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Quick Help: Strategies for learning prepositions idiomatically
Each of the most common prepositions has a wide range of applications, and this range never coincides exactly from one language to another. See, for example, how in and on are used in English.
The peaches are in the refrigerator.
The peaches are on the table.
Is that a diamond ring on your finger?
In some other languages (Spanish, for instance), these sentences might all use the same preposition. Be careful not to assume that what you know about prepositions in another language will help in English.
There is no easy solution to the challenge of using English prepositions idiomatically. However, the following strategies can make learning idiomatic uses of prepositions less troublesome.