Collocations and Expressions With At: A Clear List

Collocations and expressions with at are the fixed word pairs, such as at home, good at and at last, that English speakers reuse instead of inventing new ones. Learning them whole is faster than learning at on its own, because the preposition rarely makes sense in isolation. A common example is “She is good at maths.”

Table of Contents

Collocations and expressions with at at a glance

At usually marks a point in place or time, not a space or a surface.
Many fixed phrases keep at with no article, as in at home and at night.
Several verbs select at, including arrive at, look at and laugh at.
Adjectives of skill take at, as in good at and bad at.
The commonest error is choosing in where the fixed phrase needs at.

What are common expressions with at?

These phrases behave as single units, so the meaning belongs to the whole expression rather than to the words inside it. The table gives each expression a plain meaning and one line, and a set of related frames sits at the at a distance sentence page.

Expression	Meaning	Example
at home	in one’s own house	She stays at home on Sundays.
at work	at the place of work	He is at work until five.
at school	attending school	The children are at school.
at night	during the night	Owls hunt at night.
at noon	at twelve o’clock	We eat at noon.
at the moment	now	She is busy at the moment.
at first	at the beginning	At first the task seemed hard.
at last	finally	At last the rain stopped.
at once	immediately, or all together	Come here at once.
at least	not less than	It costs at least ten pounds.
at most	no more than	Wait ten minutes at most.
at times	sometimes	At times the road is quiet.
at all	in any way	I do not mind at all.
at a loss	unsure what to do	He was at a loss for words.
at a glance	with one quick look	You can see it at a glance.
at a discount	at a lower price	The coats are at a discount.
at a distance	far away	Keep the fire at a distance.
at any rate	whatever happens	At any rate, we will try.

Several of these phrases describe a state rather than a place. At a loss and at ease name a feeling, at once and at last mark time, and at least and at most set a limit. Grouping them by meaning helps a learner recall the right one under pressure.

How do you choose between at, in and on?

The three prepositions split by shape: at marks a point, in marks an enclosed space or a period, and on marks a surface or a named day. Many fixed phrases follow the same logic, so learning the reason keeps the phrases together.

Point	at	in	on
Core idea	a point	an enclosed space or period	a surface or a day
Place	at the door	in the room	on the table
Time	at six o’clock	in the morning	on Monday
Fixed phrases	at home, at night	in bed, in the end	on time, on holiday

Which verbs take at?

A small group of verbs selects at, and the choice is fixed rather than free. The star frame arrives at, aims at and looks at, and each one pairs with a particular kind of object. A set of lines at the arrive at sentence page shows the first of them in use.

Collocation	Meaning	Example
good at + skill	skilled in something	She is good at drawing.
bad at + skill	weak in something	He is bad at chess.
arrive at + place	reach a point	We arrived at the hall.
aim at + target	intend for	The course aims at beginners.
look at + object	direct the eyes	Look at the board.
laugh at + person	mock someone	Do not laugh at him.
stare at + object	look long and fixed	She stared at the painting.
smile at + person	smile toward someone	He smiled at the child.

A learner who remembers the verb and its preposition as one unit avoids the commonest slip. The same holds for adjectives of skill, where good, bad and excellent all take at before a skill, and for the phrase aim at, which points a plan toward a target.

A cartoon child arrives at a school gate and points to a clock showing six, mixing a place point and a time point. — The phrase arrive at pairs a place point with the preposition at.

Collocations and expressions with at across contexts

The same phrases appear in every setting, from a timetable to a friendly note. The table shows nine of them.

Context	Example sentence	Why this works
Timetable	The train leaves at six.	A clock time takes at.
Home note	I will be at home all evening.	The fixed phrase keeps no article.
Work email	She is at a meeting at the moment.	The fixed phrase means now.
School report	He is good at science.	A skill takes at after the adjective.
Story	At last the door opened.	The phrase marks a turning point.
Warning	Keep the fire at a distance.	The phrase means far away.
Shop sign	Winter coats at a discount.	The phrase means a lower price.
Diary	At times the week feels long.	The phrase means sometimes.
Polite reply	I do not mind at all.	The phrase means in any way.
Sports fixture	The match starts at three.	A kick-off time takes at.
Reunion	At first, nobody spoke.	The phrase marks the opening moment.

Grammar of at phrases

The article inside an at phrase is fixed, so a beginner cannot choose it freely. Some phrases take no article, some take the, and some take a, and each one is learned as a whole.

Form	Rule	Example
at home	no article in a fixed place	She stayed at home.
at the moment	the before a specific point in time	He is busy at the moment.
at a loss	a for one state or instance	She was at a loss.
at night	no article in a fixed time	Owls hunt at night.
at six	no article before a clock time	The film starts at six.
at the end	the before a named point	Turn left at the end.
at work	no article in a fixed workplace phrase	He is at work.
at a glance	a for one quick action	See it at a glance.

Common mistakes with at

Most errors come from swapping in for at, from adding an article to a fixed phrase, and from the wrong verb preposition.

Incorrect: ~~I am good in maths.~~ Correct: I am good at maths. Rule: good takes at for a skill.
Incorrect: ~~We arrived to the station.~~ Correct: We arrived at the station. Rule: arrive takes at for a place.
Incorrect: ~~At the night, I read.~~ Correct: At night, I read. Rule: the fixed phrase at night keeps no article.
Incorrect: ~~He laughed on me.~~ Correct: He laughed at me. Rule: laugh takes the preposition at.
Incorrect: ~~She is at the home.~~ Correct: She is at home. Rule: at home is a fixed phrase with no article.
Incorrect: ~~Please call me at the morning.~~ Correct: Please call me in the morning. Rule: the fixed phrase uses in, not at, before morning.

Practice using expressions with at

Try each item, then read the reason beside the answer. A related frame sits at the aim at sentence page.

Fill in the blank: She is good ________ maths.
Fill in the blank: We arrived ________ the station early.
Choose the better word: The film starts (at / in) six.
Correct the error: He laughed on me.
Build a sentence: use at last about a long wait.
Spot the register: which fits a shop sign, “Coats at a discount” or “Coats cheaper-ish”?
Fill in the blank: Do not worry, I do not mind ________ all.

Answers

at: good takes at before a skill.
at: arrive at is the fixed phrase for a place.
at: a clock time takes at.
He laughed at me: laugh selects the preposition at.
Sample: At last the bus came. The phrase marks a moment that was long awaited.
The first: at a discount is the standard shop phrase.
at: the fixed phrase at all means in any way.

A cartoon child corrects the phrase good in maths to good at maths on a small sign. — The adjective good selects at, not in, before the name of a skill.

The bottom line

Collocations and expressions with at work best as whole units, so learn each one with its meaning and its fixed article. Use at for a point in place or time, in for a space or a period, and on for a surface or a named day. The verbs arrive at, look at and laugh at never change their preposition, and good at keeps at before every skill.

Frequently asked questions about at expressions

What are collocations with at?

Common collocations include at home, at work, at night, at last, at once and at a loss, together with the verb pairs arrive at, look at and laugh at. Each is a fixed unit, so the preposition and any article stay the same whenever the phrase is used.

When do you use at, in or on?

Use at for a point, as in at the door or at six; in for an enclosed space or a period, as in in the room or in the morning; and on for a surface or a named day, as in on the table or on Monday. Fixed phrases keep their own habit.

What does at a loss mean?

At a loss means unsure what to do, as in he was at a loss for words. It describes a state of confusion rather than a place. The phrase is fixed with the article a, so it never appears as at loss without it.

Is it good at or good in?

The standard form is good at before a skill, as in good at maths or good at drawing. Good in appears occasionally before a subject area, but good at is the common collocation and the safer choice. The same pattern holds for bad at and excellent at.