Райно РэйчетIn, on, at... Three such small words yet they can really mess with our minds! Well, I will try to explain this to you. But remember, the rules are sometimes bent...
We use "AT" for PRECISE TIME.
We use "IN" for MONTHS, YEARS, CENTURIES and LONG PERIODS OF TIME.
We use "ON" for DAYS and DATES.
So I will say at 3 o’clock, at 10.30am, at noon, at bedtime, at sunrise or at the moment.
We then say in May, in summer, in 1990, in the 80s, in the last century, in the dark ages and in the future.
This means that it happens on Sunday, on 6 May, on Christmas Day, on my birthday and on New Year’s Eve.
Here are examples of "at" in some standard expressions:
The moon shines at night.
I will go to the cinema at the weekend. (It is also acceptable to say "on the weekend" in some varieties of English)
I will see my friends at Christmas. ("On Christmas" in some varieties)
We arrived at the same time.
She is not here at present.
Be careful with "in" and "on":
I will see you in the morning, but I will be there on Wednesday morning. This also applies to the use of afternoon and evening.
And, of course, there are some exceptions — I’m sure you were anticipating this... When we use words like "last", "next", "every", and "this" we do not use "at", "in" and "on".
I went to South Africa last November. (Not in last November)
She is leaving next Tuesday. (Not on next Tuesday)
I go home every Christmas. (Not at every Christmas)
I will see you this afternoon. (Not in this afternoon)
I do hope this helped you a little... Speak, speak, speak until next time!
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