In the street vs. outside⁠⁠

I’ve heard that in the street is a BrE and on the street is an AmE. Would you mind telling me whether it is true or not?
Thanks

Senior Member

From where I’m sitting (in Los Angeles), it’s «on the street.»

Well, I think in AE we use both, but «on the street» is more common.

And I suspect they may have subtle differences in meaning depending on context.

Hrmm, I’m American. To me, there’s a significant difference between the two.

«In the street» means literally that you are «in the middle of the street, standing on it, and waiting for a passing car to hit you.», while «on the street» can be used to describe buildings which face the street. i.e. «The factory was on Jackson Street.» or a pedestrian who is walking down the street, but is on the sidewalk, not in the middle of the road.

As a British English speaker, I would say that ‘in the street’ is more common in BrE, but we do say ‘on the street’ as well, probably because we do use many AE phrases in everyday speech.

I have always had this problem. Some say that in the street is for the activities and on the street is for position. is this true? Please give me a hand. Thanks guys.

That sounds ok in theory — but usually people can think of examples to contradict these generalities.

SB is correct. It doesn’t take much effort to think of —

I somewhat disagree—I think one rides a bicycle the street, but the pavement. Which is interesting, because one rides a bicycle the sidewalk, not the sidewalk. And, even worse, one drives a car Main Street. Why do I think a bicycle uses and a car ? No idea, it’s just the way I’ve always said it!

At any rate, it’s tricky, isn’t it?

I would ride my bike on the street. «In» the street always implied a more risky endeavor, since childhood. Don’t ask me why.

I wonder what the man in the street would say?
If we listen carefully, I think we’d hear him speak BE, whereas his cousin, the man on the street, would speak AE.

Try changing ‘street’ to ‘road’ and ‘highway’. For me, though the vehicle may remain the same, whether bicycle or go-kart or roller-skates, the prepositions sometimes change. Curious. It seems to be more about sound and cadence than grammar.

The kids used to play games in the street.
They were not allowed to play on the road(pavement), but were told to stay on the footpath(sidewalk).

Cuchu’s cadences, of course, compel me onwards.
On the Road Again.
On Highway 61

On Route 66

We say «on the street» here in Minnesota, USA.

I’d also heard/read the comment that one was American and the other British. I don’t remember which was which.

I’ve found some set expressions in my dictionary with «on/in the street.» According to it, you can say:
1)»The man/woman in the street,» but also «the man/woman on the street» (the average person, who represents the general opinion about things)
2) «The streets» also «the street,» «young people living on the streets» (the busy public parts of a city where there is a lot of activity, excitement, and crime, or where people without homes live)
3) «a car parked on the other side of the street»
4) «be (living) on easy street» (to be in a situation in which you have plenty of money)

I wonder if one can say #2 and 4 with «in».

I don’t think you can. Sure is complicated!

Thank you!
Hm, now the obligatory question for me is, if you heard a nonnative speaker saying «on the street» where you would have said «in» and vice versa (apart from the cases #2 and 4), would you consider it a big mistake or wouldn’t you even notice it if someone didn’t point it out?

1. He lives in London.

2. He lives at 34 Oxford Street.

3. His house is on Oxford Street.

4. He lives on Oxford Street.

I know the first 3 sentence are fine. How about the fourth sentence? Would you agree with the preposition ‘on’ in the fourth sentence?

The fourth is fine. «On» is the best choice for the sentence.
He doesn’t live «at» Oxford Street, he could live «in» Oxford Street, but that can be misinterpreted to mean a down-and-out who lives in a cardboard box in a hidden-away corner.

Last edited by a moderator: Jun 19, 2013

I live in Ireland.

I live in Belgium.

You wouldn’t use the prepostion ‘on’ here, would you?

It’s nugatory. Countries and streets are different pair of shoes.

5. He lives at 34 Oxford Street in London.

I guess,if you want to specify the address, the fifth sentence is fine.

Would you write the fifth sentence?
My question is on the prepositions.

According to what I have been taught AmE and BrE differ in this respect. AmE would take on while BrE would take in, and thus AmE He lives on Oxford Street and BrE He lives in Oxford Street. However, if you specify the address, you indeed use at.

I’m happy with all

I think the choice between in and on (in 3&4) depends on how big the street happens to be.
Oxford Street is huge. If anyone lives there, they live on Oxford Street.
Chadwick Street is short. People who live there live in Chadwick Street.

Previous threads have discussed this strange subject:

On the street or in the street

«in» or «at» the area

It seems to be quite subjective.

I thank everybody for the comments.

So Tony Blair lives in London.

6. Tony Blair lives at 10 Downing Street.

7. Tony Blair lives on 10 Downing Street.

The place ‘number 10 Downing Street’ is a spot.

So it should be the sixth sentence.

For example, we say I met him in London but I met him at Heathrow Airport. London is a huge geographical area where as the airport is a particular place though it has a mass area.

We use the preposition ‘in’ for a geographical area and ‘at’ for a spot or rather a particular place.

Would you write the seventh sentence?

I don’t think you should use 10 Downing Street as an example. It is not a spot, it is the Prime Minister’s official residence.

Tony lives in 10 Downing Street rather as the Queen lives in Buckingham Palace.

Queen lives in Buckingham Palace.
The above is obvious. The Palace has the three diemensional aspects.

I live in this house. The preposition ‘in’ should be used as it has some walls, roof, etc.

I am not satisfied with ‘in Downing Street’ , though.

From the perspective of a UK resident, the name «10 Downing Street» means the building we see on the news every day. It is a three-dimensional concept, not just an address.

Bill Bloggs lives at 47 Adelaide Street.
He does not live on 47 Adelaide Street.

He might say he lives on Adelaide Street, or in Adelaide Street.
I think that his choice of on/in depends on how big Adelaide Street is.

A pedantic old git writes:-

I thought everyone knew that the Blairs and the Browns have swapped — the Blairs actually live at 11 Downing Street as it was more commodious for their larger (by previous Prime Ministerial standards) family.

Is this some strange sort of BE thing? I would never say anyone lived IN any street, no matter how short or small it was.

When I think of someone living IN «11th street» (as an example), I imagine tiny sidewalk people who live in the cracks of the sidewalk, or something like that. The only time I can think of using IN + STREET is:

I live in the street

Which would mean something on the lines of beeing homeless. However, I would use ON there as well if I felt like it.

Jon,
Please read the links provided in post #8.

From a purely AE standpoint, «at» is used for a specific, defined place, «on» is used before a street name with no specific address, and «in» is used whenever there is the sense of «within» or «inside of.» For example:

He lives in Palace Apartments.

Notice that if the person you are talking to already knows of Palace Apartments, then it is already defined and specific enough between the speakers, so that one may say, «He lives at Palace Apartments.» (If the other person does not know of Palace Apartments, he would infer that it is a specific place and probably ask, «What is Palace Apartments?» instead of «Where is Palace Apartments?»)

There are always exceptions and linguistic nuances. One could say, «John lives at that restaurant» to mean «John goes to that restaurant so often that he practically lives there»; but to say «John lives in that restaurant» would imply «John physically inhabits that restaurant.»

When speaking of geographic regions, one always uses «in» since we literally mean «He lives within/inside of London» and not «He lives on top of London» or «He lives at the specific spot of London.»

Hope this helps.

We have a shop on Adelaide Street.

Our shop is on Adelaide Street.

Are the above fine?

Does it really matter the size of the street?

Adelaide Street can be a small one, big one or famous one like Champs Elysee.

I stress that I am speaking BE, and perhaps more locally than that.

On is perfect if Adelaide Street is well-known for shopping.
If no one expects to find a shop there, the shop is in Adelaide Street.

Others may suggest different uses of on and in.
I’m sorry, but use of in and on in this context has no objective rule.

We have a shop on Adelaide Street.
Our shop is on Adelaide Street.

I’d be happy with both of them, and with «Our shop is in Adelaide Street».

The size of the street doesn’t matter to me.
There used to be a difference in the understanding of what constituted a road/street/place/lane/avenue etc. but no longer. I think this might be what panjandrum is referring to.

You could be right.
If so, it is entirely sub-conscious for me.

Over here the President lives on Pennsylvania Avenue. He lives at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

«Don’t misunderestimate me» George W. Bush

Yes, and he lives in the White House. I think Panjandrum meant that the phrase 10 Downing Street is equivalent to the White House, rather than to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Kelly B said:

That’s exactly what he meant.

Honestly, you’d think the idiot would manage to say what he meant first time instead of needing to be interpreted.
I’ll have a word with him and tell him to try harder in future.

1)on the street
2)in the street

Is it because of the usege difference between British and American that these two types are equally frequently used?

Yes, I think so. Our visitors from the US will say «Is the monastery on Albeq Street?» and the British ones will say, «Is the monastery in Albeq street?»

I wonder if «in the street» can mean «in the middle of the street, in the traffic lanes» in both AE and BE?

The preposition depends on the meaning of the sentence.

The word on the street is that Tom is dealing drugs.
The graffiti painted on the street . . . .
The car was parked on the side of the street.

Jane was standing in the street crying and calling for her lost dog.
The water in the street was waist deep.

What is the sentence you need help with?

1)the building facing the street. The Opera House is ( ) the X street.
2)There are musicians ( ) the street.
Thanks for the help!

To my way of thinking a person who is on the street is basically living on the street.
To be in the street is to visit the street for a short period.

But there is an AE BE difference I think.

For me —

So, it seems we only use «on» for the the «word on the street» (although I may not have thought of an example of «on» of course).

The graffiti painted in the street (eg on the walls along the street, on would mean literally painted on the road surface — unless that’s what you meant?)

Yes, I meant on the road surface.

Oh, we’d probably call that «street art» here!

I would agree with this. I worked with a project called on the street and into work which was about getting homeless people off the streets, into work and then into housing.

В этой статье предлагаем разобрать основные предлоги времени в английском языке, а также правила и примеры их употребления.

Предлогов времени в английском языке (prepositions of time) немало, а правил и исключений еще больше. Поэтому эта тема вызывает много вопросов и трудностей у студентов. В этой статье мы рассмотрим основные правила и дадим примеры, которые помогут вам разобраться с предлогами времени, а в конце представим тест.

Предлоги времени at, in, on

Для начала давайте разберем случаи употребления предлогов at, in, on в английском языке:

Для того чтобы вам было легче запомнить, в каком случае какой предлог употреблять, повторим еще раз их основные функции. Предлог at употребляется, когда называем точное время (в котором часу произошло действие). Предлог on в английском языке употребляем, когда говорим о конкретном дне (день недели, дата, праздничный день). Предлог in в английском языке используется для больших временных промежутков (месяц, сезон, год и т. д.). Можно проследить закономерность от меньшего к большему. Но не забывайте и про устойчивые сочетания, которые могут быть исключениями.

Предлоги времени at, in, on не используем перед словами last (прошлый), this (этот), next (следующий), every (каждый).

I saw him last weekend and he looked like he had never got in that terrible car crash. — Я видела его на прошлых выходных, и он выглядел, как будто никогда и не попадал в ту ужасную аварию.
Kevin and I have separated and I am staying at my parents’ this month. — Кевин и я разошлись, и я живу у родителей в этом месяце.

Хотите потренироваться в употреблении предлогов at, in, on? Записывайтесь на курс практической грамматики.

Разница между on time и in time

On time — в заранее оговоренное время, по расписанию, не раньше и не позже. Противоположное значение — late (поздно). In time — заблаговременно, с запасом времени.

I like that Mr. Black is very punctual and all our classes always start on time — at 9 o’clock. — Мне нравится, что мистер Блэк очень пунктуальный и все наши занятия начинаются вовремя — в 9 часов. (занятия начинаются ровно в 9 часов, не раньше и не позже)
I’ll see you at 11.30. Be on time. I won’t wait for you. — Увидимся в 11:30. Будь вовремя. Я тебя ждать не буду. (будь ровно в 11:30)

I hope there won’t be any traffic and I’ll get to the airport in time. — Надеюсь, что пробок не будет и я приеду в аэропорт вовремя. (не обязательно в конкретное запланированное время, а заблаговременно, чтобы все успеть)
The conference starts at 10 a.m. Will you be in time? We need to fill in the registration forms. — Конференция начинается в 10. Ты будешь вовремя? Нам еще нужно заполнить регистрационную форму. (нужно прийти не ровно в 10, а заранее, чтобы успеть заполнить форму)

Еще одно полезное выражение — just in time (в самый последний момент, чуть не опоздать, как раз вовремя).

I managed to call the air company and cancel my tickets just in time. Otherwise I would have had to pay for them. — У меня получилось дозвониться в авиакомпанию и отменить билеты как раз вовремя. Иначе пришлось бы за них платить.
You’ve come just in time! We are about to start. — Ты чуть не опоздал. Мы как раз начинаем.

Разница между at the end и in the end

At the end переводится как «в конце». In the end — в итоге, в конечном счете, в результате, в конце концов.

He fell asleep at the end of the film and felt really embarrassed because it was a date. — Он уснул в конце фильма и чувствовал себя очень неловко, потому что это было свидание.
I have won Harvard scholarship and I am leaving at the end of August. — Я выиграл стипендию на обучение в Гарварде и уезжаю в конце августа.

We were arguing for such a long time that in the end we even forgot what the argument was about. — Мы так долго ссорились, что в конце концов даже забыли, о чем был спор.
In the end it doesn’t matter how big your salary was if you weren’t happy. — В конечном счете не важно, насколько большая у тебя была зарплата, если ты не был счастлив.

После at the end и at the beginning всегда можно добавить of: at the end of the concert (под конец концерта), at the beginning of the story (в начале истории). После in the end и in the beginning добавлять of нельзя.

He will come back at the beginning of the summer and we will go on holidays. — Он вернется в начале лета, и мы поедем в отпуск.
In the beginning she felt really shy, but in the end she made a lot of friends. — Поначалу она очень стеснялась, но в конце концов со многими подружилась.

Предлоги времени for, during и since

Предлог for в английском языке употребляется, чтобы уточнить, как долго длится действие: for an hour (час, длительностью в час), for a year (год, на протяжении года).

I’ve found a well-paid job in Alaska and I am going there for a year. — Я нашел хорошо оплачиваемую работу на Аляске и еду туда на год.
The company has been on the verge of bankruptcy for six months. — Компания находится на грани банкротства уже полгода.

Предлог during нужен, чтобы уточнить, когда происходит действие. During используем с существительными: during the film (во время фильма), during the day (в течение дня, в какой-то момент дня).

At work they have a room with board and video games so they usually have a lot of fun during their lunch breaks. — На работе у них есть комната с настольными играми и видеоиграми, поэтому они весело проводят время во время обеденного перерыва.
He kept so calm during the business meeting. — Он был таким спокойным во время бизнес-встречи.

Давайте сравним предлоги for и during. Предлог for обозначает, как долго происходит действие, а предлог during — когда оно происходит.

During my holiday in Brazil I fell in love with the country and its culture and made a decision to stay there for a while. — Во время моего отпуска в Бразилии я влюбилась в эту страну и ее культуру и приняла решение остаться там на какое-то время.
I have been travelling for many years but I have never been in Europe during the Christmas holidays. — Я путешествую уже много лет, но никогда не был в Европе во время рождественских праздников.

Предлог since (с, с тех пор как) нужен для обозначения начала какого-то действия.

I have known Michelle since our carefree childhood. — Я знаю Мишель со времен нашего беззаботного детства.
Children have been building this sandcastle since morning. It looks nice. — Дети строят этот песочный замок с самого утра. Выглядит хорошо.

Предлоги времени by, until/till

Используем предлог until/till (до тех пор, пока, не раньше), когда говорим, до какого времени длится действие.

I am extremely swamped today. I won’t be able to talk to you until 6 p.m. — Я невероятно занята сегодня. У меня не получится с тобой поговорить до 6 часов.
I won’t be back till midnight. — Я не вернусь до 12 ночи.

Предлог by (к какому-то времени) употребляется, когда указываем, что действие произойдет к какому-то определенному моменту или раньше его, но не позже.

The parcel was supposed to come by Friday! — Посылка должна была прийти к пятнице!
I am sure I’ll lose five kilos by next month if I go on a diet. — Я уверена, что сброшу пять кило к следующему месяцу, если сяду на диету.

Давайте рассмотрим разницу между предлогами until/till и by. Используем until/till, когда указываем, как долго действие будет продолжаться до конкретного момента. Используем by, когда уточняем, к какому моменту произойдет действие. Сравните:

She will be in the office until evening. — Она будет в офисе до вечера. (весь день до вечера)
She will finish work by evening. — Она закончит работу к вечеру. (не позднее вечера или раньше)

The cake will be baking till 2 o’clock. — Торт будет выпекаться до 2 часов. (на протяжении всего времени до 2 часов)
I have to bake a cake by 2 o’clock. — Мне нужно испечь торт к 2 часам. (торт должен быть готов к 2 или раньше, но не позже)

Надеемся, вы разобрались в теме употребления предлогов времени в английском языке. Пройдите небольшой тест, чтобы проверить себя.

Тест по теме «Предлоги времени в английском языке — at, in, on, since, for»

Как бы вы сказали по английски «НА УЛИЦЕ» в контексте «На улице холодно» ?

Скорее всего вы скажете in/on the street. Но я скажу, что вы не правы.

Если мы подразумеваем не конкретную улицу, а пространство за окном вообще, то это будет выражаться словом OUTSIDE.

🔵It is cold outside. — На улице холодно.

Заодно я развею ваши сомнения по поводу in/on the street, поскольку многие часто спрашивают как же правильней.

Можно говорить in the street, a можно on the street. Разница лишь в американском и британском вариантах.

🔹In the street – исконно британский вариант. In означает В, т.е. внутри чего-либо. Старые лондонские улочки образовывали лабиринт. Человек находился как в колодце, т.е. внутри улицы. Отсюда вариант in the street – вполне естественен.

А в американском английском In the street означает «посередине улицы», например:

☑️Our bakery is in Green Street (брит) – Наша пекарня находится на улице Грин.

☑️Don’t stand in the street, a car may hit you! (амер) – Не стой посреди улицы, тебя может сбить машина!

🔹On the street – американский вариант, где улицы традиционно были просторными, поэтому использование предлога ON вполне очевидно.

☑️Our bakery is on Green Street (амер) – Наша пекарня находится на улице Грин.

☑️A car is parked on the street (амер) – Машина припаркована на улице.

Сейчас во всех городах мира улицы стараются расширять из-за обилия транспорта. Так что, выражение on the street становится естественным.

Такие дела =)

У меня есть свой телеграмм-канал, где я делюсь всякими интересностями об английском, а также составляю мини-упражнения. Вам понравится =)

В этой статье изучим основные предлоги места и движения в английском языке, и на примерах разберем, когда и какой предлог необходимо использовать.

Когда мы говорим о месторасположении чего-либо в пространстве, нам не обойтись без предлогов места и движения (prepositions of place and movement). В этой статье мы расскажем, как правильно употреблять эти предлоги, а также сравним некоторые пары похожих по значению предлогов.

Предлоги at, in, on — одни из самых распространенных в английском языке. Давайте разберемся, в каких случаях они используются.

Предлог at

Предлог at на русский язык переводят по-разному — «в», «около», «у», «на». Давайте рассмотрим случаи его употребления:

Предлог in

Предлог in используем в следующих случаях:

Разница между предлогами места at и in

Оба предлога at и in используют, когда речь идет о зданиях. Часто они взаимозаменяемы, но есть небольшая разница. В чем же отличие?

Предлог in употребляем, когда подчеркиваем, что объект находится внутри здания.

Carl is still in the restaurant. Go and tell him to hurry. We are waiting. — Карл все еще в ресторане. Пойди и скажи ему, чтобы поторопился. Мы ждем.

Используя предлог at, нам важно указать причину, по которой человек находится в том или ином месте. Однако не имеет значения, в данный момент он внутри здания или нет.

Carl works at a restaurant. He is a waiter. — Карл работает в ресторане. Он официант.

Предлог on

Предлог on употребляется:

Above, over, below, under и другие

В английском языке есть несколько пар предлогов места похожих по значению. Приведем примеры и разберемся, в чем между ними разница.

Above и over

Предлогам above и over соответствует русский предлог «над»:

Please, hang this picture above/over the table. — Пожалуйста, повесь эту фотографию над столом.
She has a cute mole right above/over her upper lip. — У нее милая родинка прямо над верхней губой.

Разница между предлогами состоит в том, что over используем, когда объект находится непосредственно над чем-то или касается его, а above — объекты не соприкасаются и могут не находиться друг над другом. Например:

He put a jacket over her shoulders. He knew she was cold. — Он накинул пиджак ей на плечи. Он знал, что ей холодно.
The fortress was built on the hill above the river. — Крепость была построена на холме над рекой.

Below и under

Предлоги места below и under можно перевести словом «под» и часто их значение синонимично.

My shop is below/under his flat. I always hear his dog barking. — Мой магазин находится под его квартирой. Я всегда слышу, как лает его собака.
I saw a big black spider hanging under/below the picture in the museum. — Я увидела большого черного паука, который висел под картиной в музее.

Используйте under, когда один объект каким-то образом соприкасается или накрывает другой, а below — в случае, когда объекты не соприкасаются или находятся на разных уровнях:

I thought I lost my passport, but yesterday I found it under a stack of papers. — Я думал, что потерял паспорт, но вчера нашел его под стопкой бумаг.
There was a big clock below the painting. — Ниже под картиной висели огромные часы.

Between и among

Предлоги between и among переводятся как «между» или «среди». Between используют, когда говорят о двух или более вещах, как об отдельных объектах. Когда речь идет о двух и более объектах, которые являются частью одной группы, используем among. Сравните:

I had to choose between my best friend’s party and my son’s birthday. Of course I chose the latter. — Я должен был выбрать между вечеринкой лучшего друга и днем рождения сына. Конечно, я выбрал последнее.
We decided to camp between two beautiful mountains. — Мы решили разбить лагерь между двух красивых гор.

A small hunter’s lodge was hidden among the trees. — Небольшой охотничий домик был скрыт среди деревьев.
I’d like to stay in a hotel among the mountains. — Я бы хотел остановиться в отеле, расположенном среди гор.

In front of и opposite

Предлог места opposite (напротив) употребляем, когда объект стоит «лицом» к другому объекту, находясь на противоположной стороне (например, через дорогу или с другой стороны стола). А предлог in front of можно перевести словом «перед». То есть один объект находится впереди другого на небольшом расстоянии и на одной стороне.

She came really late and almost all seats were taken. She had to sit opposite Mike. — Она пришла очень поздно, и почти все места были заняты. Ей пришлось сесть напротив Майка.
They live opposite a new supermarket. — Они живут напротив нового супермаркета.

I came here very early — at 6 a.m., but there were five people in front of me in the line. — Я пришла сюда очень рано — в 6 утра, но уже 5 человек стояли передо мной в очереди.
A tall woman in front of me pretended not to hear my question. — Высокая женщина впереди меня сделала вид, что не услышала мой вопрос.

Next to, by, beside, near

Предлоги next to, by, beside, near переводятся как «рядом», «с», «у», «около» и могут взаимозаменять друг друга. Все они указывают на близость объекта к чему-либо.

The photographer asked me to stand next to mum and hug her. — Фотограф попросил меня стать рядом с мамой и обнять ее.
He always sits beside me when we have a biology class. — Он всегда садится рядом со мной, когда у нас урок биологии.

I have always wanted to live by the river. — Я всегда хотела жить у реки.
He parked near the office and got out of the car. — Он припарковался возле офиса и вышел из машины.

Предлог near также используют, когда объект находится недалеко от чего-то.

There was a cinema near my university so we often skipped classes and watched films. — Недалеко от моего университета был кинотеатр, поэтому мы часто сбегали с уроков и смотрели фильмы. (недалеко, но не прямо возле университета)
I live next to / by / beside the railway station and sometimes it’s really difficult to fall asleep because of the noise. — Я живу возле вокзала и иногда очень сложно уснуть из-за шума. (прямо рядом с вокзалом)

Хотите систематизировать знания грамматики и свободно говорить на английском? Запишитесь на общий разговорный курс и учите английский по Скайпу.

From, to, across, along и другие

А теперь предлагаем разобрать предлоги, которые в английском языке указывают направление движения.

From, to и towards

Будем рады, если статья окажется вам полезной. Предлагаем пройти небольшой тест для закрепления материала.

Тест по теме «Предлоги места и движения в английском языке»

Здесь вы узнаете разницу 🙂

На самом деле оба варианта правильны и значат одно и то же — на улице. Если не углубляться, то самое простое объяснение звучит так: 🇬🇧 in the street — исконно британский вариант 🇺🇸 on the street — американский

Почему же так? Причина является интересным примером того, в каких мелочах реалии влияют на язык. Великобритания — не слишком большая страна, места не много, поэтому дома строили близко к друг другу, и в узкой улочке с высокими домами по обеим сторонам чувствуешь себя, словно внутри колодца. В Америке же распространены широкие проспекты и там ты уж точно находишься НА поверхности улицы, а не внутри неё 🙂 Такие дела.

На самом деле, в британском английском сейчас уже можно встретить оба варианта (видимо, улицы стали шире ☺) и не будет ошибкой сказать on the street, хотя вариант с предлогом IN остаётся более распространённым.

Американцы же предпочитают on the street. Для них выражение «in the street» означает «посреди улицы, на проезжей части», что уже, конечно же, совсем не то.

То же самое касается случая, когда мы говорим название улицы: in/on the High Street.

В общем, если не желаете путаться, то запоминайте «on the street» 🙂 Хотя лично мне нравится старый британский подтекст варианта с IN 🏙

Ставь +, если пост был полезен 🙂

Читать ещё на Пикабу

-The old man who was standing on the corner yelled at the kids who were playing in the street.

Is it not correct to say that the kids were playing ON the street?

Last edited by a moderator: Jun 1, 2008

I can only imagine that in and on are the hardest of prepositions to learn if there is only one word in your language. I have the same difficulty in Spanis with por and para. I agree with JCEst, it’s in the street.

Last edited by a moderator: Apr 5, 2015

Both are used, and I can’t see any objection to «on», although, I think «playing in the street» is more common in reference to children’s play (as opposed to musicians, who seem to be more usually said to play «on the street»). No doubt differences in nuance can be proposed, but I would wonder if the differences would be appreciated by the listener in this case, or in many other cases. It seems mostly to be due to accepted idiom in particular contexts.

There are numerous instances of «on the street» generally, so it is not in any way unidiomatic per se. There may also be regional preferences.

In the U.S., I’ve only heard «playing in the street.»

But in the U.S. we say «I live on that street,» while people from Britain and Australia that I’ve talked with say «I live in that street.»

I don’t know of any logical rule to determine which preposition to use, especially since different English speakers may use different prepositions.

Thank you for your prompt answers, i guess there is no general rule.

Oh, yes, Fackeen—
Welcome to WordReference Forums. Please read the rules (stickies) when you post to a forum.
Many happy returns!

Ok. I read some, but i did not go into detail. Hope i did not cause any inconvenience.

1) The Opera House is ( ) the X street.

American: on
British: in

American: in
British: in, I think

Sounds good to me.

Off-hand, I would say that «in the street» would be used if the person/object/activity were physically in the middle of the street. «On the street» and «On ____ Street» are used when they are located along the street as you usually think of it (on the side of the physical way).

They’re dancing in the street.
They are in the middle of the street, dancing.

Your car is in the street. Please park in rear lot.

Is there a library on Berry Street?

Yes, there is one in on Berry Street.
It’s not in the middle of the street, but along the street.

Best of luck!

I believe this is a difference between British English and American English. In British English, offices are located «in» a street, and in American English, offices are located «on» a street.

I believe this is a difference between British English and American English. In British English, offices are located «in» a street, and in American English, offices are located «on» a street.

I second that.

«Can you tell me where the nearest fishing tackle shop is, please?»

«Yes, it’s just round the corner in Regent Street.»

I’ve noticed that AE/BE difference in describing the location of buildings when I’ve watched BBC programs. It’s illogical, but in the U.S. we use the word on to describe a building or property that is along the edge or border of something else. I don’t think that it applies to any other things besides real estate. Here are some more examples:

So both answers in your textbook are correct—which one to use depends on who you are talking to.

Personnaly i would use «Yes, there is one on Berry Street.» But i am sure it depends on what the person asked you

Hope that helps

You surprise me nay92 coming from London. You must be watching too much American TV, or else things have changed.

This is a BrE vs AmE issue.

For the most part, things are in streets in the UK and on streets in the US.

X is in Berwick St. (regular city street)
Y is on the Euston Road (very wide, long major street)

Naturally, the Brits are right. Hehe! Americans wouldn’t talk about people dancing on the streets, they’d say dancing in the streets. Well it’s the same with buildings.

I certainly don’t remember that distinction

Hi, is there any difference in the meaning of «in the street» and «on the street»? Thank you

Issues of grammar aside, I believe the «in» or «on» question is most likely a BE vs AE issue.
I live on Jane Street (AE) but my English friends say I live in Jane Street.

Does it matter if the place has a number or has a name?

1. He lives in ‘The Laurels’, Oxford Street
2. He lives at ‘The Laurels’, Oxford Street
3. He lives at number thirty-four, Oxford Street .

I’m not sure what «The Laurels» is exactly, so it could be either «in» or «at.» In any case, I’d have to add «on» before «Oxford Street,» so: He lives in/at ‘The Laurens’, on Oxford Street.

Number (3) is correct.

In some places, it is possible for a property to have a name (sometimes in place of, but often in addition to) a number, so ‘The Laurels’ was my made-up house name. It could equally be something like Shepherds Croft, Farmhouse Lane. Would that make any difference to the preposition use?

I somewhat disagree—I think one rides a bicycle the street, but the pavement. Which is interesting, because one rides a bicycle the sidewalk, not the sidewalk. And, even worse, one drives a car Main Street. Why do I think a bicycle uses and a car ? No idea, it’s just the way I’ve always said it!

You can use «in the street» to describe the location of a street party, or of some dancing (as a thread above points out), etc, as the band Credence Clearwater knew:

However, if a person is living «on the street» it means he (or she) is homeless; and incidentally, you can put someone «out in the street» (when you evict him or her from a lodging, for example).

It’s nice to see that even after 3 and a half years folks are ready to help learners in need.

Yes, it would — you live at The Laurels, in Oxford Street.

Hmm, say you live in some place called «Manor Lodge.» You can live «at» or «in» Manor Lodge in my dialect.

It rained a lot yesterday and there are a lof of puddles on/in the street now.

Which preposition would you use? I would use ‘on’ as it’s about the surface. What do you think?

His/Her example is good, but his/her definition is too narrow and doesn’t apply here (how does one play in the surface of a street?).

At school I was taught that that the phrase with children meant ‘childen are not allowed to play on the road of the street’. As far as the surface is concerned:

To BE me «play in the street» is an idiomatic phrase meaning the roads and pavements outside the house. The children aren’t playing in the house they playing outside ‘in the street’. Their games take place on the road and pavements. O they used to, since those days are long gone.

I can’t answer about puddles because I never need to talk about where they are. People know the relationship between the road or footpath and the puddles.

«It rained a lot this morning and the children are enjoying splashing in the puddles»

«The bus went through a huge puddle and I got drenched from head to toe»

Thank you, ribran.

Well, I should have given another example. For example about snow.

I snowed heavily last night and in the morning everything was covered with snow. It has been a sunny day, the snow on the roofs has melted, but there is still some in the street.

Ribran’s answer makes me think that the right preposition is ‘in’.

The other day, in Oxford St., I was asked by an American, ‘Is this Oxford?’
I felt like saying, ‘No, this is London’, but I answered ‘This is Oxford St.’
My impression is that the American preference for saying ‘on’ a street rather than ‘in’ imagines for example a house on a street which is on a piece of land, whereas the British preference for ‘in’ imagines it as a place in which you exist and live your life, as you would in a town.

Mod note: reginaregina’s thread has been merged with this thread.

Last edited by a moderator: Jul 12, 2012

I might as well give you my AE viewpoint: I use «in» when I’m talking about being between the borders of the road, being in the space where cars go, and I use «on» when I’m talking about being on the edge of one of those borders of the space where cars go. So I live on 5th street (just as if the street were a river, you say «the house is on the river» to mean it’s on the bank and not «in» which would mean in the water), but children shouldn’t play in the street.

Mod note: Thanks, Tazzler for the link. Not required now because of the merged threads.

Could you please clarify whether I understand this right?

If one says
He lives in Palace Apartments.
The other’s question might possibly be
Where is Palace Apartments?

If one says
He lives at Palace Apartments.
The other’s question might possibly be
What is Palace Apartments?

I doubt and can allow that the correspondence between the utterances and questions can be the other way round.

Having read the entire thread, I see there is no consensus.

On is to be in physical contact with.
In is to be enclosed or surrounded by something else.

I can ride my bike in or on the street. I ride my bike on the road, but not in it, because a road has the definition of being a wide way that goes from one place to another, whereas a street is often enclosed by houses or buildings. Sidewalks are raised and we can’t be in them, only on them, unless we are talking about being buried in the cement. I don’t ride my bike on the alley, because I am quite definitely in the alley, being enclosed. And so on and so forth.

Bruce Springsteen is «out in the streets». But Dire Straits plays «on every street».
Go figure.

I was doing a listening exercise from the book «Face to Face» by Oxford, and although I know Brits usually use «in» the street, the speaker in the audio said that a shop is «on the Market Street». To make matters worse, in one audio for the same book and same level I listened to later, they used «in New* Market Street» (*not sure if it was new or something else, but the name was definitely something Market Street).

«(The shop is) on the Market Street» doesn’t sound at all natural. I can’t imagine anybody saying ‘ . . . on the market street’. Or ‘ . . . on the Market Street’.

‘The shop is in Newmarket Street’ sounds perfectly natural.

I’ll find the book and the audio script today, and I’ll post a photo shot here so you can see the exact wording and context.

Last edited by a moderator: Apr 1, 2018

I can imagine someone saying «The shop is on Market Street», without «the». It’s been my experience that usage — «in» vs. «on» — varies from one part of the UK to another.

Text, transcribed by moderator:
«I rarely go to the street.»

Last edited by a moderator: Jun 18, 2019

May I ask for your opinion? I’m an English teacher from Perú.

Post mod (English Only / Latin)

Hello Ivan Eduardo.

Please describe the situation in which you would use this sentence.
If you go ‘to the street’, you are somewhere else and the street is your destination. Is that what you are thinking of?

In BE we would say ‘on the street’ in that context, right?

I would not say that in that context, no. I would say «in the middle of the street».

And what do I choose here? I guess ‘in’ in AE and ‘on’ in BE, right?
«And on the way home, I saw some boys playing football in/on the street. I stopped and told them to go to the playground. «

I don’t think there’s an AE/BE difference in this particular case: I think «in the street» would sound right on both sides of the Atlantic — but I stand to be corrected when our AE friends fall out of bed.

And how about this coursebook task? Would there be a difference between AE/BE?

«The picture shows a boy, standing in/on some street, looking through a toy store window.»

Hi there,
If you are walking and you are in close proximity to the buildings of a street which are clearly separated from the road by a curb edge than you say ‘ I’m on the street’, because ‘on the street’ implies the location of buildings, the sidewalk and the pedestrian zone, on which motorized vehicles are not allowed to drive or must decrease their speed in order to not endanger people when entering or parking. ‘On the street’ answers the unspecified question whether you are inside a containerlike facility (house, barn, office, factory etc.) or outside (standing on the sidewalk, sitting outside a cafe and drinking some cappucino etc.). ‘In the street’ implies a more or less enclosed space, so you can think of this latter expression as ‘In (the boundaries of) the street’. ‘On the street’ is more about spaces occupied by buildings or zones (like playgrounds, cafes, parking lots etc.) in a city/town whereas ‘In the street’ is a more general expression, which includes both facilities of any kind and crossroads in a city/town. The concept of a street in English is quite abstract and thus its use idiomatic. So I think that both forms can be used interchangeably in most of the cases, without being missunderstood in any form. The only difference seems to be of regional character. Americans generally prefer to say ‘On the street’, whereas the British use ‘In the street’. And last but not least, there is no expression like ‘at the street’.

Last edited: Apr 22, 2020

He’s standing on the sidewalk.

I have often walked down this street before
But the pavement always stayed beneath my feet before
All at once am I several stories high
Knowing I’m on the street where you live

Problem: I can’t get this tune out of my head now. I’m going to be stuck with it for hours.