Hamed
Correct preposition for 'Street'. 'In' or 'On'? [British English] - There's a post office in West Street. - It's in Market Street. Should we use the preposition 'In' before 'Street' in British English? I sometimes see both 'On' and 'In' and I don't know if 'On' is Americanism or not in that context. I've searched on the Internet. Some people say 'On' is used in American English and 'In' is used in British English in that context. Is that right?
10 juin 2015 10:59
Réponses · 9
Well, I would use 'on' in both of those sentences. There's a post office on West Street. It's on Market Street.
10 juin 2015
This is a hard question because you DO hear both being used. I think saying "There's a post office on West Street" is grammatically correct. From how I see it, using "IN" is to refer to something being "inside". For example, "There is chocolate in my milk." Another example is a street where I live, it's called "China Town". Because the street is narrow and somewhat enclosed, people say, "There is a nice noodle shop in China Town". I guess the only explanation I can provide is, think of whether you are physically walking INTO something. It won't work for all cases, but most.
10 juin 2015
We can use either 'on' or 'in' in British English. Both seem natural, and the 'on' version doesn't sound noticeably American to us.
10 juin 2015
Thank you very much, Adrian.
10 juin 2015
I think your suggestion is correct, but 'on' is often used in British English as well, particularly in reference to locations on main [major] roads [as opposed to side streets].
10 juin 2015
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