in, on, at pour le lieu : pièces, rues et adresses

01in: inside something

Use in when you are enclosed or surrounded: in the room, in the box, in Shanghai, in the car. Cities, countries, and rooms are all containers you are inside of. If you can be surrounded by it, in is usually your word.

02on: touching a surface

Use on for surfaces that hold you up or that you touch: on the table, on the wall, on the floor. Streets behave like surfaces too — on Main Street — and so do vehicles you step onto and ride: on the bus, on the train, on the plane, on a bike. Think contact plus support.

03at: a point on the map

Use at for points: addresses treated as points, entrances, counters, and stations. At 12 Main Street, at the door, at the station, at home, at school — you are naming a spot, not describing the inside of a building. Events work the same way: at a concert, at a meeting.

Addresses show the zoom levels nicely: she lives at 12 Main Street (the point), on Main Street (the line), in Boston (the area). Same person, three framings. Before memorizing one answer, ask how the speaker is picturing the place.

04Small cars, big vehicles

Here is the transport split learners ask about most: get in a car or taxi, but get on a bus, train, or plane. Small private cars enclose you, so they take in; large public vehicles are surfaces you board, so they take on. The same logic gives in a taxi but on the subway.

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