The secret to using prepositions of time in English is never wrong

1.The preposition “in” is often used when talking about specific months, years, or seasons:

For example:

• I was born in November.

• I like to go hiking in spring.

2. In addition, “in” is also used for a certain period of time in the future:

For example:

• My mother will be on vacation in a few weeks.

  I am going to see my best friend in a couple of days.

3. The prepositional phrase “in time” means you have enough time to do something.

For example:

• We arrived in time for the movie.

• My friend Thomas finished the report in time for the conference.

Use the preposition “At” for specific times

4. The preposition “at” is used when referring to time.

For example:

• The movie starts at six o’clock.

• My father goes to bed at 10:30.

• My last class ends at two p.m.

In addition, “at” is also used to refer to a certain time of the year, such as special festivals.

For example:

• I love the atmosphere at Cherry Blossom time.

• People tend to become more hopeful at springtime.

5. Use “on” for specific days

The preposition “on” is used for specific days of the week:

For example:

• On Monday, I am taking my dog for a run.

• On Fridays, I get my hair done.

This preposition can also be used when referring to a day, month or a specific holiday:

For example:

• On Christmas Day, my family goes to church.

• On October 22nd, I am going to buy a new television.

The prepositional phrase “on time” means to arrive at a place or complete work on time and according to plan.

For example:

• Make sure you come to work on time tomorrow.

• I managed to finish the report on time.

Use the preposition “by” for time

6. The preposition “by” is often used to describe an event that happened before the time mentioned in the sentence.

For example:

• I will finish work by seven o’clock.

• The director will have made his decision by the end of next week.

7. Use “in” for morning/noon/afternoon – Use “at” for evening

This is a quite special case in the habits of native speakers. They will say “in the morning/afternoon/evening” but never “in the night”. Instead, they use the phrase “at night”.

For example:

• Our daughter usually does yoga in the morning.

• I don’t like to go out at night.

• We used to play tennis in the afternoon.

8. The prepositions “before” and “after” are used to say that an event happened before or after a certain time.

For example:

• I’ll see you after class.

• She bought that house before 1995.

• I’ll see you after June.

9. Since / For

The prepositions “since” and “for” are used to express length of time.

“Since” is used with a specific date or time, while “for” is used for a length of time.

For example:

• We’ve lived in New York since 2021.

• I’ve been working for three hours.