At 8, on Monday, in May: prepositions of time

The rule

Use at with clock times and night: at 8 o'clock, at night. Use on with days and dates: on Monday, on 3 May. Use in with months, years and parts of the day: in May, in 2026, in the morning.

Arabic uses في for all three, so learners write in Monday or at May. French doesn't help either: le lundi has no preposition at all. Short grammar questions in tests such as TOEIC often check these small words.

Examples

In a conversation

A: Can we meet on Thursday?

B: Yes. Is the morning OK for you?

A: I'm busy in the morning. How about at 3?

B: Perfect. See you on Thursday at 3.

Practice

Choose the best answer. The answers are at the end of the lesson.

1. The interview is ___ Tuesday.
   • a) in
   • b) at
   • c) on
2. The train leaves ___ 6:30.
   • a) at
   • b) on
   • c) in
3. Sara started her new job ___ September.
   • a) on
   • b) in
   • c) at

Tip

With a named day, use on even for part of it: on Monday morning, on Friday night. And use no preposition before next, last, this or every: next Monday, not on next Monday.

Answers

1. c) on. Use on with days of the week.
2. a) at. Use at with clock times.
3. b) in. Use in with months.

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