# at

Pronunciation: say "AT" /æt/

## Preposition

1. Used to say where someone or something is or where something happens: in, near or present at a place, an event, or an organization or school where someone works or studies.
   - Simple: Used to say where someone or something is, or where something happens, as in 'at the station'.
   - _The peace treaty was signed at Versailles._
   - _We sat at a table by the window._
2. Used to show the time or date at which something happens or a situation applies, as in 'at midnight' or, in accounts, 'as at 31 March'.
   - Simple: Used to say the time when something happens, as in at noon or at night.
   - _The fire broke out at midnight._
   - _She published her first novel at the age of twenty._
3. Toward someone or something as the target of an action, often one that is repeated, incomplete or hostile: look at; throw a stone at; chip at the ice.
   - Simple: Toward the person or thing an action is aimed at, as in look at me or throw a ball at.
   - _He had been chipping at the ice for an hour._
   - _She nibbled at the bread without appetite._
4. Used to give a level, value, price, rate, or speed, or a position on a scale, as in at 60 miles an hour or sold at five dollars each.
   - Simple: Used to give a price, speed, amount or level, as in at 60 miles an hour.
   - _The pound is at its lowest for a decade._
   - _Unemployment stands at six percent._
5. Used in various idiomatic combinations, each defined in its own entry.
   - Simple: Used in many fixed phrases, such as 'at all', 'at least', and 'at fault'.
   - _The driver was clearly at fault._
   - _She was at pains to explain the delay._
8. Regarding a skill or area of knowledge; on the subject of.
   - Simple: Used to say how well someone does an activity or subject.
   - _He is excellent at explaining difficult ideas._
   - _The twins were both hopeless at spelling._
6. In a particular state or condition, or subject to someone's power or influence: at odds; at risk; at the mercy of the weather.
   - Simple: In a certain state or situation, as in at risk, at peace or at the mercy of.
   - _The neighbors were at odds over the fence._
   - _The company is at a crossroads._
9. In response or reaction to something.
   - Simple: In reaction to something, as in 'laugh at a joke' or 'jump at a noise'.
   - _She blushed at the compliment._
   - _The talks were held at the president's invitation._
7. Used in phrases that say how, or by what means, something happens or is done, such as at length, at random, or at auction.
   - Simple: Used in phrases that say how something is done, as in at random or at auction.
   - _The estate went at auction for a fraction of its worth._
   - _Names for the jury pool are drawn at random from the voter rolls._
10. Occupied in or busy with an activity.
   - Simple: Busy doing something, as in 'at work' or 'at play'.
   - _The whole village was at prayer when the bell rang._
   - _She has been hard at work on her new novel since January._
12. Used to indicate distance or direction relative to the speaker.
   - Simple: Used to say how far away or in what direction something is, as in 'a ship at three miles'.
   - _The lookout reported a sail at two leagues._
   - _Contact at four hundred meters, bearing north._
14. With stressed pronunciation, bothering, irritating or causing discomfort to. *(Ireland)*
   - Simple: In Irish English, bothering or hurting someone, as in 'my back is at me'.
   - _My shoulder has been at me since I carried those boxes upstairs._
   - _The midges were at us the whole walk._

## Noun

11. The symbol @, called the at sign, as used in email addresses and social-media handles.
   - Simple: The @ symbol, used in email addresses.
   - _Handles begin with an at followed by the username._
   - _Every email address has exactly one at in it._

## Verb

13. Rare form of @: to tag, reply to, or address someone online by writing @ before their username. *(colloquial)* — Rare form of @; to reply to or talk to someone, either online or face-to-face. (from the practice of targeting a message or reply to someone online by writing @name)
   - Simple: Rare form of @, meaning to reply to or address someone, from writing @name online.
   - _Fans kept atting the singer until she answered._
   - _Please don't at him in the replies._

## Other meanings

- (noun) Another spelling of att: a unit of money in Laos, equal to one hundredth of a kip.
- (pronoun) Alternative form of 'at: in old Northern English dialect, a shortened that or what introducing a relative clause.

## Origin

Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd ("near, at") led to Proto-Germanic *at ("at, near, to") and then to Old English æt ("at, near, by, toward"), which became Middle English at. Danish at, Swedish åt, Icelandic að, and Latin ad ("to, near") are related.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/at (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).