The prepositions of time in English are very numerous. You can even say that there are more of them than in Russian, because in addition to literally translated words, there are synonyms that are translated into Russian the same way, but used in different situations. Prepositions of time are necessary in order to express at what moment an event occurred. In this article, the most frequently used prepositions will be sorted out with translation and examples.
In - "in"
Probably the most commonly used preposition. Despite the fact that native speakers have studied prepositions of time in English from grade 3, using in can confuse even adult Russian speakers. To use it correctly, it is necessary to learn the situations in which this pretext is appropriate.
| Situation | Example | Transfer |
| With the words "morning" and "evening." | I wake up in the morning and go to bed in the evening. | I wake up in the morning and go to bed in the evening. |
| With the names of the months: "in July", "in August", "in December" and so on. | I am going to visit my aunt in October. | I am going to pay my aunt a visit in October. |
| When the year is mentioned: "in 1998", "in 1451" and others. | My younger brother was born in 2006. | My younger brother will be born in 2006. |
| With the names of the seasons: "winter", "spring", "summer", "autumn". | I like to travel a lot in summer, because I feel free and enjoy sunny days. | I like to travel in the summer because I feel free and enjoy sunny days. |
| With long, long periods of time: "in the eighteenth century", "in the last millennium." | The author of this poem was born in 19th century. | The author of this poem was born in the nineteenth century. |
In addition, there are several stable expressions with the preposition in. Here they are:
- In time - on time (at the appointed time).
- In a few days - within a few days.
- In * time * - during * the amount of time *. For example: we will finish it in an hour - we will finish it in an hour.
The abundance of rules can scare a beginner, but exercises on the prepositions of time in the English language are great for memorizing.
At - "in"
The very example of a "synonymous" preposition, which was mentioned at the beginning of the article. Use it, however, in completely different situations. Here they are:
| Situation | Example | Transfer |
| With an indication of a specific time in hours: “at five o’clock”, “at six o’clock” and the like. | We invited him to dine with us at 7 o'clock. | We invited him to have dinner with us at seven. |
| With indications of a specific segment of the day: "at midnight", "at noon", "at lunch" and so on. | The lovers met secretly at the midnight. | Lovers secretly met at midnight. |
| When it comes to any holiday: "New Year", "at Christmas", "at the weekend." | What are you going to do at the weekend? | What are you going to do this weekend? |
With this pretext there are also certain stable expressions. Here they are:
- At the moment - at the moment.
- At present - now, in the present.
- At the age of - at a certain age.
- At the same time - at the same time.
There are more of them than for the preposition in, but they are logical and a bit like their counterparts in the Russian language, so there should not be any problems with memorizing them.
On - In
Another synonymous excuse on their solid general list. For him, as for almost all prepositions of place and time in English, there is a list of situations that require its use. Here they are.
| Situation | Example | Transfer |
| With an indication of the exact date: December fourteenth, August twenty-sixth, and the like. | My older sister married my friend on December, 28. | My older sister married my friend in December, the twenty-eighth day. |
| With an indication of a specific day of the week: "Tuesday", "Thursday", "Saturday". | We decided to meet on Monday! | We decided to meet on Monday! |
| With an indication of special, special dates. For example, "birthday." | Are you going to organize anything special on your birthday, or just celebrate it quietly with your family and closest friends? | Are you going to organize something special for your birthday, or just quietly celebrate it with your family and closest friends? |
From ... to ...
These prepositions are used when it is necessary to describe an action that occurred from some point at some point. For instance:
- She was working in the office from 5 to 10. - She worked in the office from five to ten.
They rarely have problems. It is important to remember only that they are used exclusively together, but in this sense never - separately.
For
This time preposition is used in English when it is necessary to indicate how long an action lasted. Translating prepositions from English into Russian is literally ineffective in most cases, but if, as an exception, doing so in this case, for will literally mean "during", "throughout":
I am so tired! I was working for ten hours! - I'm so tired! I worked ten hours in a row!
Since
This pretext is used when you need to talk about an action that began to occur from a certain point:
I have known he was a liar since I saw him for the very first time. “ I knew that he was a liar since he first saw him.”
During
This preposition of time in English is used when it is necessary to mention an action that occurs during an event, event or phenomenon. For instance:
We were talking friendly during the dinner. - During dinner (at dinner) we had a friendly conversation.
An important point to pay attention in this case: the preposition during is used before nouns, but not before subordinate clauses. This is not to say "during I was sleeping". There is a separate pretext for this.
While
The same substitute for during, when you need to connect two simple sentences into one complex. Here is how this preposition works on an example:
She called me three or four times while I was sleeping, but I didn't hear the call. “ She called me three or four times while I was sleeping, but I did not hear the call.”
In almost all cases this preposition is translated as “bye” and, if the necessity of using it is in doubt, can be replaced by when - “when”. Exactly such a replacement can be made with the sentence above, used as an example. It will look like this:
She called me three or four times when I was sleeping, but I didn't hear the call. “Oh , she called me three or four times when I was sleeping, but I didn't hear the call.”
Many English prepositions are replaceable. However, this does not mean that you do not need to teach them. They are not only found in exams and tests, but can also make speech more beautiful, richer and more accurate.
Untill or just till
A time preposition in English, literally meaning "as long as." It is used to describe an action that occurred before an event. For instance:
I believed him untill I found out that it was useless. “ I believed him until I realized that it was useless.”
This preposition is similar in meaning to to in the meaning of "before", but to, as mentioned above, is used only in combination with the preposition from.
Before
A preposition used to describe a situation when one action occurred before another. For instance:
He had left before you came, and I cannot call him, because I don't remember his phone number. “ He left before you arrived, and I can’t call him because I don’t remember his phone number.”
After
Antonym of the preposition before. Indicates an action that occurred after an event or phenomenon. For instance:
We went home after it had started to rain. “ We went home after the rain started.”
By
"At some point," "up to some point." Indicates the deadline for the performance of some work, task, case, goal. For instance:
I want to finish this project by Saturday! - I want to finish this project by Saturday!