IN
1. Se emplea para
localizar algo o a alguien en un lugar grande que tiene límites, aunque estos
no sean muy precisos.
She
grew up in Spain
He
lived in de desert for two years
They
are in the street, square, town, etc..
No obstante, si nos
referimos a la calle (las calles) en general se utiliza on.
My
children are playing in the street now (en
una calle que conozco)
I
saw Peter in the street yesterday (en
una calle concreta)
People
use those slang words every day on the street (en
las calles)
I
don’t have a garage and park my car on the street (en
la calle en general)
Para no equivocarse, ya
que las diferencias son muy sutiles, se aconseja que empleemos siempre on.
2. Se utiliza para
posicionar algo o a alguien dentro de un lugar tridimensional o claramente
delimitado (v. at).
The
car is in the garage
The
shirt is in the drawer
The
children are playing in the garden
I
am in the swiming-pool, river, lake, sea... (si estoy dentro del agua)
3. Para referirse a
algo o a alguien que está colocado formando de hecho parte de una línea.
Who
is that pretty girl in the sixth row?
There
is a misprint in line 6 on page 22
4. Se utiliza siempre
en las siguientes expresiones:
In a picture; in a
photo; in a film; in a tent; in bed; in prison; in hospital; in the
rain; in the snow; in the sky; in a
car; in a taxi; in the world; in the
front (of); in the background (of)...
5. A veces in puede
aparecer como adverbio.
Come in!
I’m
afraid he’s not in (me temo
que no está)
ON
1. Se utiliza para
expresar que algo o alguien se encuentra sobre una superficie o en contacto con
ella.
The
cat is on the roof
Leave
the box on the ground
The
book is on the table
The
picture is on the wall
There
is a spider on the ceiling
She
spread cream on her face
There
is a large stain on the carpet
2. Se emplea para
localizar cosas que se encuentran en las inmediaciones de las orillas de los
ríos, lagos, mares... o de los márgenes de las carreteras, caminos, vías...
Puerto
Real is on Cadiz’s bay
Alberite
is on Iregua’s river
Chus’
house is on the way from Villamediana to Alberite
I
withdrew money from the bank on (in) the Main Street
3. Se utiliza on
para expresar que viajamos o subimos en vehículos públicos de línea
regular, así como en motos, bicicletas y caballos. Para
bajarnos de ellos empleamos off
There
is no room on the bus, let’s get off again
I
flew on a jet plane to N.Y.
Hop on the
train quickly
She
rode on a white horse
They climbed on their
bikes
Para decir que nos
montamos o viajamos en el resto de los transportes privados y taxis
utilizamos in y para bajarnos de ellos, out
of.
Jump in my
car and I’ll drive you to the station
I
got in an electric taxi yesterday
He
fell into the river when he was getting out of his canoe
4.- Se utiliza siempre
en las siguientes expresiones:
On the border; on the
radio; on the T.V.; on the internet; on the
phone; on the (second...) floor; on the beach; on the
island; on the coast; on Earth; on the
elevator; on the street; on page; on the
side (of); on right/left ...
AT
1. Le podemos reconocer
una función residual y decir que cabe utilizar la preposición at para
indicar la situación de algo o alguien en un lugar poco específico y que no se
encuentre en ninguno de los lugares que hemos estudiado antes.
Turn
right at the next corner
They
are waiting at the bus stop
Let’s
meet at the crossroads / at the bridge
She is at the
swiming-pool (deseamos
manifestar que ella se encuentra en las instalaciones de la piscina, no tiene que estar
forzosamente metida en el agua)
2. Se utiliza cuando,
aun refiriéndonos a un lugar cerrado o delimitado, lo que pretendemos
verdaderamente significar no es el lugar, sino la actividad que allí realizamos
o por la que allí vamos. Además en dicho lugar no estamos normalmente de manera
permanente, sino casual.
I
had an interesting conversation at the club
I
should find the time for working out at the gym everyday
John
had to do some business at the ministry vs.
Susan works as a civil servant in the ministry
We
usually have dinner at a restaurant in Market Street
because in it there is good meal
Tim
was at the museum yesterday and told me that there are fabulous paintings in it
No
wonder they didn’t stay at the hotel, it costs an arm and a
leg
3. Para expresar un
lugar que constituye una etapa de un viaje o un punto de encuentro.
The
plane stopped at Frankfurt and then continued its route
4. Para indicar un
lugar cuando éste se halla dentro de un edificio identificado con nombre
propio.
She always buys at Harrods
5. Para señalar una
dirección concreta con su número.
He
lives at 73, Albert Street
He
lives in (on) Albert Street
6. Para expresar el
lugar donde alguien estudia, incluso cuando nos referimos a la ciudad
donde esta actividad tiene lugar.
I’m at Opening
School
He
is a student at Oxford
7. Para indicar un
lugar constituido por una actividad de grupo o de encuentro:
At
a party; at a meeting; at the concert; at the lecture; at the match; at the
class, a the club...
8. Se utiliza siempre
en las siguientes expresiones:
At
university; at the cinema; at the theatre; at home; at work; at the office; at
school; at church.
9. Se puede utilizar
siempre tras el verbo to be con el sentido 'estar en':
She is
at the cinema; I’m at the garden; We are at the
street; They are at Tokyo; We all were at the
table.
DOWN
1.
Indica movimiento descendente.
He
went down the hill
The
rain was running down the trunk
2. Indica una posición
estática más baja respecto a un plano vertical o inclinado.
He
lives down the street (from us)
They
found a big turtle down the river
The
sun is down
She
isn’t down for breakfast yet
BELOW
Significa 'debajo de', 'por debajo de' indicando
una posición concreta, en un nivel inferior.
Below zero;
below 5$; below average
The
walley below the hill
I
am below the lamp
Se
utiliza en documentos.
Please
don’t write below the line
Below es lo contrario
a above
ABOVE
Significa 'encima de', 'por encima' refiriéndose a
una situación concreta, en un nivel superior.
Above zero; above sea
level
The
lamp above me.
Se utiliza en
documentos.
Please don’t write above the
line
Above es lo contrario a below
UNDER
Significa 'debajo de' indicando la situación de algo o
alguien que está directamente debajo o cubierto.
The
table is under the ceiling
She
is hidding under the covers
Fishes
live under the sea
Under es
lo contario a over
OVER
Significa 'por encima', en el sentido de que
algo o alguien está situado encima cubriéndolo todo.
The
sky is over our heads
He
was bending over the book
He
held a handkerchief over his eyes to protect them
Over es lo contario a under
También significa 'al otro lado de'; 'por todo'.
Her
house is over the hill
She
walked over the street (cruzó)
They
are going to travel over Brazil
Over there significa que
algo está fuera del alcance de la mano o de la vista. En comparación con there,
supone que media una distancia mayor entre el que habla y la cosa referida.
NEXT TO, BESIDE, BY
Como preposiciones de
lugar significan 'al lado de',
'junto a', en el sentido de contiguo, aledaño, limítrofe o
colindante, a diferencia de close to o near,
que se utilizarán cuando no existe tanta proximidad.
My
house is next to a road
I
live beside Antonio’s
Come
and sit by me
I
live close to a hardware shop
I
live near the sea
BETWEEN,
AMONG
Between, 'entre', es usado cuando
situamos algo entre dos lugares, cosas o personas.
The
dictionary is between the grammar book and the atlas.
There
is a motorway between Cadiz and Seville.
Among se emplea para situar algo dentro de un grupo de más de dos
lugares, cosas o personas.
Is
there a dictionary somewhere among those books?
BEHIND
Significa 'detrás de' y, generalmente, señala
un lugar que está parcial o completamente escondido por un objeto que se
encuentra delante de él. También puede tener un sentido figurado.
The
robber stood behind the door, hopping he wouldn’t be seen.
There
were two boys sitting behind me (Opposite
of ‘in front of’).
Hamilton
ran behind Alonso for the whole race (Oposite
of ‘ahead’)
They'd
been forced to leave behind their businesses and possessions.
Who
could be behind Kennedy’s assassination?
Research
in our country is way behind of the States
Excepción:
He
doesn’t love you, he is only after your money
IN
FRONT OF
Significa 'delante de'.
There
is a bus stop in front of the school (It’s on the same side of
the road as the school)
OPPOSITE
Significa 'en frente de', 'frente a'.
There
is a bus stop opposite the school (It’s on
the other side of the road from the school)
Tom
is sitting opposite Mary (Tom is
sitting at one side of the table and Mary at the other = Tom is facing Mary)
BEFORE
1.
Significa 'delante de', 'ante' (in front of).
There
she stood before my eyes
They
knelt before the throne.
Before you
is a list of the points we have to discuss.
The
Constitution declares that all citizens are equal before law
and are entitled to equal protection of law
He
is due to appear before the court next week
2. 'Antes de', 'delante de'
(dentro de un orden: ahead of).
Your
name is before mine on the list.
He
puts his work before everything.
The bus stop is
just before the school (antes de llegar a la escuela)
3. 'Delante de' (en presencia de).
He was brought before the
judge.
She said it before witnesses.
They had to speak before a
huge crowd.
I swear before God that I
told the truth.
AHEAD (adverbio)
Significa 'delante de' (alguien). Se
usa para indicar que hay algo delante de quien habla, en la dirección que va o
mira. Puede implicar movimiento.
There
is a motel just a
few miles ahead.
I
could see the end of the tunnel ahead.
The car ahead of us stopped suddenly
We
have some difficult problems ahead of us.
She
is a young woman with a brilliant career ahead of her
There
were four people ahead of me at the doctor’s
Alonso
ran ahead Hamilton for the whole race
He
is way ahead of the rest of his classmates (muy
por delante)
BEYOND
Significa 'más allá de'. Puede
tener también un sentido figurado.
There
is a river beyond those mountains.
His
music is known far beyond the borders of Europe.
Is
life on other planets beyond our solar system?
Democracy
and governance extend beyond the ballot box.
The
situation is beyond our control.
AWAY (adverbio)
1. Para señalar la
distancia que existe desde donde se habla hasta otro punto.
It's
six miles away (desde aquí)
The
mountains are not far away (lejos de aquí)
2. Para indicar que
alguien o algo está o tiene lugar en un sitio diferente al habitual.
I’ll
be away until Thursday
She
works away from the office
We
are six hundred miles away from home
When
do you go away (on holiday/on business trip)?
3. Con un verbo de
movimiento para indicar alejamiento.
He
was walking away when they called him
Try
to keep away from him
I
wish he'd go away!
THROUGH (preposición)
Significa 'a través de'; 'por'.
They
drove through the city
THROUGHOUT (preposición)
Significa 'por todo'; 'a lo largo de todo'.
My
company has branches throughout the country.
