Prepositions Of Time
Autor: Ana Fava | Publicado: 2012-06-30T15:21:00-07:00












after / later

Use&nbsp;after + phrase,&nbsp;and use&nbsp;later&nbsp;alone (at the end of a sentence or phrase).

I’ll call you&nbsp;later.I’ll call you&nbsp;after&nbsp;I get home&nbsp;from work.
First he bought a new car. Two weeks&nbsp;later, he bought a new motorcycle.He bought a new motorcycle two weeks&nbsp;after he bought a car.


You can say&nbsp;“later + time period”&nbsp;to refer to an unspecified time in the future, for example:


I’ll finish the project&nbsp;later this week.
We’ll go on vacation&nbsp;later this year.



[notice]

Never end a sentence with “after.” Instead, you can use “afterwards”

“Did you go straight home after the baseball game?”“No, we went out for drinks&nbsp;after.”“No, we went out for drinks&nbsp;afterwards.“


[/notice]



ago /&nbsp;before

Use&nbsp;ago&nbsp;to talk about past times in reference to the current moment.

Use&nbsp;before&nbsp;to talk about past times in reference to another moment in the past.



Difference between “before” and “ago”




by / until

Use&nbsp;by&nbsp;for one specific event that will happen before a certain time in the future.&nbsp;Use&nbsp;until&nbsp;for a continuous event that will continue and then stop at a certain time in the future.

Please send me the information&nbsp;by&nbsp;Monday.
He’s staying in London&nbsp;until&nbsp;the 30th.




Difference between “by” and “until”




during / while

Both&nbsp;during&nbsp;and&nbsp;while&nbsp;mean that something happens at the same time as something else.

Use&nbsp;during +&nbsp;noun.

She cried&nbsp;during the movie.


Use&nbsp;while + subject + verb,&nbsp;or&nbsp;while + gerund.

She cried&nbsp;while she was watching&nbsp;the movie.
She cried&nbsp;while watching&nbsp;the movie.




from… to / till / until

We use&nbsp;from&nbsp;+ to / till / until&nbsp;to define the beginning and end of a time period.

The museum is open&nbsp;from&nbsp;8 AM&nbsp;to&nbsp;4 PM.
Jack will be on vacation&nbsp;from&nbsp;tomorrow&nbsp;until&nbsp;next Friday.
I studied English&nbsp;from&nbsp;2001&nbsp;till&nbsp;2004.




on / in / at

Use&nbsp;in&nbsp;for centuries, decades, years, seasons, and months:

In the 18th century
In the 1960s
In 2001
In the summer
In October


Use&nbsp;on&nbsp;for days:


On Friday
On March 15th.
On my birthday
On the weekend


Use&nbsp;at&nbsp;for times:


At 3:30.
At noon.
At quarter past four.

[warning]

Be careful with morning, afternoon, evening, and night!


In&nbsp;the morning
In&nbsp;the afternoon
In&nbsp;the evening
At night


[/warning]




past / to

We can use these prepositions with&nbsp;minutes&nbsp;in relation to the&nbsp;hour:

3:50 = Ten to four
6:15 = Quarter past six




for / since

For&nbsp;is used for a period of time, and&nbsp;since&nbsp;is used to reference a specific point in time.

I’ve been waiting&nbsp;for three hours.I’ve been waiting&nbsp;since ten o’clock.
We’ve lived here&nbsp;for four years.We’ve lived here&nbsp;since 2008.
She’s been working there&nbsp;for six months.She’s been working there&nbsp;since she graduated from college.




as soon as / as long as

As soon as&nbsp;means “immediately after another event.”

We’ll call you&nbsp;as soon as&nbsp;we arrive.(if we arrive at 8:00, we’ll call you at 8:05)


As long as&nbsp;means “for the period of time” or “on the condition that”:

I stayed awake for&nbsp;as long as&nbsp;I could. (period of time)
I’ll take the job&nbsp;as long as&nbsp;I have the freedom to work from home a few days a week. (condition)
http://www.espressoenglish.net/prepositions-of-time-in-english/