Generally, we use at, in and on when we talk about the location of things.

What do the prepostions in these three things tell us about the locations?

"Meet Simon at the end of the road."

"You left your glasses in the bathroom."
"Is that a spider on the wall?"

At a Point
At tells us that the following noun is located at a specific point or location. It shows an exact
position.

"She's waiting at the entrance."

"He's sitting on his chair at his desk."
"I work at a bank."

In an Enclosed Space
In tells us the noun is in an enclosed space (surround or closed off on all sides). Basically,
when something is inside something.

In a box.
In a room.
In a country.

On a Surface
On tells us that the following noun is located on a surface. Use on when one thing is attatched
to or touching somthing.

On the table.
On the floor.
On the chair.

What's the difference bewteen these two sentences?

She's at the library.

She's in the library.

She's at the library. - the emphasis is on the her location and the type of place she has gone
to.
She's in the library. - the emphasis is on the type of building she is in.
 Both of these sentences are fine to answer the question, "Where is she?"

Now decide which preposition needs to be used:

1 - I always keep some extra money __ my bag in case of emergencies.

Correct!

on

at

in

2 - I'll read it tonight ___ home.

Correct!

in

on

at

3 - Do you live ___ a house or an apartment?

Correct!

at

in

on

4 - Did you learn English ___ Malta?

Correct!

in

on

at

5 - She grew up ___ a farm.

Correct!
 in

at

on

6 - I read about it ___ the newspaper.

Correct!

at

in

on

7 - He went for a swim ___ the river

Correct!

in

at

on

8 - The dog's sleeping ___ the carpet.

Correct!

in

on

at

9 - The information is ___ the top of the page.

Correct!

in

at

on

10 - Were you ___ the party too?

Correct!
 on

in

at

At, on and in (place)

from English Grammar Today
We use at:

to refer to a position or location which we see as a point:

I was sitting at my desk.

to talk about locations at companies, workplaces when we see them as a place

of activity:

How many people are working atMicrosoft?

to refer to activities which involve a group of people:

Were you at Lisas party? (also at the cinema, at the theatre)

with school/college/university:

She always did well at school.

to refer to an address:

They once lived at number 12 South Georges Street.

to talk about public places where we get treatments, such as a hairdressers or

doctors surgery:

I cant meet at four. Ill be at the hairdressers until five.

to refer to most shops:

Look what I bought at the butchers today.

We use on:
 to refer to a position on any surface:

I know I left my wallet on the table.

to describe a position along a road or river or by the sea or by a lake:

Dublin is on the east coast of Ireland.

to talk about a floor in a building:

They live on the 15th floor!

to talk about being physically on public transport:

I was on the train when she phoned.(but to talk about ways of travelling, we
use by: I went to Rome by train.)

We use in:

to talk about locations within a larger area:

I know my book is somewhere in this room. Can anyone see it?

to talk about workplaces when we see them as a physical location:

She works in an open-plan office.(but we use on when we talk about a farm: Ive
always wanted to work ona farm.)

with class:

He found it difficult to concentrate inclass.

See also:
At, on and in (time)

1. at the age of 21
2. on the floor
3. in groups of five
4. on the right
 5. at home
6. in the afternoon
7. at Easter
8. at work
9. on the radio
10. on the beach
She sits at the desk.Open your books at page 10.The bus stops at Graz.I stay at
my grandmother's.I stand at the door.Look at the top of the page.The car
stands at the end of the street.Can we meet at the corner of the street?I met
John at a party.Write this information at the beginning of the letter.Pat wasn't at
home yesterday.I study economics at university.The childen are at
gandmother's.He's looking at the park.He always arrives late at school.inWe sit in
the room.I see a house in the picture.There are trout in the river.He lives in
Paris.I found the picture in the paper.He sits in the corner of the room.There is a
big tree in the middle of the garden.He sits in the back of the car.We arrive in
Madrid.He gets in the car.She likes walking in the rain.My cousin lives in the
country.There are kites in the sky.He plays in the street. (BE)She lives in a
hotel.The boys stand in a line.He is in town.I have to stay in bed.The robber is in
prison now.You mustn't park your car in front of the school.onThe map lies on
the desk.The picture is on page 10.The photo hangs on the wall.He lives on a
farm.Dresden lies on the river Elbe.Men's clothes are on the second floor.He
lives on Heligoland.The shop is on the left.My friend is on the way to
Moscow.When she was a little girl people saw unrealistic cowboy films on
television.

Prepositions of Place: at, in, on

In general, we use:

at for a POINT
in for an ENCLOSED SPACE
on for a SURFACE

at in on
POINT ENCLOSED SPACE SURFACE
at in on
POINT ENCLOSED SPACE SURFACE

at the corner in the garden on the wall

at the bus stop in London on the ceiling

at the door in France on the door

at the top of the page in a box on the cover

at the end of the road in my pocket on the floor

at the entrance in my wallet on the carpet

at the crossroads in a building on the menu

at the front desk in a car on a page

Look at these examples:

Jane is waiting for you at the bus stop.

The shop is at the end of the street.
My plane stopped at Dubai and Hanoi and arrived in Bangkok two hours late.
When will you arrive at the office?
Do you work in an office?
 I have a meeting in New York.
Do you live in Japan?
Jupiter is in the Solar System.
The author's name is on the cover of the book.
There are no prices on this menu.
You are standing on my foot.
There was a "no smoking" sign on the wall.
I live on the 7th floor at 21 Oxford Street in London.

Notice the use of the prepositions of place at, in and on in these standard expressions:

at in on

at home in a car on a bus

at work in a taxi on a train

at school in a helicopter on a plane

at university in a boat on a ship

at college in a lift (elevator) on a bicycle, on a motorbike

at the top in the newspaper on a horse, on an elephant

at the bottom in the sky on the radio, on television

at in on

at the side in a row on the left, on the right

at reception in Oxford Street on the way

For a full list of prepositions plus examples and quizzes, you may like this
PDF ebook, English Prepositions List by EnglishClub founder Josef Essberger.

94 one-word prepositions and 56 complex prepositions

400 example sentences
200 quiz questions, with answers
illustrated
immediate download to your computer
read on your computer or print out on paper
runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS and Android