Complete Grammar Guide  Prepositions of Place

At, on, and in are prepositions of place, and show the position of people, places and things.

at the theater, on the seat, in the lobby

Usage

At + the + place means "next to," "near," or "in front of" a place.

"She was standing at the window, looking out."
(in front of)

"He met Lucy at the crossroads."
(near/next to)

At + a public place means "next to," "in front of," or "inside" that place.

"They got married at St. Patrick's Cathedral."
(inside)

"Let's meet at the movie theatre<."
(in front of)

At + specific address means "inside" or "in front of" the place.

"They live at 435 Main Street, Savannah, Georgia."

At is not normally used with names of villages, towns and cities.

"The plane landed in Chicago."
(not "at Chicago")

Use on with a surface.

"Put the soup bowls on the table."

Use on (plus the article the) with these directions:  left / right / other side / near side / far side

"My house is the one on the other side of the street."

"In this photo, I'm standing on the right, and my brother is on the left."

Use on with the levels of a building:  the first floor / the second floor / the top floor

"The office is on the ground floor."

Use on with the surface of parts of the body.

"Jane has a big scar on her knee."

Use on with types of transport:  bus / bicycle / plane / foot

"Get on the bus, or we'll be late!"
(Note: We say "in a car," not "on a car.")

Use in with names of countries:  Japan / Spain / Ireland

"They have a villa in southern Italy."

Use in with names of towns, villages, cities:

New York / Geneva / Paris

"Clinton met Yeltsin in Geneva."

In + public places means "inside."

"Everyone in the theatre was laughing."

Use in with some geographical regions and mountain ranges.

"We vacationed in the Lake District."

"Nana went skiing in the Rockies."

Use in with rooms of houses and other buildings.

"Let's have dinner in the living room."

Use in with the + weather.

"We went driving in the rain."

In + parts of the body means "inside."

"Harry felt a sharp pain in his neck."

In + a/the + types of transport means "inside."

"They were sitting in the train for 12 hours."

Here are a few common expressions you should learn:

at the moment / on vacation / in a loud/angry/quiet/low voice / at this/that moment / on T.V. (television) / in a good/bad mood / at the same time / in a bad temper / at no time / on the menu / in a dress / at present / on the agenda / in a new suit / at the end/beginning

Here are some similar expressions without a/the:
at school / in bed / at home / in business / at school / in the hospital / at school / in prison / at work / at college / at 55 m.p.h.

At is used when there is no active movement in the sentence.

"There are 200 stores at the mall."

To is used when there is movement in the sentence.

"Joshua is flying to Australia to study kangaroos."