Unit 106: in, at, on (places 1)

in means inside something (in the kitchen, in a town, in the sea). at means at a point (at the door, at the bus stop, at the top of the page). on means on a surface (on the table, on the wall, on the ceiling), and also on a bike or a horse.

Go to the exercises

A in

in = inside something: in the kitchen, in a lift, in a taxi, in the pool, in a park, in a village, in the shopping centre, in Scotland.

"Where's Mia?" "In the bathroom." / "In the garden." / "In Leeds."
What's in that drawer / in that bag / in that tin?
My uncle works in a garage / in a hospital / in a warehouse.
We went for a swim in the lake / in the sea.
Inverness is in the north of Scotland.
I live in a city, but I'd love to live in the country.

B at

at = at a particular point: at the crossing, at the front door, at the junction, at his laptop.

at the top / at the bottom / at the end (of ...).

There's a man waiting at the crossing / at the front door.
The van is waiting at the traffic lights.
Hannah is working at her desk.
Put the date at the top of the page.
The post office is at the end of the road.

C on

on = on a surface: on the table, on a tray, on the roof, on the carpet, on the fridge door, on the ceiling.

Also on a horse / on a bike / on a motorbike.

There are some plants on the shelf and some photos on the wall.
There are lots of pears on that tree.
Don't sit on the step. It's wet.
There's a sticker on the parcel.
Who's that girl on the horse?

Exercises

106.1 Read each scene and answer the question. Use in, at or on + the words in brackets.

A man is chopping onions next to the cooker and the sink.
Where is he? (the kitchen)
In the kitchen.
In the kitchen.
An open shoebox. A pair of boots is inside it.
Where are the boots? (the box)
A closed box with a pencil lying on the lid.
Where is the pencil? (the box)
A mirror hanging above the fireplace.
Where is the mirror? (the wall)
A bus has stopped next to the bus stop sign. A woman is getting on.
Where is the bus? (the bus stop)
Some cows grazing inside a fenced area of grass.
Where are the cows? (the field)
Three people leaning on the railings outside a flat, two floors up.
Where are they standing? (the balcony)
A woman doing lengths in an indoor pool.
Where is she swimming? (the pool)
A man standing by the window of his flat, looking out at the street.
Where is he standing? (the window)
A fly walking upside down above the lamp.
Where is the fly? (the ceiling)
A boy sitting on top of a table, his legs dangling.
Where is he sitting? (the table)
A woman sitting on a chair, her laptop open in front of her on the table.
Where is she sitting? (the table)

106.2 Put in in, at or on.

inaton

Don't sit on the step. It's wet.
Don't sit on the step. It's wet.
What have you got your pocket?
Look! There's a cat the roof. How did it get up there?
There are lots of ducks this pond.
Our house is called Rose Cottage. The name is painted the gate.
"Is the station near here?" "Yes, turn right the traffic lights."
I usually buy my clothes the town centre.
My cousin lives Amsterdam.
There's a little church the top of the hill.
Was that the doorbell? I think there's someone the door.
Seville is a beautiful city the south of Spain.
There's a bakery the end of our street.
It's hard to carry a lot of shopping a bike.
I checked the results. My name was the bottom of the list.
There's a clock the wall the kitchen.

in, at, on (places 1)