PREPOSITION OF TIME

PREPOSITION OF TIME
1. General remarks about prepositions of time:
The prepositions at, on and in refer not only to place, but also to time. We can refer to approximate time with approximately, about, around, round or round about:
The accident happened at approximately 5.30. The accident happened (at) about / around 5.30.
For other preposition of time such as during, for, from, since, till, functioning in adverbial phrases.
2. Time phrases with `at`:
Exact time: at 10 o`clock; at 14 hundred hours ( 14.00); at twenty-one hundred hours.
Meal times: at lunch time; at tea time; at dinner time.
Other points of time: at dawn; at noon; at midnight; at night.
Festivals: at Christmas; at Easter; at Christmas-time.
Age: at the age of 27; at 14.
+ time: at this time; at that time.
At is often omitted in questions with What time ... ? and in short answers to such questions:
What time do you arrive? — Nine o`clock in the morning.
The full question and answer is formal:
At what time do you arrive? — At nine o`clock in the morning.
3. Time phrases with `on`:
Days of the week: on Monday; on Fridays.
Parts of the day: on Monday morning; on Friday evening.
Dates: on June 1st; on 21st March.
Day + date: on Monday, June 1st.
Particular occasions: on that day; on that evening.
Anniversaries, etc.: on your birthday; on your wedding day.
Festivals: on Christmas Day; on New Year`s Day.
In everyday speech on is often omitted:
* I`ll see you Friday. See you June 21st.
Prepositions (and the definite article) must be omitted when we use last, next and this, that:
* I saw him last/ this April. I’// see you next/ this Friday.
4. Time phrase with ‘ in’:
Parts of the day: in the evening; in the morning.
Months: in March; in September.
Years: in 1900,-,in 1984; in 1998.
Seasons in (the) spring; in (the) winter.
Centuries: in the 19th century, in the 20th century
Festivals: in Ramadan; in Easter week.
Periods of time: in that time; in that age; in the holidays,
5. `In` and `within` to refer to stated periods of time:
In and, more formally, within, sometimes mean `before the end of a stated period of time”, which may be present, past or future:
I always eat my breakfast in ten minutes.
I finished the examination in (within) an hour and a half.
When we refer to the future in phrases like in ten days (or in ten days` time), we mean `at the end of a period starting from now`; -s apostrophe or apostrophe -s + time is optional.
The material will be ready in ten days/ in ten days` time.
However, when we mean `within a period of time, not starting from now`, we cannot use
-s apostrophe (s’ )+ time. Compare:
Sanderson will run a mile in four minutes. (That`s how long it will take him to do it.)
Sanderson will run a mile in four minutes` time. (That`s when he`ll start running.)
6. “ On time” and “ in time”:
- “ On time” means “ at exactly the right time:
* The buses are very unreliable. They never arrive on time.
* In my school, the classes always start on time.
- “ In time” means “ early enough to do something”
* He discovered the fire in time to stop it spreading. (= early enough to stop it)
* I hope my legs get better in time for the football match on Saturday. (= early enough for the match).
7. “ At the end” and “ in the end”:
- At the end means `at the point where something stops`. ( At the end of something)
* We`re going on holiday at the end of this week.
* At the end of the film I felt very sad.
- In the end means `finally` or `after some time`.
* We couldn`t decide what to do yesterday evening. In the end we decided to stay at home.
* At first, I didn`t like him, but in the end we became good friends.
8. In, during,