in or on the summer holidays

Status
Not open for further replies.

harriet_yang

Junior Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2010
Member Type
Student or Learner
Native Language
Chinese
Home Country
China
Current Location
China
Dear teachers this is a sentence I am not sure about whether to use "in" or "on." What are the differences if both works?

I hope everyone will be happy in/on this wonderful summary holiday.

thanks!
 

probus

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jan 7, 2011
Member Type
Retired English Teacher
Native Language
English
Home Country
Canada
Current Location
Canada
First of all, the word you are looking for is summery not summary.

I believe in is okay in BrE, and hope our British teachers can confirm. In AmE we'd use on rather than in. During works in both varieties.
 

emsr2d2

Moderator
Staff member
Joined
Jul 28, 2009
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
British English
Home Country
UK
Current Location
UK
I hope everyone enjoys their summer holidays!

"I hope everyone will enjoy" is OK but unnecessary. "Summery" doesn't make sense. Particularly in the UK, we can't guarantee that the weather will be summery even in summer! It's far more natural to say that we hope someone will enjoy something (in the future) rather than that they will be happy. An exception to this is when someone is getting married or moving house. In those contexts, it's natural to say "I hope you'll be very happy together" and "I hope you'll be very happy in your new home".
 
Last edited:

jutfrank

VIP Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2014
Member Type
English Teacher
Native Language
English
Home Country
England
Current Location
England
Where do you want to use this sentence, Harriet? Do you want to write it somewhere? Who are you addressing it to? What kind of holiday are you talking about?

Tell us more about the situation you have in mind.
 

harriet_yang

Junior Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2010
Member Type
Student or Learner
Native Language
Chinese
Home Country
China
Current Location
China
I am just writing an email to colleagues and wishing them a great summer and couldn't decide between "on" and "in". Thanks! The sentence should look like this:
I hope everyone will be happy in/on this wonderful summer holiday.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

tedmc

VIP Member
Joined
Apr 16, 2014
Member Type
Interested in Language
Native Language
Chinese
Home Country
Malaysia
Current Location
Malaysia
Wishing someone "will be happy in/on a holiday" doesn't sound natural to me. It's like saying "I hope you will be happy on your birthday".
I think it is more common for people to say "Have a great holiday" or "Enjoy your holiday".
 

Yankee

Banned
Joined
Sep 13, 2013
Member Type
Retired English Teacher
Native Language
English
Home Country
United States
Current Location
United States
Dear teachers this is a sentence I am not sure about whether to use "in" or "on." What are the differences if both works?

I hope everyone will be happy in/on this wonderful summary holiday.

thanks!
In AmE I would not expect to hear/read/use "in".
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top