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servhot
03-08-07, 07:44 AM
So Brits ;) now I want to know the good grammar. In my grammar book written by the Oxford Prof. Simpson it is written down that the right way to say it is:

London is on the Themse and not London is at the Themse

I must say I never heard before that somebody saying: LA is on the Pazific but many time LA is at the Pacific. The reason why I am asking is the english teacher of my little bo at the school says "City on the Lake" is wrong and as far as I have read it, in this special case it's right.
ApacheAnderson
03-08-07, 08:03 AM
Yes it's 'on' as in 'London is on the Thames'

It's not really a special case either. You would say things like

'Reading is on the M4'
'Brighton is on the South Coast'


You should ring the school and get the english teacher sacked.
Merlin
03-08-07, 08:06 AM
Yeah, funny isn't it? But London is on the Thames. Like Newcastle-on-Tyne or Warmington-on-Sea etc. I guess it's short for upon. Like Kingston upon Thames. Or is it because they're posher there?

Don't know about LA on Pacific but Americans can't speak English so however they say it they're wrong.
servhot
03-08-07, 08:21 AM
So, how about cities which are at or on lakes?
And what about cities like NY? NY is at the Atlantic Ocean or NY is on the Atlantic Ocean

Andd last but not least: How would americans see this tiny grammar thing :LOL
Rosie
03-08-07, 09:13 AM
NY is by the Atlantic Ocean. And Americans don't do grammar.
nizla
03-08-07, 09:18 AM
You wouldn't say Brighton is on the English Channel. Would you?

I'm gonna buy the Independant on Saturday for the grammar supplement just in case :)
nizla
03-08-07, 09:19 AM
Spellings not my forte either so looks like I'm getting the Sunday one too.
REBEL
03-08-07, 01:36 PM
Actually the americans do say "on" as well. They tend to call it the eastern/atlantic seaboard, and the western/pacific seaboard. The parts that touch are then "on the eastern seaboard" for example (or of course just "on the west coast/east coast").

In is totally incorrect, as they are not "in" the ocean, or the river. They are "on" as in "on the banks of".
CosmicTang
03-08-07, 02:03 PM
I'll chime in as an uneducated, inarticulate, American butcher of English.

'at' and 'on' are both prepositions and as such demonstrate temporal, spatial or logical relationships between the object of a preposition and the rest of the sentence.

While I suppose either way might be technically correct, it's one of those things you develop an intuitive feel for and don't think about.

NYC is on the Atlantic or Eastern Seaboard. not 'at'
I have a house on the river. not 'at'
I spent my summer at the lake. (you could say *on* here as well I think)

the only instance where *in* springs to mind as correct is where the Med is concerned.

We vacationed in the Med.

Don't know why.
rogue
03-08-07, 02:29 PM
You wouldn't say Brighton is on the English Channel. Would you?

I'm gonna buy the Independant on Saturday for the grammar supplement just in case :)

No but you would say that Brighton is on the coast
strictlybroadband
03-08-07, 03:05 PM
I'll chime in as an uneducated, inarticulate, American butcher of English.

'at' and 'on' are both prepositions and as such demonstrate temporal, spatial or logical relationships between the object of a preposition and the rest of the sentence.

You had to go and upset our stereotypes, didn't you? ;)
Damian
03-08-07, 03:09 PM
No but you would say that Brighton is on the coast

And full of homos.

or

full on homos

but not

full at homos

Think on't
Rosie
03-08-07, 04:03 PM
the only instance where *in* springs to mind as correct is where the Med is concerned.

We vacationed in the Med.

Don't know why.

Because that whole area is really in the Med. region. Unless you're holidaying in a submarine in the Med of course - in which case you're really holidaying in the Med ;)
CosmicTang
03-09-07, 05:24 AM
another, more accurate example would be:

Chelsea will kick ManU's ass AT Stamford Bridge, not ON it.

:badgrin::badgrin::badgrin:
Vince
03-09-07, 08:42 AM
Yeah, funny isn't it? But London is on the Thames. Like Newcastle-on-Tyne or Warmington-on-Sea etc. I guess it's short for upon. Like Kingston upon Thames. Or is it because they're posher there?

Don't know about LA on Pacific but Americans can't speak English so however they say it they're wrong.


Newcastle-upon-Tyne, bit like Sunderland-is-Shite :)