in that time vs at that time

[martinam]

Hi,

could anybody please explain me the difference between "in that time" vs "at that time" in the following sentence....

In a case you cannot come at that time,I will....
In a case you cannot come in that time,I will.....

How does it change the meaning of the sentence?

Thanks

 

[Harry Batt]

At that time means that you will need to change your time of arrival if you can't arrive by the suggested time. In that time means that no time is suggested for arrival as long as you can make it there within a certain amount of time. For example, I want you to come at 1 pm on Wednesday, but you can't come that early in the afternoon. You are told to get here on Wednesday to be here no more than 4 hours after you get off work because I will be leaving then, and you will need 5 hours to get there.

 

[owlman5]

Hello, Martinam. I wouldn't use "in" in a sentence like yours. "At" is the preposition you want to use for one particular time that will occur in the future: In case you can't come at that time, I will.. More often than not, "at" is the best preposition to use when you're talking about one specific point in time: We heard a loud crash at that moment.

Sometimes speakers use "in the time of XXX" when they are talking about the past:
In the time of the dinosaurs, the climate was warmer than it is today. Using "in" in this kind of sentence implies a long span of time.

 

[martinam]

Thank you very much both of you for your help.I appreciate it.

 

[Ashraful Haque]

Hello, Martinam. I wouldn't use "in" in a sentence like yours. "At" is the preposition you want to use for one particular time that will occur in the future: In case you can't come at that time, I will.. More often than not, "at" is the best preposition to use when you're talking about one specific point in time: We heard a loud crash at that moment.

Sometimes speakers use "in the time of XXX" when they are talking about the past:
In the time of the dinosaurs, the climate was warmer than it is today. Using "in" in this kind of sentence implies a long span of time.

Thank you very much for the answer. Did I use 'in that time' correctly in my sentence:

I was talking about the time when mirrors weren't invented. I said:
"I'm sure you'd suicide if you were born in that time as you wouldn't be about put on your make up and stuff."

 

[owlman5]

"I'm sure you'd suicide if you were born in that time as you wouldn't be about put on your make up and stuff."

You seem to be referring to an era like perhaps the eighteenth century, Ashraful Haque. If that is what you are indeed referring to when you say in that time, then it sounds normal and acceptable to me.

At that time would also work to express the same idea, but it doesn't do as good a job of expressing the notion at a moment within a large span of time.

 

[Ashraful Haque]

You seem to be referring to an era like perhaps the eighteenth century, Ashraful Haque. If that is what you are indeed referring to when you say in that time, then it sounds normal and acceptable to me.

At that time would also work to express the same idea, but it doesn't do as good a job of expressing the notion at a moment within a large span of time.

Thank you once again.