at the outskirt of the city
or
in the outskirts of the city
or
in the outskirts of the city
correct usage
google search:
"at the outskirt" 21100
"at the outskirts" 634000
"in the outskirts" 1670000
this would make me choose the last option
"at the outskirt" 21100
"at the outskirts" 634000
"in the outskirts" 1670000
this would make me choose the last option
I am a native speaker, and I am happier saying 'at the outskirts of the city'. Why is that?
at: a place
Not in a district.
outskirts: because a city is surrounded by a circle of outskirts.
Why does 'in the outskirts' get more votes? Possibly this is a difference between American English and British English.
'in the outskirts' 3060,000
'at the outskirts' no votes
So, by this measure I am wrong. However I have faith in my own judgment.
German troops at the outskirts of Helsinki | First World War ...
Warm gas in the outskirts of galaxy clusters – The cluster soft ...
at: a place
Not in a district.
outskirts: because a city is surrounded by a circle of outskirts.
Why does 'in the outskirts' get more votes? Possibly this is a difference between American English and British English.
'in the outskirts' 3060,000
'at the outskirts' no votes
So, by this measure I am wrong. However I have faith in my own judgment.
German troops at the outskirts of Helsinki | First World War ...
Warm gas in the outskirts of galaxy clusters – The cluster soft ...
Robin Michael, haven't you said that you're not a native speaker before? I remember you saying you want to speak English at the level of a native speaker, implying that you aren't one.
<<Robin Michael, haven't you said that you're not a native speaker before? I remember you saying you want to speak English at the level of a native speaker, implying that you aren't one. >>
He didn't say a native speaker of "what".
Everyone knows greg is a native Frog so what he said was correct.
From a certain point of view.
He didn't say a native speaker of "what".
Everyone knows greg is a native Frog so what he said was correct.
From a certain point of view.
The reason why I said that 'I am a native speaker' is because I do not know of a grammatical rule which would suggest that 'at' is preferable to 'in', it is just my opinion that one sounds better than the other. When I came to look for examples, I found an example of 'at the outskirts of town' and 'in the outskirts of space'. Both examples seem quite reasonable to me. Often I feel that a preoccupation with grammatical questions leads to splitting hairs. In practice people just use expressions that are common.
I would like to add that I am sincerely trying to help, and be helpful.
I would like to add that I am sincerely trying to help, and be helpful.
<<The reason why I said that 'I am a native speaker' is because I do not know of a grammatical rule which would suggest that 'at' is preferable to 'in', it is just my opinion that one sounds better than the other.>>
Huh? I don't follow. What is the connection between the existence of grammatical rules and whether you are a native speaker or not?
Huh? I don't follow. What is the connection between the existence of grammatical rules and whether you are a native speaker or not?
Non-native speakers generally cannot comment on the correctness of a usage on any basis other than explicit grammatical rules, while native speakers may have an intuitive understanding of grammar that they cannot formulate into explicit rules.
As to the question, "on the outskirts" gets 7,140,000 hits, so on that basis it beats all of the previous (note that numbers are easier to read with comma separators).
As to the question, "on the outskirts" gets 7,140,000 hits, so on that basis it beats all of the previous (note that numbers are easier to read with comma separators).
<<As to the question, "on the outskirts" gets 7,140,000 hits, so on that basis it beats all of the previous (note that numbers are easier to read with comma separators). >>
There are cases where "at the outskirts" may be more appropriate than "in the outskirts".
Example: "At the outskirts of town, where the Sawtooth National Forest begins, lies an area of great danger for both humans and pets alike. Grizzly bears, wolves, coyotes, mountain lions, bobcats, moose, and elk abound, and there are even occasional (but never confirmed) reports of the legendary sabre tooth tiger, usually thought to be long extinct. ..."
There are cases where "at the outskirts" may be more appropriate than "in the outskirts".
Example: "At the outskirts of town, where the Sawtooth National Forest begins, lies an area of great danger for both humans and pets alike. Grizzly bears, wolves, coyotes, mountain lions, bobcats, moose, and elk abound, and there are even occasional (but never confirmed) reports of the legendary sabre tooth tiger, usually thought to be long extinct. ..."
prepositions are all about trying to find the best way to understanding placing. in this case both are correct but in different situations.
Just remember that 'at' is usually used for a single point/line/boundary but 'in' is normally used to talk about being inside a three-dimensional area.
"I'm at (one point of) the beach." vs. "I'm in the beach."
"I'm at the tree outside my house." vs "I'm in the tree outside my house."
Just remember that 'at' is usually used for a single point/line/boundary but 'in' is normally used to talk about being inside a three-dimensional area.
"I'm at (one point of) the beach." vs. "I'm in the beach."
"I'm at the tree outside my house." vs "I'm in the tree outside my house."
>> I would like to add that I am sincerely trying to help, and be helpful.
Hell is paved with good intentions as a native speaker would say.
Hell is paved with good intentions as a native speaker would say.
My google finds "on the outskirts" 4,960,000 times. Anyway, could you please explain the difference between 'on the outskirts' and 'in/at the outskirts'?
Outskirts is pretty much always plural, and at or on the outskirts both mean essentially the same thing.
You have got to be kidding. Using number of Google hits as "proof" of what is correct English?!?
And a native speaker is someone who grew up with that language, see http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/native_speaker for more exact definition. Not someone who lacks grammatical skills.
And a native speaker is someone who grew up with that language, see http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/native_speaker for more exact definition. Not someone who lacks grammatical skills.