Common Preposition Mistakes (and How to Fix Them)

Preposition adalah kata-kata kecil, tapi sering membuat pembelajar di semua level tersandung — kebanyakan karena preposition jarang diterjemahkan langsung antar bahasa. Berikut kesalahan yang paling sering muncul.

1. in / on / at (waktu)

Penggunaan	Contoh
Waktu presisi	at 7 o'clock
Hari	on Monday
Bulan, tahun, periode yang lebih panjang	in July

• ❌ I'll see you in Monday. → ✅ I'll see you on Monday.
• ❌ The meeting is on 7pm. → ✅ The meeting is at 7pm.

2. in / on / at (tempat)

Penggunaan	Contoh
Di dalam sesuatu / area besar	in a room, in a city, in a country
Permukaan atau garis	on a street, on a surface, on a floor
Titik spesifik	at the door, at the bus stop, at 5th Avenue

• ❌ I live at Jakarta. → ✅ I live in Jakarta.
• ❌ She's waiting in the bus stop. → ✅ She's waiting at the bus stop.

3. since vs for

Keduanya dipakai bersama present perfect, tapi menjawab pertanyaan yang berbeda.

• since + titik awal waktu (since 2020, since Monday, since I was young)

• for + durasi/panjang waktu (for two years, for a while, for a long time)

• ❌ I have lived here for 2015. → ✅ I have lived here since 2015.

• ❌ I have known her since five years. → ✅ I have known her for five years.

4. married to / interested in / good at

Banyak kata sifat diikuti oleh preposition tertentu. Tidak ada aturan logisnya — kamu kebanyakan harus menghafal pasangannya.

• married to (bukan "married with")

• interested in (bukan "interested on")

• good at / bad at (bukan "good in")

• afraid of (bukan "afraid from")

• different from / than (bukan "different of")

• ❌ He is married with a doctor. → ✅ He is married to a doctor.

• ❌ I'm not good in math. → ✅ I'm not good at math.

5. arrive at / arrive in

Penggunaan	Contoh
Negara atau kota	arrive in Indonesia, arrive in Bandung
Tempat spesifik	arrive at the airport, arrive at the station

Tidak ada "arrive to" — bentuk itu tidak ada dalam bahasa Inggris standar.

• ❌ We arrived to the hotel late. → ✅ We arrived at the hotel late.

Cara terbaik memperbaiki kesalahan preposition bukan menghafal aturan satu per satu — tapi memperhatikan frasa tetapnya saat kamu membaca dan mendengar, lalu mencatat yang terasa mengejutkan.