Page 294 - Oxford_English_Grammar_Course_Basic_2015

at (place) Operator TE GW
O’
LONDON Paddington -© - 1743 1803
Ealing Broadway - 0
Slough 1800 1822
Maidenhead
Twyford
ir ik -fo !& Reading... dep 1820 1838
^r$UPER CINEMA^ Tilehurst
!fr ir ik i* i* Pangbourne
5. 30 Goring & Streatley
W allingford
Cholsey
Didcot Parkway... arr 1835 153
I'll m eet you at the cinema. The train stops at Slough, Reading and Didcot.

We often use at to show where something happens - for example, with meeting places or points on a journey.

I'll see you this evening at Sarah's house. You have to change planes at Karachi.
I saw Linda w aiting at the bus stop. Turn le ft at the next comer.

We often use at with words for things that people do, or the places where they do them.

at a football m atch at breakfast, lunch etc at a restaurant at work at the office
at the theatre at the cinem a at the station at a p a rty at (the) college/university

Put in words from the box with at.

a Chinese restaurant a theatre Birmingham breakfast the cinema the crossroads
the hotel bar the party the station the traffic lights / work

! Paul crashed his car because he didn't stop . . . ^ 0 ..........................................

1 Are there any good film s.......................................................................................this week?
2 Her train was terribly late - I spent hours w aiting.....................................................................................
3 Will you b e .......................................................................................at Mike's house on Saturday?
4 We had a really good m eal.......................................................................................in Park Street last night.

5 I saw my first Shakespeare play...................................................................................in a small town in Ireland.
6 The boss doesn't let us take personal phone calls.....................................................................................
7 Helen never says anything....................................................................................... because she's still asleep.
8 There isn't a direct train. You change.....................................................................................
9 I'll meet you downstairs.......................................................................................at 6.00.
10 'Where's the car park?' 'Turn right

We often use at with the top, the bottom, the side, the beginning and the end.

M y room's at the top o f the house. Begin at the beginning.

^ Put in at the top, at the bottom etc.

1 Their house is d o w n ...........................................................................of the hill.

2 I never have any m oney...........................................................................of the month.
3 I stopped for a m inute...........................................................................of the stairs to have a rest.
4 The best fruit is always.................................................................of the tree, where you can't get it.
5 Maria wasn't there...........................................................................of the lesson; she came in late.

Sometimes in and at are both possible. We prefer at when we are thinking about the activity - what we
do in the place - and in when we think about the place itself.

We had lunch at the station restaurant. It was very h o t in the big d in in g room .

-» For expressions with no article like at breakfast, at work, see page 162.

In some answers, both contracted forms (for example I'm, don't) and full PREPOSITIONS 279
forms (for example lam , do not) are possible. Normally both are correct.