Prepositions of Relationship, Purpose, and Possession

A preposition is a connecting word that shows the relationship between a noun or pronoun and another word, usually the subject in a sentence. They are commonly used to give information about time or location.
Prepositions are usually placed after the verb and before the noun or pronoun they are associated with. The noun following the preposition is never the subject of a sentence.
In this lesson you'll learn some very common prepositions that are used for both place and time.

Prepositions of Both Place and Time

Some very common prepositions can be used to describe either where an object is located physically or when an event happens in time.

At

At is commonly used for specific places or locations or a specific point in time.

Examples

at the door	玄関で
at the bus stop	バス停で
They are at home.	彼らは家にいます。
at 123 Fourth Avenue (a specific location on the street)	フォースアベニュー123番地で
The train leaves at 10:30.	電車は10:30に出発します。
The stars are visible at night.	星は夜に見えます。
at breakfast	朝食のときに

In

In is used for enclosed spaces, cities, and countries, or longer periods (time).

Examples

in a room	部屋の中で
in London	ロンドンで
It gets colder in the winter.	冬は寒くなります。
She was born in September.	彼女は9月に生まれました。
in 2026	2026年に
in the morning	朝に

On

On refers to surfaces (place) or specific calendar days (time).

Examples

on the table	フォースアベニューで
on the wall	壁に
on the street	冬は寒くなります。
on Fourth Avenue	フォースアベニューで
My exam is on Tuesday.	私の試験は火曜日です。
on January First	1月1日に
on my birthday	私の誕生日に

By

By is used to indicate proximity to a place or a deadline (time).

Examples

I like to sit by the river.	私は川のそばに座るのが好きです。
I have to finish the book by Friday.	金曜日までに本を読み終えなければなりません

Before

Before indicates a position in front of something (place) or an earlier point (time).

Examples

He stood before the judge.	彼は裁判官の前に立った。
I'll do it before the end of the day.	今日が終わる前にやります。

After

After Indicates a position behind something or a later point in time.

Examples

The dog ran after the cat.	犬は猫の後を走った。
I usually go for a walk after lunch.	私はいつも昼食後に散歩に行きます。

Between

Between refers to the space separating two objects or a period separating two points in time.

Examples

I am sitting between two apple trees.	私は2本のリンゴの木の間に座っています。
It’s hard to find a taxi between 5:00 and 6:00 PM.	午後5時から6時の間にタクシーを見つけるのは難しい。

Around

Around indicates a surrounding location (place) or an approximate time (time).

Examples

What is around the corner?	角を曲がった先には何がありますか?
I'll arrive around noon.	正午ごろに到着する予定です。