Prepositions of Time

'Americans celebrate Independence Day on July 4'

Here are the basics for using in, on, at, for and since in time expressions:

Using 'in' 

In - is used with parts of the day, months, seasons and  years.

‘My dog wakes me up early in the morning.’

 ‘My birthday is in June.’

‘She always goes on holiday in summer.’

‘Microsoft was founded in 1975.’

Using 'on'

On – is used with days and dates.

‘The meeting will be held on Tuesday.’

‘Halloween is on October 31.’

Using 'at'

At – is used for exact times, particular times and times of day.

‘School finishes at 4pm.’

‘Do you want to go for something to eat at dinnertime?’

‘The club closes at midnight and opens again at noon.’

Using 'for'

 For – is used to show the length of time

‘I’ve been going to the gym for six months.’

‘They made us wait for 30 minutes.’

Using 'since'

Since – is used with a starting date or time.

‘Bill has been in France since January.’

‘We’ve been here since last week.’

July 4 is Independence Day in America. Complete these sentences about America and Independence Day using the correct prepositions of time.

• Some believe that Christopher Columbus discovered America ___ the fifteenth century.
  
  on
  at
  in
  
  
• The American Revolutionary War lasted ___ eight years.
  
  for
  in
  since
  
  
• America became independent ___ 1776.
  
  in
  at
  since
  
  
• Calvin Coolidge, the 30th President of America, was born ___ July 4, 1873.
  
  on
  in
  at
  
  
• Independence Day has been a paid federal holiday ___ 1941.
  
  since
  in
  for
  
  
• Turkey is often eaten ___ lunchtime in American homes.
  
  at
  in
  on
  
  
• People often watch firework displays ___ the evening.
  
  at
  on
  in