Prepositions in IELTS: Common Confusions Explained (In, On, At & More)

When practising essays and speaking, you most likely think about ideas, vocabulary and structure. Did you check prepositions, though? No? That’s what almost everybody does, and this is why marks slip away unnoticed. Getting prepositions for IELTS right is one of the easiest things you could do on the entire test, but also one of the most overlooked ones. Prepositions are located in virtually every sentence, and even a couple of wrong prepositions will reduce your grammatical range and accuracy, checked very thoroughly by the examiner in both sections.

The thing is, however, that there is no randomness in prepositions, just certain patterns. Once you see them, everything becomes clear. The guide contains all the information regarding rules, errors and 50 practice exercises with answers.

What Exactly Is a Preposition?

Preposition means a linking word. It combines the noun or pronoun with the sentence and provides details about time, location, direction, and relationship. Some prepositions include in, on, at, by, for, to, from, with, and about.

Some examples are as follows:

• The keys are in my bag.
• We arrive at seven.
• He climbed onto the roof.

It makes no sense whatsoever if there were no prepositions in the sentence. It is something that can make things much more comfortable; that is, a preposition must always appear before the noun or pronoun that serves as the object of the preposition. In “in my bag,” the word “bag” serves as the object of the preposition.

Why These Small Words Decide Your Score

However, examiners do not tick off mistakes one by one. They analyze your essay and form their own opinion about your level of control of the English language. If most of the prepositions in your IELTS grammar are correct, the mistakes here or there will be overlooked. But if the majority of them are incorrect, your writing will sound weird even if you have very good thoughts. It explains why many good students remain at band 6 or 6.5 and why it takes very little effort to get band 7 grammar and achieve band score improvement in the matter.

It is not a problem of the Writing test alone. Prepositions form your IELTS Writing Task 2 grammar, they appear everywhere in your prepositions in IELTS writing, and they mislead people in speaking. Many common grammar errors IELTS speaking candidates make while being under stress are just mistakes in prepositions.

The Main Groups You Need to Know

There are several categories of prepositions, and understanding these categories will make remembering the rules easier.

When dealing with time, there are prepositions of time (in, on, at, since, for, by, during, until). All of them you will be using on a daily basis: in 2024, on Friday, at noon, since April, for three years.

While speaking about prepositions used in relation to location, there are prepositions of location (in, at, on, under, above, below, between), like in the office, at the gate, on the shelf, between two buildings.

Finally, there are prepositions of movement / direction (to, into, onto, towards, across, through). Examples are: She walked across the bridge. He poured the water into the glass.

However, prepositions of time and location deserve special attention, as they are likely to cause more errors. Let us then talk about those three prepositions that drive people crazy.

In, On, At: The Confusion Explained

If you sort out nothing else this week, sort out these three. The IELTS “on” and “at” preposition problem applies to beginner and advanced students alike. It all boils down to the size or precision involved in the situation; “in” is used for the larger concept or more general idea, while “on” is used for surfaces or named days, and “at” is used for the precise point.

Time expressions

• “in” for longer periods of time: in May, in 2025, in the evening, in summer
• “on” for days and dates: on Tuesday, on 10 June, on New Year’s Day
• “at” for specific times: at 5 p.m., at midnight, at sunrise

Talking about place

• “in” for enclosed or wide spaces: in the hall, in Paris, in the box
• “on” for surfaces: on the desk, on the ceiling, on the screen
• “at” for exact points: at the door, at the crossroads, at the counter

That is the whole “in,” “on,” “at” prepositions difference, kept simple. There is also a gradual shift from general to particular. For instance, a year uses “in”, a day uses “on”, and a moment uses “at”. It is also important to consider prepositions for duration versus point in time because “for” shows the length of time and “at” shows one particular point.

Mistakes Examiners See Again and Again

Here are the errors that cost real marks. Identifying your own common preposition mistakes IELTS that the examiners identify is the first step to fixing them.

• Wrong preposition of time

Wrong: I will visit you on the morning.

Right: I will visit you in the morning.

• Extra preposition that is not needed

Wrong: They discussed about the plan.

Right: They discussed the plan. Verbs like discuss, request, and enter take no preposition after them.

• Missing preposition

Wrong: She is married John.

Right: She is married to John.

• Wrong place preposition

Wrong: We reached to the hotel late.

Right: We reached the hotel late.

By themselves, they seem small, but collectively throughout an essay, they can take down your score. It’s no wonder that one of the most common search terms among test-takers is how to avoid preposition mistakes in IELTS writing.

Fixed Pairs You Have to Memorise

There are certain combinations of words that always go with a fixed preposition. You cannot understand such combinations through any logical approach; therefore, you have to memorize them. Such combinations are known as collocations with prepositions, which appear in most high-scoring essays.

Some useful combinations of verb preposition combinations IELTS include depend on, listen to, agree with, apply for, result in, belong to, and succeed in. Usage of such combinations is also essential when dealing with phrasal verbs in IELTS, where a combination of verb and preposition forms a completely new meaning, for example, “carry out” and “look into”.

Adjectives have fixed partners, too. These “adjective preposition collocations” are easy marks once you know them. The classic trio is “responsible for”, “interested in”, and “aware of”. Add proud of, afraid of, similar to, good at, and keen on, and you have a solid set to start with.

Prepositions in Task 1 Data Description

Prepositions are plentiful in Task 1 and all of them can be easily rectified if you are aware of their usage. Correct usage of IELTS Writing Task 1 prepositions helps in maintaining clarity in your description of the graph or chart provided. The most commonly mistaken preposition pair is “increase by” and “increase to”. The “by” is used to describe the size of the increase, while the “to” describes the resulting figure.

• The profits increased by 15 percent. (size of change – 15 percent)
• The profits increased to 50 million. (the result is 50 million)

While describing trends and statistics, you will make use of such prepositions as from, between, during, and over. Examples: The value decreased from 80 to 40 between 2015 and 2020.

What About Ending a Sentence With a Preposition?

You might have been told that this is taboo. However, it is not. Dangling prepositions are common in spoken English. Examples include sentences like “This is the class I enrolled in.” In highly formal written English, you can reformulate such sentences. But this grammar rule should not concern you in the exam.

How to Practice Prepositions for IELTS

Knowing the rules is the first step. Using the rules until they become an unconscious habit is the second step. This is the practice routine that will definitely help you in practicing prepositions for IELTS.

Try reading something every day. The essays from Band 9 and informative articles contain prepositions used correctly, so pay attention to their use and try to copy. Create a list of mistakes as well; just write the incorrect version next to the correct one and have a brief review once a week. It will be beneficial for memorizing the correct version and improving your band score gradually. Don’t forget to include a few preposition exercises for IELTS every day because daily practices work better than one long one per month. Speak the newly learned collocations aloud and you will not have any common grammar errors IELTS speaking.

Test Yourself: 50 Exercises With Answers

Give each a try, then look at the answers below. The “prepositions examples with answers for IELTS” include those about time, place, motion, verbs and their partners, adjectives and their partners, and Task 1 information.

Complete the sentence with the correct preposition.

Time (1 to 10)

1. The new term begins ____ September.
2. We have lived here ____ 2017.
3. The shop opens ____ 9 a.m.
4. I usually study ____ the evening.
5. Her birthday is ____ 12 March.
6. He worked there ____ five years.
7. The meeting is ____ Wednesday.
8. They will arrive ____ noon.
9. The festival takes place ____ winter.
10. Finish your essay ____ Friday.

Place (11 to 20)

1. The cat is sleeping ____ the sofa.
2. She lives ____ a small town.
3. There is a clock ____ the wall.
4. We waited ____ the bus stop.
5.  The papers are ____ the drawer.
6. He stood ____ the door and knocked.
7. The plane is flying ____ the clouds.
8. The shop is ____ the corner of the street.
9. The children are playing ____ the garden.
10. My office is ____ the third floor.

Movement and direction (21 to 28)

1. She walked ____ the room and sat down.
2. The dog ran ____ the park.
3. He jumped ____ the pool.
4. We drove ____ the tunnel.
5. The cat climbed ____ the roof.
6. They travelled ____ Spain last year.
7. He poured the milk ____ the glass.
8. The road goes ____ the mountains.

Verb pairs (29 to 38)

1. You can always depend ____ a good friend.
2. Please listen ____ the instructions.
3. I agree ____ your opinion.
4. She applied ____ a new job.
5. Hard work often results ____ success.
6. This book belongs ____ the library.
7. We are looking ____ a solution.
8. He apologised ____ his mistake.
9. The teacher explained the topic ____ us.
10. They succeeded ____ passing the exam.

Adjective pairs (39 to 46)

1. She is responsible ____ the whole team.
2. I am interested ____ history.
3. He is afraid ____ heights.
4. We are aware ____ the new rules.
5. They are proud ____ their daughter.
6. This result is similar ____ last year’s.
7. My sister is good ____ painting.
8. He is keen ____ football.

Task 1 data (47 to 50)

1. Sales rose ____ 20 percent last year.
2. The figure increased ____ 50 million by 2020.
3. The number fell sharply ____ 2010 and 2015.
4. Prices remained steady ____ the whole period.

Answers

1. in (a month)
2. since (a starting point in the past)
3. at (an exact time)
4. in (a part of the day)
5. on (a specific date)
6. for (a length of time)
7. on (a day of the week)
8. at (an exact time)
9. in (a season)
10. by (no later than Friday)
11. on (a surface)
12. in (inside a place)
13. on (a surface)
14. at (a specific point)
15. in (inside something)
16. at (a specific point)
17. above (higher than the clouds)
18. at (a specific point)
19. in (inside an area)
20. on (a floor level)
21. into (movement entering a space)
22. through (movement across the park)
23. into (movement entering the pool)
24. through (movement passing inside)
25. onto (movement up to a surface)
26. to (movement towards a place)
27. into (movement entering the glass)
28. through (movement across the mountains)
29. on (depend on)
30. to (listen to)
31. with (agree with)
32. for (apply for)
33. in (result in)
34. to (belong to)
35. for (look for)
36. for (apologise for)
37. to (explain something to someone)
38. in (succeed in)
39. for (responsible for)
40. in (interested in)
41.  of (afraid of)
42. of (aware of)
43. of (proud of)
44. to (similar to)
45. at (good at)
46. on (keen on)
47. by (the size of the change)
48. to (the final figure)
49. between (a start and end point)
50. over (across a whole period)

Got most of them right? You are on track. Missed a handful? That is normal. Write down the ones you slipped on, look at the rule again, and test yourself once more next week.

How Tiju’s Academy Helps You Get This Right

Grammar gets far simpler when an experienced teacher walks you through it. At Tiju’s Academy, our trainers focus on the small details that move your score, and prepositions sit near the top of that list. There is a reason students rank us among the best IELTS training centre in Kerala.

Our Tiju’s Academy IELTS coaching gives you a step-by-step study plan, band 7+ writing templates, mock tests under real exam conditions, and personalized essay correction so you see exactly where your prepositions go wrong. You also get speaking practice with feedback, daily tasks, time management strategies, and a clear roadmap to your target band. We use our own teaching methods to make hard topics feel easy, from quick idea generation for speaking and writing to detailed listening and reading explanations and a focused session right before the big day. The names are playful and the lessons are practical, and you will see how they click once you start.

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Searching for the best institute for IELTS? As a reputed IELTS coaching centre in Kerala, we have coached many students from day one till test day with regard to their scores, and our courses are opted for by many for their clarity and prompt response. Stuck with your choice for the best coaching center for IELTS? Get in touch with Tiju’s Academy, book a free consultation, and start turning small grammar slips into a stronger band.

Conclusion 

Despite their size, prepositions pack a lot of punch into the score you’ll get on your IELTS test. Get a handle on your ‘in’, ‘on,’ and ‘at’ collocations, memorize your preposition + noun combinations, and work on them every day for a few weeks. You’ll notice a big improvement in how your writing sounds and in your grammar.