Let’s begin by answering the question, “Where do you work?” This seems like a simple question, but there are many ways to answer it:

I work at…

I work in…

I work for…

I work with…

You’re going to learn when to use each preposition.

I WORK AT/FOR… (NAME OF COMPANY)

For example, “I work at Expresso English” or “I work for Nike.” You can also use “for” if you work directly for a famous person: “I work for Tom Cruise. I’m his public relations manager.”

I WORK IN…

a place:

I work in an office.

I work in a school.

I work in a factory.

a city/country:

I work in Paris.

I work in France.

a department:

I work in the marketing department.

I work in human resources.

I work in sales.

a general area/industry:

I work in finance.

I work in medical research.

I work in consulting.

I WORK WITH… (THINGS / PEOPLE THAT ARE THE OBJECTS OF YOUR DAY-TO-DAY WORK)

I work with computers.

I’m a teacher. I work with special-needs children.

If you want to add more details about your work, you can say “I’m responsible for…” or “I’m in charge of…” or “My job involves…”

I’m responsible for updating the company website.

I’m in charge of interviewing candidates for jobs.

My job involves giving tours of the museum.

LET’S REVIEW:

I work at (a company).

I work for (a company / a person)

I work in (a place, city, country, department, or general area/industry)

I work with (people / things)

In conversational English, the question “Where do you work?” is commonly phrased as “What do you do?” or “What do you do for a living?”

You can answer with one of the “I work…” phrases we just learned, or you can say “I’m a/an… (your job title).”

I’m a teacher.

I’m an accountant.

How do you answer this question if you don’t have a job? You can say:

I’m unemployed.

I’m between jobs at the moment.

Here are some other reasons you might not have a job:

I’m a student.

I’m a stay-at-home mom/dad.

If you work for yourself, you can say “I’m self-employed.” If you have your own company, you can say, “I own a small business,” or more specifically, “I own a restaurant” or “I own a graphic design company.”