & ON to express location

Hoy publicamos la continuación del post de la semana pasada sobre las preposiciones AT, IN y ON para expresiones de tiempo. En la publicación de este lunes, veremos cómo se usan para expresar una ubicación.

Este tema es un poco más complejo que el anterior pero ten paciencia, ¡todo se aprende!

Tabla resumen del uso de preposiciones de ubicación en inglés

Aquí tienes otra tabla-resumen. A veces, la diferencia de uso entre algunas de las preposiciones no es muy clara. La mejor manera, pues, de aprenderla es practicar tanto como sea posible.

AT IN ON
When we think of a place as a point (including at home; at school; at work; at university) – We have to get off the bus at the next stop. – Turn left at the traffic Lights – Who is that man standing at the door? – Let’s meet at Jenna’s house – I’ll be at work until 5.30  When we think of a place as an area – When we were in Italy we spent a few days in Venice – There were some people swimming in the pool  To talk about a position in contact with an area – I sat on the beach – You’ll find details of TV programmes on page seven – Have you seen the notice on the notice board?
To talk about an event with a number of people – We went to a concert at the National Concert Hall – The meeting took place at the company’s head office in Frankfurt For cars and taxis – Laura arrived in a taxi – Come on; get in the car! With means of transport (apart from cars and taxis) – The bus was very full. There were too many people on it.
For addresses – The party is at 367 Wood Avenue Normally with class; hospital; prison; court (in class; in hospital…) – Anna’s mother is in hospital With coast; road to; the outskirts of; the edge of; border; the way to/from; etc. – We stopped to buy some things in a shop on the way home – The town where you live? Is it on the coast or inland?
At the top (of) I at the bottom (of) I at the end (of) – Write your name at the top of the page – Jane’s house is at the other end of the street With people or things that form lines (in a line; in a row; in a queue) – When I go to the cinema; I like to sit in the front row For technology – He’s been on the phone for hours – I found out about it on Facebook
For the world; the sky; the country; the countryside – There isn’t a cloud in the sky With left/right – In Britain we drive on the left / on the left-hand side
For enclosed spaces – There’s no-one in the room – What have you got in your hand? – All the rooms in the hotel have air Conditioning – There is a TV in the corner of the room (* but we say at/on the corner of a street) With premises; farm; floor; island – The hotel is on a small island in the middle of a lake – She lives and works on a farm – Our office is on the first floor
In a book / in a paper (= newspaper) / in a magazine / in a letter – Have you seen this picture in today’s paper? On a menu / on a map / on a list – Here’s a shopping list. Don’t buy anything that’s not on the list!
At the front / at the back of a building / theatre / group of people… – The garden is at the back of the house – Let’s sit at the front (of the cinema) In the front / in the back of a car – I was sitting in the back of the car when we crashed On the front / on the back of a letter / piece of paper… – I wrote the date on the back of the photo

Y ahora, toca practicar.

Ahora, es momento de practicar con estos ejercicios (las soluciones están a continuación).

  1. Look at those people swimming … the river
  2. There’s something wrong with the car. We’d better stop … the next petrol station.
  3. There’s nobody living … that island.
  4. There was an accident … the crossroads this morning.
  5. I like that picture hanging … the wall … the kitchen.
  6. We went to the theatre last We had seats … the front row.
  7. I don’t have your address. Could you write it … the back of this card?
  8. San Francisco is … the west coast of the United States.
  9. What is the tallest Building … the world?
  10. I couldn’t hear the She spoke quietly and I was sitting … the back of the class.
  11. … the end of the street, there is a path leading to the river.
  12. I don’t like cities. I’d much prefer to live … the country.
  13. We walked to the restaurant, but we went home … a taxi.
  14. The exhibition … the Museum of Modern Art finishes on
  15. My parents live … a small village about 50 miles from

 


Here are the answers

  1. In
  2. At
  3. On
  4. At
  5. On/in
  6. In
  7. On
  8. On
  9. In
  10. At
  11. At
  12. In
  13. In
  14. At
  15. In

Exercises from R. Murphy (2012): English Grammar in Use, 4th Ed, Cambridge University Press