In, on, at. I know you're confused. Let me make things really easy for you,
and I promise you will never get them confused again. Now,
this is the most common mistake I hear with the word "at." Even my advanced learners say
this. Here are the most common uses of "in," "on," and "at," and how to remember them.
In, Put it in the bin. No, not on the bin. Not on the bin, in the bin. We use "in" mostly
to talk about things or people being inside an enclosed space. When we close the lid of the bin,
it is enclosed. Something is in the bin. Ah, get me out! You want to sit in the box? No,
you can use this for rooms as well because when you close the door, you are in an enclosed space,
four walls like a mime. I feel a bit like a mime today, actually. Maybe I shouldn't
be an English teacher. Maybe I should be a mime. So, I am in my room. The rubbish is in the bin.
Now, I know what you're thinking. When do we use "inside"? What's the difference between "in" and
"inside"? Well, let me tell you. "In" is much more general. We use it 90% of the time. However, if,
for some reason, you really want to emphasize that something is in an enclosed area, and it's
very important that you emphasize the position of the thing, you might want to use "inside."
For example, "Hi, I'm here. It's freezing. Can I wait for you inside?" So, in this example,
it's important that you emphasize to your friend that you are waiting inside the building rather
than outside the building. Let's look at some more uses of "in." I live in England. But hold
on a second. England isn't an enclosed area. So, for this one, I want you to use your imagination a
little bit. Sometimes, remembering grammar rules involves you making an image in your head. So,
with countries, I want you to imagine that every single country has a big wall around it. Okay,
much like a certain president wanted at one point. So, imagine there is a big, tall wall
around every country. So, when you are in that country, you are in an enclosed space. Okay,
try to keep that image in your head. Imagine those walls around England. So, when you are in England,
you are in an enclosed space. Just trust me on that one. Pictures and mirrors normally have
frames. Okay, so you are in the mirror, in the frame. So, when I look at myself, oh, I am looking
at myself in the mirror because I am inside this frame, just like in the same with a picture. You
can say the woman is in the picture because if you imagine there is a big frame around her, so she
is in that enclosed area of the frame. So, with pictures and mirrors, we say "in." We can use "in"
for a state or a condition. For example, "I am in a bad mood." So, with this one, if you are talking
about a mood or a condition, I want you to imagine that it surrounds you. If you are in a bad mood,
the bad mood is around you like a big cloud. It is enclosing your soul. It's trapping your soul. I am
in a bad mood. I am in it, and I have to escape out of it if I want to get rid of my bad mood.
Now, of course, the hardest one to remember is in the morning, at night,
in the afternoon. What do I say? So, for this one, I'm going to use this
great TikToker. I will link all of her social media and everything down below,
but she uses this great technique when she teaches. And she always says, "In the morning,
in the afternoon, in the evening, at night." Like she kind of drops that one at the end. So,
if you can remember "in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, at night," physically
do that with your fingers. In the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, at night. Okay,
that is your tech technique for remembering those tricky prepositions during the day.
And finally, for "in," let's look at books, TV shows, and movies. Now, similarly with other uses
of "in," I want you to imagine that characters and stories are trapped in the book. Like if I have a
book here, I open it up. Here's a character. And I close the book, and I trap them in. Same with a
TV show. I look, and they are trapped in the TV or in a film. They are trapped in the film. So,
you would say something like, "Oh, in this book, there is a huge love story." Or, "She plays a
really interesting character in that film." Okay, so we use "in" with films, TV shows, and books.
Now, before we move on to "on," let's just talk about why we say "in the car" but "on
the train." So, generally, if it is public transport, we say "on." So,
if it is something that you might take with other people, plane, train, bus, tram,
we say "on." But if it is a car, a van, a truck, a taxi, anything that's a vehicle, we say "in." So,
I'm getting in the taxi. I'm getting in the van. But you say, "I'm getting on the train,
on the bus, on the plane." Okay, moving on to some uses of "on." In general, "on" is used for
when something is in contact with a surface. On the table, on the chair, on the floor.
Now, this is where it gets confusing. For days of the week, we say "on" Monday. Now,
how do you remember this? Okay, picture a calendar on the floor. There's a big calendar,
like a mat on the floor. And if you want to move to the next day, you step onto it. Like I'm stood
on a calendar. So, when it's Tuesday, I move, and I am stood on Tuesday. I am not in Tuesday. I am
on it. I'm stood on top of it. Okay, try to keep picturing these images. That is how your brain
will retain the information if it has an image to connect it to. So, picture that calendar on
the floor, and you will be absolutely fine. "Hey, I want those papers on my desk on Monday." We also
use "on" for explaining the position of something on a street. So, think of a Monopoly board. When
you get your little house, you put it on the street, don't you? You put it on the street. So,
I live in a lovely house on a long street. "Hey, I want those papers on my desk on Monday,
or you'll be working on the street." Now, whenever you are using the internet, an app,
something online, we use "on." Okay, so I am on Twitter. I am looking on Google. I am watching
something on YouTube. Okay, so think of the internet on, online. That's the way to remember
it. "I saw it on the internet. You are a psychic." "Hey, I want those papers on my desk on Monday,
or you'll be working on the street. Don't let me see you on TikTok during working hours."
Now it's time for "at." Let's meet the "at" cat, Laura. This is ridiculous. What? Why am
I dressed like a cat? Well, will this help anyone remember how to use "at"? I think it can't hurt.
But I look silly. Just try it. Okay, but I'm not doing anything humiliating or embarrassing. No,
no, no, no. Of course not. Hello, dear friends. I'm the "at" cat. I have a lot of things to say
about that. I'm a furry little kitty. No, no, no. I'm not doing it, Laura. I'm not doing it.
I look ridiculous. I'm a professional. Oh, fine. We'll teach it the old-fashioned way.
So first of all, let's talk about the difference between "at" and "in." If you want to describe
the general location of where something or someone is, you should use "at." For example,
Mary is at school. However, if you want to emphasize that Mary is inside the building, then
you could say Mary is in the school. For example, I come to pick up my child Mary, and I'm waiting
in the outside playground, and I say, "Where's Mary?" And the teacher says, "Oh, Mary is in the
school. She's just finishing some work." But if I'm at home, I might say, "Oh, my child Mary is at
school." That's the general location of where she is. She's at school. So for big places where there
are multiple of them, like schools, churches, work, we use "at." Okay? So at church, at work.
Remember it this way. She is in the hospital. That emphasizes that she is in. She is enclosed. She is
being treated. She can't leave because they are treating her. Okay? So she is in the hospital.
It's very sad. She's having an operation. However, she is at the hospital. Doesn't say she's enclosed
in. She might be visiting. She might be working. She might be visiting to sing some
songs to the patient. She's at the hospital, but she can leave. So think of it that way.
We would also use "at" for a specific event or an occasion. Like, "I am at a party." Or,
"I was at a wedding." You are not trapped inside these occasions. You can leave. So, "I am at the
wedding. I am at the party. Whoop!" We also use "at" for specific times on the clock. "I will meet
you at 3:00. I will see you at 9:00 p.m." We also say "at noon," "at midday," "at midnight." Because
even though that is not a number, we're not saying three or four, they are still kind of on
the clock. So, "at midnight" is 12. So, it's the same as saying "at 12:00 p.m." We've just made a
new word for it. If this helps you, picture those cat clock thingies, you know, the cat clock, and
their tail goes like this. So, think of the "at" cat on the clock, cat at 9, at 10. That might work
for you. If you are not a visual learner, don't worry about it. But if you are, that might help.
Now, this is the most common mistake I hear with the word "at." Even my
advanced learners say this. So, we are good at something. We are not good in something. So,
"I am good at sports. She is bad at math. I am brilliant at tennis." That's a lie. I am
not brilliant at tennis. But we are good at, bad at. Remember that. Drill that into your
brains because that's one of the little mistakes that can make your level drop down a little bit.
So, what have we learned today? Images are extremely useful if you are struggling to remember
these grammar rules. Maybe it's "in," "on," "at." Maybe it's phrasal verbs. Maybe it's a particular
adjective. Make an image. Try to put visual images to that. However silly that might be, it might be
completely specific to you, an image that no one else would understand. But if it works for you,
that is all that matters. Okay, thank you so much for watching this video. If you enjoyed it,
please give it a like. If you would like to follow us on Instagram, you can do so
there. And if you want a one-to-one online English lesson with me or Bez,
the link for that is down below. Thank you so much for watching, and I will see you next time. Tata!