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I was in her housing complex yesterday.

I was at her housing complex yesterday.

I was at college when you called.

I was in college when you called.

In both cases, I'm talking about physically being present there. So, which preposition should I use in both cases?

lekon chekon
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  • **in college** isn't used as you have used it. We can say *I was in college when the famous poet died* but not *I was in college when you phoned*, not unless the person phoned only once in the speaker's life. Being in college is not like being in the shower. **in college** refers to a time of one's *life*. Semantic paraphrase: I was in college ~ I was a college student. It would take a special context for this to make good sense: *I was a college student when you phoned.* – Tᴚoɯɐuo May 01 '17 at 11:04
  • If you eliminate the "housing complex" example, this question can stay open, since "in college" is not the same as "in the park". – Tᴚoɯɐuo May 01 '17 at 11:12
  • @Laure: I'm not asking OP to clarify anything but to eliminate something. – Tᴚoɯɐuo May 01 '17 at 11:42
  • @Tᴚoɯɐuo Then it's my comment that needs clarifying: to me OP seems to be comparing constructions that can't really be compared because *in/at her housing complex* is different from *in/at college*. – None May 01 '17 at 11:46
  • I certainly agree with that. – Tᴚoɯɐuo May 01 '17 at 12:29
  • The use of "in" and "at" to indicate presence varies depending on the location. As far as I know it is idiomatic and the only way to learn it is to memorize what is common, "I am *at* home", "I am *in* the house", "I am *at* the college", "I am *in* class", etc. – Andrew May 01 '17 at 15:04

1 Answers1

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If you're asking how to say "I was not at home when you tried to reach me (e.g. at my parents' home) but was on the campus of the college I attend"...

In American English in college would be incorrect, for the reasons I gave in my comment. I was in college can be paraphrased I was a college student. It refers to a time period of one's life devoted to studies at university level, not to one's physical presence on a campus. Only in contexts where that temporal meaning makes sense would it be idiomatic: The famous poet died when I was in college.

However, "at college" alone is not fully idiomatic in AmE either. We would probably say:

I was away at college when you phoned [my parents' home].

Or, if the call did not go to your parents' home but to you, you could say:

I was on campus when you phoned. Reception there is very poor, and I did not get the call.

That statement is made with the speaker assuming the listener knows he is a college student (or teacher), or can readily deduce that fact. You could also say:

When you phoned, I was on the campus of the college I attend [or where I teach].

if speaking to a person who knows nothing about you. You would not say that to a buddy from high school with whom you keep in touch, who knows you're in college, and the name of the school.

P.S. So the upshot is: these are collocations and you cannot presume an abstract rule about the preposition in isolation will lead you to an idiomatic choice.

Tᴚoɯɐuo
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