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Which prepositions should I need to use when giving an exact time and location?

For example, I want to say the meeting time is 11:32 and the location is Blah, and both are exact locations and time, so normally I would use at for these,

Let's meet at 11:32 at Blah

But it doesn't sound much correct & natural.

Is using double at in a single sentence correct? What is a better way of saying this?

Our
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    'Let's meet at [time] at [place]' sounds perfectly natural to a native speaker. – Kate Bunting Oct 24 '20 at 12:16
  • @KateBunting really? I'm not a native speaker but it didn't sound like something that a native speaker would say. hmm. Thanks for the comment – Our Oct 24 '20 at 12:21
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    I would prefer [place] before [time], I think, but at is the only preposition you can have. "Let's meet at the station at 11:32" – Andrew Leach Oct 24 '20 at 13:01
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    @AndrewLeach: There would be many contexts where one of either "time" or "place" would be "more significant" - in which case most people would probably identify the more important (or "less predictable", or whatever) element first. I'll see you tonight at the club** (not tomorrow, or next week), or I'll see you at the club tonight** (not *the pub* or *your house). But obviously in the spoken version it's trivial to stress either factor in either position if that's relevant (which it usually won't* be). – FumbleFingers Oct 24 '20 at 13:44
  • You're right to suspect dissonance here. It may look suspiciously unnatural, but when spoken, detail which the bald statement can't reproduce will be included. In the unmarked (equal priority to location & time) version, as Andrew says, the locative will usually be put before the temporal; there will usually be not even a slight pause, and the second 'at' will probably be reduced to /ət/ (the first might be too, but I'd say will still be more distinguishable). When, as FF suggests, one of the adverbials is stressed, it comes first, and the 'at' has the strong pronunciation (/æt/). – Edwin Ashworth Oct 24 '20 at 14:05

2 Answers2

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You may change the preposition according to the place and in fact it is usual in some cases to use another one than "at". If the precise spot is near the place and not in, the choice is not "in".

A city — "in" prefered

  • Let's meet at 11 in Atlanta (ngram)

A public park — much more often "in"

  • Let's meet at 11 in Central Park. (ngram)

Park — "in" or "at"

  • We met at 11 in/at a park (ngram)

train station — "strictly "at"

  • Let's meet at 11 at the train station. (ngram)

A restaurant — "at" preferred but you can say "in"

  • Let's meet at 11 at/in the restaurant. (ngram)

School — "at" or "in"

  • We met at 11 in/at school. (ngram)

Stadium — "at" much more common than "in"

  • Let's meet at 11 at the stadium. (ngram)

River side — "by" is usual, "at" is not found and although it seems a reasonable possibility, it is not found.

  • Let's meet at 11 by the river side. (ngram)

Hill — "on" common, "at" rarer

  • Let's meet at 11 on/at the hill. (ngram)

Cafe — "at" preferred but "in" also used

  • let's meet at 11 at/in the cafe. (ngram)

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LPH
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  • I'm not sure that 'in' is ever used for OP's exact location. – Edwin Ashworth Oct 24 '20 at 14:07
  • @EdwinAshworth What is "exact" here? – LPH Oct 24 '20 at 14:09
  • Time is to the nearest minute, so location to the nearest 50 yards, say. In NYC, in Central Park, at the corner of Lincoln and Daly. But the in/at issue has been covered here countless times. – Edwin Ashworth Oct 24 '20 at 14:16
  • @EdwinAshworth The Name of the place is often a convenient identifier for the precise spot (for instance "the park" can stand for the place in the park where they usually spend their time). – LPH Oct 24 '20 at 14:23
  • Let's just say I'd have docked a mark in an A-Level essay for a contrivance then. Now, about the fact that the choice of in, at has been covered so many times it's difficult to search for the best answers (eg usage of at and in for cities)? Bloat? – Edwin Ashworth Oct 24 '20 at 14:29
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Let's meet at the cafe at 3. (correct and normal)

Let's meet at 3 at the cafe. (correct and normal)

chasly - supports Monica
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