in high school / at high school

T

Tadeo

Senior Member
Español (México)
Wich would be the correct proposition at or in???
a) Where were you??? At/In High school
b) When I was In/at high school

IN
Use 'in' with spaces:
  • in a room / in a building
  • in a garden / in a park

Use 'at' with static (non-movement) verbs and places:
  • at the cinema
  • at work
  • at home
AT
Use 'at' with places:
  • at the bus-stop
  • at the door
  • at the cinema
  • at the end of the street
I don't get it because high school is a non-movement place, but it is also an space:(
 
    • Why do we say :

    stay in school and not stay at school ¿?

    I really need this guys!!! Thanks.
     
    a. Where were you? I was at school.
    b. When I was in high school...

    Stay in school implies don't drop out of school.
    Stay at school implies don't leave the campus.
     
    "In school" por lo general se refiere a la condición de estudiante por un periodo prolongado; es el equivalente de SER alumno.

    "At school" se refiere al lugar en donde uno se encuentra al momento; es el equivalente de ESTAR en la escuela.
     
    So in acts as place-time-condition

    and

    at acts just as an specific place right.

    Same with:

    Stay in the hotel (be a guest)
    Stay at the hotel (stay in the facilities)
    ¿?

    Thank you!!!
     
    Sort of, but it depends on the particular noun. "In school" has the specific meaning of being enrolled in the school. On the other hand, with the noun "beach", you have:

    at the beach (staying in the town where the beach is)
    on the beach (actually standing on the sand)

    Also, "in the hotel" means that you are standing inside the building, not necessarily that you're a guest. "In" or "at" the hotel are pretty much equivalent: it's the verb ("stay" vs. "eat") that makes the difference here.

    The moral is: Don't try to make too strict a rule. English won't follow it.
     
    Also, "in the hotel" means that you are standing inside the building, not necessarily that you're a guest. "In" or "at" the hotel are pretty much equivalent: it's the verb ("stay" vs. "eat") that makes the difference here

    Thank you fool4jesus; but can you explain me that verb issue?;I don't get it.

    One more thing, the rule in my first post, can change with common usage, and it will depend of the context right???
    So can I say in the park and also at the park ¿?
     
    All I mean is that in this case, the preposition doesn't really make any difference. If I say

    We're staying at the hotel.
    We're staying in the hotel.

    They mean basically the same thing: we're guests there. Similarly,

    He's eating at the hotel.
    He's eating in the hotel.

    both mean that he's just in the hotel. There might be a slight matiz (ob: Spanish) of difference in that "eating at the hotel" implies he's eating in the hotel's restaurant, if it has one, while the latter could just mean he's eating inside the building. But I don't think there's really much of any difference.
     
    Thank You again to all of you.

    One last thing:

    the rule in my first post, can change with common usage, and it will depend of the context right???
    So can I say in the park and also at the park ¿?
     
    Yes, "In the park" and "At the park" are basically the same, if we're talking about a town park with grass and trees. If there's a difference, "in" implies within the boundaries of the park vs. being outside the boundaries, where "at" does not say anything about in vs. out. This would come up in the context of a baseball game, an "in the park" homerun vs. "out of the park" - although that's not really quite the same because the "park" here is la cancha, not el estadio.

    No sé si todo esto ayuda o no ...
     
    It's very helpful indeed.
    I'm starting to think that I should not abide by the rules completely.
     
    Hello nice people, I have a doubt which always confuses me and I don't know when I should say: at/in in this kind of contexts, for instance:

    Someone.- Are you studying? where?
    Me.- Yes, I am, I study at/in H. S.

    Or.. I study at/in university..I study in/at School..or.. I work in/at "somewhere"..in this last one, does it depend where you work to use these prepositions?..please help me when I should use work in/at.

    Thank you in advance.

    PS: Sorry for my grammar, if I have a mistake please correct me. Thank you!
     
    I'm in high school = estoy inscrito en una escuela secundaria
    I'm at high school = estoy en la escuela, ahora, físcamente

    En grandes líneas, y sin que todo el mundo respete mis reglas.

    I work in public relations/computer programming/financial services
    I work at the X company
     
    You would usually say:
    I am in high school.
    I am in university.
    I study economics at the University of X.

    You would not say "I study at high school / university".


    I work in [placename]. I work in Mérida / the financial district / a big building / the bank.

    I work at [company name]. I work at Telefónica / Renfe / Banco X.
     
    I am in university.
    Click to expand...

    In the US, nobody says "I am in university". We say "I am in college" or "I go to the University of Maryland", or whatever the name of the university is. (or "I study at the University of Maryland")
     
    Last edited:
    Si quiero decir "Estudié en tal colegio" (secundario)
    I studied... in? at?... X school?
    Por ejemplo... I studied in/at Pellegrini ¿School?
     
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