A.
Compare school and the school:
#1
Alison is ten years old. Every day she goes to school. She's at school now.
School begins at 9 and finishes at 3.
We say a
child goes to school or is at school (as a pupil). We are not necessarily
thinking of a particular school. We are thinking of school as a general idea.
#2 Today
Alison's mother wants to speak to her daughter's teacher. So she has gone to
the school to see her. She's at the school now.
Alison's
mother is not a pupil. She is not 'at school', she doesn't 'go to school'. But
if she wants to see Alison's teacher, she goes to the school (= Alison's
school, a particular school).
B. We
use prison, hospital, university, and church in a similar way. We do not use
the when we are thinking of the general idea of these places and what they are
used for. Compare:
#1 *
Ken's brother is in prison for robbery. (He is a prisoner. We are not thinking
of a particular prison.)
* Jack
had an accident last week. He was taken to hospital. He's still in hospital
now. (as a patient)
* When I
leave school, I want to go to university.
* Mrs
Kelly goes to church every Sunday. (to a religious service)
#2 * Ken
went to the prison to visit his brother. (He went as a visitor, not as a
prisoner.)
* Jill
has gone to the hospital to visit Jack.
* She's
at the hospital now. (as a visitor)
* Excuse
me, where is the university, please? (= the university buildings)
* The
workmen went to the church to repair the roof. (not for a religious service)
With
most other places, you need the. For example, the cinema, the bank, the
station. See Units 71C and 72D.
C. Bed
work home
We say:
'go to bed/be in bed' etc. (not 'the bed'):
* It's
time to go to bed now.
* This
morning I had breakfast in bed.
but * I
sat down on the bed. (a particular piece of furniture)
'go to
work/be at work/start work/finish work' etc. (not 'the work'):
* Ann
didn't go to work yesterday.
* What
time do you usually finish work?
'go
home/come home/arrive home/be at home' etc.:
* It's
late. Let's go home.
* Will
you be at home tomorrow afternoon?
D. We
say 'go to sea/be at sea' (without 'the') when the meaning is 'go/be on a
voyage':
* Keith
is a seaman. He spends most of his life at sea.
but *
I'd like to live near the sea.
* It can
be dangerous to swim in the sea.
EXERCISES
73.1
Complete the sentences using a preposition (to/at/in etc.) + one of the
following words:
bed home
hospital prison school
university work
You can
use the words more than once.
1. Two
people were injured in the accident and were taken _to hospital._
2. In
Britain, children from the age of five have to go ---.
3. Mark
didn't go out last night. He stayed ---.
4. I'll
have to hurry. I don't want to be late ---.
5. There
is a lot of traffic in the morning when everybody is going ---.
6.
Cathy's mother has just had an operation. She is still ---.
7. When
Julia leaves school, she wants to study economics ---.
8. Bill
never gets up before 9 o'clock. It's 8.30 now, so he is still ---.
9. If
you commit a serious crime, you could be sent ---.
73.2
Complete the sentences with the word given (school etc.). Use the where
necessary.
1.
(school)
a. Every
term parents are invited to the school to meet the teacher.
b. Why
aren't your children at school today? Are they ill?
c. When
he was younger, Ted hated ---
d. What
time does --- start in the mornings in your country?
e. A:
How do your children get home from ---? By bus?
B: No,
they walk --- isn't very far.
f. What
sort of job does jenny want to do when she leaves ---?
g. There
were some people waiting outside --- to meet their children.
2.
(university)
a. In
your country, do many people go to ---?
b. If
you want to get a degree, you normally have to study at ---.
c. This
is only a small town but --- is the biggest in the country.
3.
(hospital)
a. Nora
works as a cleaner at ---.
b. When
Ann was ill, we all went to --- to visit her.
c. My
brother has always been very healthy. He's never been in ---.
d. Peter
was injured in an accident and was kept in --- for a few days.
4.
(church)
a.
John's mother is a regular churchgoer. She goes to --- every Sunday.
b. John
himself doesn't go to ---.
c. John
went to --- to take some photographs of the building.
5.
(prison)
a. In
many places people are in --- because of their political opinions.
b. The
other day the fire brigade were called to --- to put out a fire.
c. The
judge decided to fine the man -c500 instead of sending him to ---.
6.
(home/work/bed)
a. I
like to read in --- before I go to sleep?
b. It's
nice to travel around but there's no place like ---!
c. Shall
we meet after --- tomorrow evening?
d. If
I'm feeling tired, I go to --- early.
e. What
time do you usually start --- in the morning?
f. The
economic situation is very bad. Many people are out of ---
7. (sea)
a.
There's a nice view from the window. You can see ---.
b. It
was a long voyage. We were at --- for four weeks.
c. I
love swimming in ---.
Answer
73.1
2 to
school
3 at
home
4 for
school; or for work
5 to
work or to school
6 in
hospital
7 at
university
8 in bed
9 to
prison
73.2
1 c.
school d. school e. get home from school ... The school isn't
very far f. school g. the school
2 a.
university b. university c. the university
3 a. the
hospital b. the hospital c. hospital
d. hospital
4 a.
church b. church c. the church
5 a.
prison b. the prison c. prison
6 a.
bed b. home c. work
d. bed e. work f. work
7 a. the
sea b. sea c. the sea
