Little words matter. Can you see the difference?
🎙 Speak: Can you tell me about a time you went somewhere? Use "to," "at," "from."
Prepositions, conjunctions, and -ing forms are glue. They connect your ideas and make your sentences flow naturally. Without them, your English sounds broken up.
Today you'll learn the most common ones so you can speak smoothly.
Prepositions show relationships between words. Here are the most useful ones for A2.
| Preposition | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| to | Direction toward a place | "I go to school." |
| from | Starting point | "I came from Berlin." |
| into | Entering a space | "I walked into the room." |
| out of | Leaving a space | "She came out of the building." |
| through | Passing across or inside | "We walked through the park." |
| across | From one side to another | "He ran across the street." |
| Preposition | When to Use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| at | Specific time of day | "I wake up at 7 o'clock." |
| in | Month, year, season | "I was born in 1995." "in summer" |
| on | Days and dates | "I work on Mondays." "on 15th June" |
| during | Throughout a period | "I worked there during the summer." |
| for | Duration / how long | "I studied for 3 hours." |
| before / after | Earlier / later than | "Before lunch." "After the meeting." |
1. "I arrived the city 5 PM."
"I arrived IN the city AT 5 PM."
IN = entering place, AT = specific time
2. "He ran the park the morning."
"He ran THROUGH the park IN the morning."
THROUGH = across/inside, IN = part of day
🎙 Speak: Tell me about your journey to class today. Use at least 3 prepositions.
1. Talk about a place you go to regularly. Use "to," "at," "during."
2. Talk about a journey. Use "from," "to," "through," "across."
3. Talk about when you do something. Use "on," "in," "at," "for."
🎙 Speak: Say all three using the correct prepositions.
These words connect two events in time. They show when things happen in relation to each other.
| Conjunction | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| when | At the moment that / as soon as | "When she arrived, I was cooking." |
| while | During the time that (both happen together) | "While I was reading, my friend called." |
| before | Earlier than | "Before I go home, I'll finish this work." |
| after | Later than | "After we eat, let's watch a movie." |
WHEN: One action happens, then another. Often sudden.
WHILE: Two actions happen at the same time. Both ongoing.
" I was eating, my friend texted me."
WHILE — Both actions at the same time (I was eating, and at that moment, she texted)
" the bell rang, I was studying."
WHEN — Bell rang (sudden event), I was studying (ongoing). The bell is the moment that interrupted.
🎙 Speak: Tell me about something that happened while you were doing something else.
1. Create a sentence with WHEN.
2. Create a sentence with WHILE.
3. Create a sentence with BEFORE or AFTER.
🎙 Speak: Say all three sentences out loud.
These words show that two ideas are different or surprising together.
| Word | Position | Example |
|---|---|---|
| but | Joins two sentences / ideas in one sentence | "I wanted to go, but it was raining." |
| although | At the start of a clause (one part of sentence) | "Although it was raining, I went out." |
| however | Joins two sentences (with semicolon or period) | "It was raining. However, I went out." / "It was raining; however, I went out." |
Key rule: BUT is the easiest. Use it most. ALTHOUGH emphasises the contrast. HOWEVER is more formal.
"It's expensive, it's good quality."
BUT — "It's expensive, but it's good quality." (Simple contrast in one sentence)
" it's expensive, I like it very much."
ALTHOUGH — "Although it's expensive, I like it very much." (Emphasises the contrast)
🎙 Speak: Tell me about something you like even though it's hard or expensive. Use one of these words.
1. Sentence with BUT.
2. Sentence with ALTHOUGH.
3. Sentence with HOWEVER.
🎙 Speak: Say all three sentences.
When you say what you like or dislike, you often use a verb + -ing (gerund).
Subject + LIKE/LOVE/HATE + -ing form
"I like reading."
The -ing form describes the activity you like/love/hate.
| Verb | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| like | Enjoy (neutral) | "I like playing football." |
| love | Really enjoy (strong) | "She loves swimming." |
| hate | Really dislike | "I hate cleaning." |
| enjoy | Find pleasure in | "We enjoy traveling." |
| prefer | Like better (+ -ing OR infinitive) | "I prefer cooking." or "I prefer to cook." |
| don't mind | It's okay with me | "I don't mind waiting." |
A FEW (countable): "I have a few ideas."
A LITTLE (uncountable): "I have a little time."
"I really like ." (running / to run)
RUNNING — "I really like running." (After LIKE, use -ing)
"She hates ." (cooking / to cook)
COOKING — "She hates cooking." (After HATE, use -ing)
🎙 Speak: Tell me three things you like doing and one thing you hate doing.
1. "I love ." (Fill in an activity with -ing)
2. "I enjoy ." (Fill in an activity with -ing)
3. "I don't like ." (Fill in an activity with -ing)
🎙 Speak: Say all three sentences.
Choose a card. Tell a story using prepositions, time conjunctions, contrast, and -ing forms. Speak for about one minute.
Tell your story. Try to include:
🎙 Speak: Go ahead. Tell your story naturally.
...use prepositions to show time and movement, connect ideas with conjunctions, express contrasts, and talk about what I like doing with -ing forms.
1. What's the difference between WHEN and WHILE?
WHEN: One action (sudden) happens during another. WHILE: Two actions happen at the same time, both ongoing.
2. When do you use BUT vs. ALTHOUGH?
BUT: Simple connection in one sentence. ALTHOUGH: Emphasises the contrast more. HOWEVER is more formal and separates sentences.
3. Which tense prepositions need? AT, IN, ON?
AT: Specific time (3 PM). IN: Month, season, year, or part of day. ON: Specific day or date.
4. After LIKE, LOVE, HATE, do you use infinitive or -ing?
Use -ING form. "I like reading" (not "I like to read"). Exception: PREFER can take both, but -ing is simpler.
🎙 Speak: Describe your typical day. Use at least 5 of the structures from this lesson: prepositions, time conjunctions, contrast words, and -ing forms. Two minutes.