Prepositions of time

[RonBee]

I think some of the differences in opinion have to do with differences in AE and BE. (Not unusual here.)

 

[Teia]

In- "I saw her in Easter." "In" is incorrect. "In" refers to where an object is. Easter is a holiday and can not have any object "in" it.
At- "I saw her at Easter." "At" is incorrect. "At" is used in reference to a precise place. Easter is a day not a place.
On- "I saw her on Easter." "On" is the correct word. "On" is commonly used for dates. For example, I was born ON May 17th. Easter is a date so "on" can be used here.

Hi

I`m sorry to contradict you but the expression at Easter is correct:

We have to use AT with :
(1) clock times (EX) at six o'clock
(2) religious festivals (EX) at Christmas, at Easter [meaning at Christmas time / at Easter time]
(3) mealtimes (EX) at breakfast, at lunch, at dinner, at dinner time
(4) other specific time (EX) at night, at the weekend , at weekends, at half-term
On Easter means exactly on Easter Day.


At is used for specific points of time not only for place or location.

Expression Examples:

at night The stars shine at night.
at the weekend I don't usually work at the weekend.
at Christmas/Easter I stay with my family at Christmas.
at the same time We finished the test at the same time.
at present He's not home at present. Try later.



http://openlearn.open.ac.uk/mod/resource/view.php?id=171331



All the best.

 

[lovemylife9987]

Hi

I`m sorry to contradict you but the expression at Easter is correct:

We have to use AT with :
(1) clock times (EX) at six o'clock
(2) religious festivals (EX) at Christmas, at Easter [meaning at Christmas time / at Easter time]
(3) mealtimes (EX) at breakfast, at lunch, at dinner, at dinner time
(4) other specific time (EX) at night, at the weekend , at weekends, at half-term
On Easter means exactly on Easter Day.


At is used for specific points of time not only for place or location.

Expression Examples:

at night The stars shine at night.
at the weekend I don't usually work at the weekend.
at Christmas/Easter I stay with my family at Christmas.
at the same time We finished the test at the same time.
at present He's not home at present. Try later.



http://openlearn.open.ac.uk/mod/resource/view.php?id=171331



All the best.

Hmmm, good point. lol.

 

[Casiopea]

... I must disagree with Cas and Tdol. (Boy is that ever rare!) I thought about what I would say, and since I would say "I'll see you on Easter day" I picked on. As for using in to mean during, I would rather say during. For example: I'll see you during the Easter holidays.

But ... we, Tdol and I, agree with you, on Easter day. The poll example sentence, however, is different. It reads ___ Easter. (There is no day.) So, at Easter. Right? :-D;-)

I'll see you on Easter day. :tick:
I'll see you at Easter. :tick: poll question

 

[RonBee]

But ... we, Tdol and I, agree with you, on Easter day. The poll example sentence, however, is different. It reads ___ Easter. (There is no day.) So, at Easter. Right? :-D;-)

I'll see you on Easter day. :tick:
I'll see you at Easter. :tick: poll question

Well, my wife agrees with you. ;-)

 

[dimaomni]

AT:
the time - at 4 o'clock
holidays - at Christmas, at Easter, at the weekend
in the express- at the moment, at present, at down, at noon, at night, at midnight.

IN:
month - in April....
seasons- in (the) winter/spring/..
years - in 1996...
centuries- in the 20th century
in the xpression - in the morning/afternoon/evening, in a hour, in a minute, in a week/few days/month/year.

ON:
days - on Friday, on New years days
dates - on July 2th
special part of a day - on Monday evening
adjective + day - on a cold day

 

[johnnycage]

at for weekends and public holidays but if mentioned the day of it we use on

 

[teachingenglishmadeeasy]

I think some of the differences in opinion have to do with differences in AE and BE. (Not unusual here.)

I agree. Your statement brings up an interesting problem that many teachers face in the ESL/EFL classroom - which form to teach?

IMHO, each form should be taught so that the students is most prepared, as long as it is EFL. If it is ESL, then I suggest teaching the local expressions since the student will be there for some time, possibly indefinitely.

 

[keen learner]

Use 'at'. ;-)

So do we have to qualify the occasion/festival example Christmas, Easter,Diwali etc with the term "day" or "eve" or "night" to use the preposition "on"?

Example: We burst crackers at Diwali.
We burst crackers on Diwali night.

 

[Tdol]

They're OK for me, but I would use firecrackers.

 

[keen learner]

They're OK for me, but I would use firecrackers.

Thanks.
Example: We burst firecrackers at Diwali.
We burst firecrackers on Diwali night.
So does this mean "at " comes with occasions and festivals and "on" comes when we qualify them with "day" or "night" or "eve"?
We cannot say:"We burst firecrackers on Diwali." or can we say if the rest of the context clarifies that the firecrackers are to be burst on the day of Diwali itself?
Please clarify.