prepositions 'at' and 'in

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Could someone tell me the right of using prepositions such as ‘at’ and ‘in’?
I know that I’m at home, I’m at school, I’m at work…

But I don’t understand the difference between to work in and to work at.
Do I need to use “in” every time when I say- I work in somewhere? Or Are there any cases where I work at? I can’t understand it(

I work in or at Administration.
I work in or at the plant, the factory, the university, the institute, the hospital,

What is the difference between I work at the factory and I work in the factory?
What is the difference between I’m in the street and at the street?

Thanks in advance to the people who answer to these questions.

2

I work at a local school in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Or I work at the biggest factory in the country called AHAA. I work in Rio at the Estacio University…

I work in the administration field. Or I work in Brazil. Or I work in a very good environment.

I work at The British Museum. Or I work in a nice museum in Brazil.

I work in a street called Victoria Street. Or I work at Victoria Street.

3

Dear me, Andreia, I think you should be careful before posting. Your post is more confusing than the original, your answers are not all standard English, and you don’t answer the original question.

‘At’ refers to a point location, i.e. when your workplace is considered as a point. ‘In’ is a 2- or 3-dimensional preposition, and is used when you are thinking of your workplace as an area.

So you can say ‘I work at/in the factory’ with equal meaning-- it just depends on how you are viewing it. For streets, I would not use ‘at’ at all; for streets, it is a matter of ‘in’ vs ‘on’, with BrE using ‘in’ and AmE using ‘on’.

4

Thank you, I understood a bit. Could somebody give me examples?

5

A: Where’s the boss?
B1: He’s in the factory (i.e. right next door, or not outside)
B2: He’s at the factory (i.e. far away from here, across the city)

X: Where do you work?
Y1: I work in Administration (i.e. in the Administration Section, or in this building)
Y2: I work at Administration (i.e. at that building far over there)

6

Thank you Mister Micawber

7

Sorry Mister Micawber. I didn´t intend to correct anything. I just wrote the examples according to my opinion about the question. And of course those examples can be wrong. I didn´t say they were right in any moment. But we all are here to learn and maybe I can help others sometimes. Thank you for your explanations. They were perfect.

8

thank all . sometimes i was confused ,now it’s clear

9

Dear mister micawber,is the prep on correctly use in this sentence? no belt on the gift list.Thank you.

10

‘On the list’ is correct.

11

if use in the list,emphasize what?

12

Nothing, it is a second choice, but the usual collocation is ‘on a list/page/sheet/roll/etc.’

13

And the use of ‘in’ here is also correct? i don’t have it in my gifts

14

No-- I don’t even understand the sentence. ‘Among your gifts’??

15

LOL…i didn’t think so.I overheard someone saying it.I think what he meant was among his gifts.Thanks Mister Micawber!

16

In the list wouldn’t be an option, on the list was correct.
I am speaking as a native English speaker from the UK and sometimes, the Americans do it differently.

17

“i am complete novice at/in/to swimming.”

which one of at,in,to is correct in the sentence.

i understand the use of “at” and “in”, just briefly explain the use of “to” with example.

Thank You