The tiny words that
glue English together.
Prepositions tell us where something is, when something happens, and how things relate to each other. They are small but mighty! Let's explore the logic behind the chaos.
The "At-On-In" Triangle 🔻
The biggest confusion usually comes from these three words. The secret rule is Specificity. Think of an inverted pyramid: Top is wide (IN), Middle is narrower (ON), Bottom is pinpoint specific (AT). Click the layers below to see the magic rule.
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Click a layer on the pyramid to reveal the rules for Time and Place.
The Physics of Place 📦
Prepositions of place describe relationships between objects. Use the control panel to move the Orange Ball relative to the Grey Box. Watch how the position changes!
Select Position:
Preposition Statistics 📊
Not all prepositions are created equal. Some appear constantly, while others are rare. We also analyzed the most common mistakes learners make.
Top 10 Most Used Prepositions
Based on corpus frequency analysis
Insight: The word "of" is one of the most common words in the entire English language, mostly showing possession or relationship.
Common Confusion Pairs
% of errors involving these pairs
Insight: "In vs At" is the champion of confusion. This usually happens with locations (e.g., "at the office" vs "in the office").
The Abstract Zone 🧠
Sometimes prepositions don't follow logic. They just "stick" to certain verbs or adjectives. These are called Dependent Prepositions.
e.g. "Good at", not "Good in".
Test Your Knowledge
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