Grammar guide The rule
Prepositions: in, on, at and the ones that follow verbs
Prepositions rarely translate one to one. For time and place, English follows the in–on–at pattern; after many verbs and adjectives, the preposition simply belongs to the word.
How to choose the preposition
First decide whether you are talking about time, place or a fixed pairing.
- Time
- in, on, at in for months, years and parts of the day; on for days and dates; at for clock times. in May · on Monday · at 7 pm
- Place
- in, on, at in for inside, on for a surface, at for a point or a place you visit. in the box · on the table · at the station
- After verbs
- Learn them as pairs The verb decides the preposition, not the meaning in your language. wait for · depend on · listen to · arrive in/at
- No preposition
- Where none belongs Some verbs take a direct object with no preposition. discuss the plan — not discuss about · ask himself — not ask to himself
Typical mistakes on this topic
- Wrong preposition: in, on, at and others He wrote a long paragraph on this essay. He wrote a long paragraph in this essay.
- Missing preposition after a verb (wait for) She is waiting Barbara at the station. She is waiting for Barbara at the station.
- Verbs with prepositions: depend on, listen to Next month they will move in a bigger city. Next month they will move to a bigger city.
- Extra preposition after verb He started to ask to himself many questions. He started to ask himself many questions.
- Adjectives with prepositions: interested in, good at His income is dependent of the harvest. His income is dependent on the harvest.
- Preposition after noun He had a real thirst of knowledge. He had a real thirst for knowledge.
What YabLab does with this mistake
- Catches it right as you write — comments, email, docs.
- Explains the why in your language, not just the fix.
- Helps you practice it until it is gone for good.
Grammar topics explained
- Present simple vs present continuous: when to use each
- Present perfect vs past simple: when to use each
- Irregular verbs: past simple vs past participle
- Passive voice: how to form it and when to use it
- A, an or the: how to use English articles
- Much vs many, some vs any: how to talk about quantity
- Modal verbs in English: can, could, must, should and the rest
- Will vs going to: how to talk about the future in English
- Gerund vs infinitive: -ing or to?
- Comparative and superlative adjectives: -er or more?
- Phrasal verbs: what they are and how to get the particle right