in

IN/ɪn/

37 meanings of in

1
locationpreposition
Inside or within something, such as a container, building, place or area, or surrounded by things.
There are thousands of lakes in Finland.
He sat in the corner and read.
UsageUse in for enclosed spaces and areas (in the kitchen, in Finland), on for surfaces, at for points (at the door).
Similarinside, within
Oppositeoutside
2
when (period)preposition
During a period of time.
The bridge was built in the 1930s.
Most accidents happen in the afternoon.
UsageUse in for months, years, seasons and parts of the day (in May, in the morning), but on Monday (not ~~incorrect: in Monday~~).
Similarduring
3
preposition
Used to express containment in something that is not a physical place.
There was a note of sadness in her voice.
The plan has a fatal flaw in it.
4
preposition
Pertaining to or with regard to.
She has a degree in chemistry.
Doctors noted an improvement in his breathing.
UsageCommon after interested, a degree, a rise, an improvement: interested in art (not ~~incorrect: interested about art~~).
5
member ofpreposition
Part of or a member of something, or from among a number.
Only one in a thousand applications succeeds.
He is in the choir and the chess club.
UsageFor ratios, put in between two numbers: one in ten means one out of ten.
6
statepreposition
Denoting the state or condition of the subject.
The company has been in trouble for years.
The apple trees are in blossom.
UsageBefore a state, often with no article: in trouble, in love, in danger, in blossom.
7
preposition
Indicating the language, medium, material, currency or manner in which something is expressed, made or done.
The letter was in her mother's careful handwriting.
She paid for the whole meal in cash and left a generous tip.
UsageUsed for language, material and form: in English, in pencil, in cash (but by card).
8
adverb
At or toward the inside of a place or thing, or so as to be enclosed by it.
Would you like to eat in or take away?
She unlocked the door and stepped in.
UsageTakes no object: come in, eat in, dive in. With an object after it, it is the preposition again.
Similarinside, indoors
Oppositeout, outside
Note
This adverb has its own ancestry: Old English inn and inne, from Proto-Germanic *inn and *innai respectively. The latter is a longer form built on the same root as the preposition that shares its spelling.
Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 4 facts
The adverb descends from Old English inn and inne. en.wiktionary.org
Old English inn descends from Proto-Germanic *inn. en.wiktionary.org
Old English inne descends from Proto-Germanic *innai. en.wiktionary.org
Proto-Germanic *innai is an extended formation based on *in, the ancestor of the preposition. en.wiktionary.org
9
preposition
Moving to the inside of something.
She peered in the window, hoping to see a light.
The ball bounced off a defender and went in the net.
UsageAfter verbs of motion, in can replace into: went in the net, put it in the box.
Similarinto
Oppositeout
Note
The double duty goes back to the root: the same ancient word took one case for location and another for direction. English has kept both jobs under one spelling and offers into as the explicit option.
Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
The ancestral preposition expressed location and direction with different grammatical cases: Proto-Germanic *in governed the dative for location and the accusative for direction. en.wiktionary.org
10
adjective
Already involved in an activity, plan or bet, or ready and willing to join it.
If you're betting twenty dollars on the game, I'm in.
We're booking an escape room for Friday night. Who's in?
Similargame
Oppositeout

Less common meanings

11
time takenpreposition
Taking no longer than a given length of time; before a stated period has elapsed.
The fire spread through the building in under an hour.
He ran the race in just over four hours.
Similarwithin
12
adjective
Not out; inside a building, particularly one's home or workplace.
I called twice, but nobody was in.
He stays in most evenings now.
UsageAfter be or stay: nobody was in, stay in tonight.
Similarhome, present, around
Oppositeout, away, absent
13
by doingpreposition
By or while doing something, indicating an action that causes an effect or serves a purpose.
The court, in dismissing the case, criticized the police.
Her purpose in writing was to warn us.
Note
Here the preposition introduces an action and ties it to what came of it. Sometimes the action is the means, and the result backfires: in trying to make amends, she made matters worse. Sometimes it names the goal, as in my aim in traveling there. In Falkner's Moonfleet (1898) the narrator begins a sentence with in returning to the vault, and the shape is the same: the preposition followed by an -ing verb.
Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 2 facts
Moonfleet was written by J. Meade Falkner and first published in 1898. en.wikipedia.org
The narrator begins a sentence with “In returning to the vault”. gutenberg.org
14
formationpreposition
Indicating an order or arrangement.
The planes came over in waves all night.
File the cards in alphabetical order.
UsageIn set phrases of arrangement: in order, in waves, in a row, in pairs.
15
arrivingadverb
Moving or directed toward where the speaker is, or toward whatever place serves as the point of reference.
Reports were coming in from all over the country.
Her flight gets in at noon.
UsageWith verbs of arrival: come in, pour in, get in at noon.
Oppositeout
16
wearingpreposition
Wearing an item of clothing.
The guards were in full dress uniform.
A woman in a yellow raincoat waved from the platform.
UsageBefore clothes or colors: a man in a suit, dressed in black.
17
fashionableadjective
Fashionable or popular; currently the thing to have or do.
Short hair was in, then out, then in again.
Vinyl records are in with teenagers.
UsageAfter be (short hair is in), often paired with out.
Similarfashionable, trendy, popular, hip, stylish
Oppositeout, unfashionable, dated, outmoded
Note
A 1996 Pantera lyric stretches it as far as it will go and applies it to Hell itself: if Hell was in.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
The Pantera song containing the quoted lyric was released in 1996. pantera.com
Pantera's “The Great Southern Trendkill” contains the words “if Hell was in”, applying the fashion sense to Hell. pantera.com
18
adjective
Located inside something, or inserted or fitted into it.
The splinter was so far in that tweezers could not reach it.
The doctor said the bullet was still in, resting near his spine.
Similarinside, embedded
Oppositeout
19
after the startadverb
A stated time or distance after the beginning of something.
The team was two goals down five minutes in.
Three chapters in, the book finally comes alive.
UsagePlaced after a time, distance, or unit: an hour in, two miles in.
20
from nowpreposition
At the end of a stated period of time, counted from the present or from some other moment.
The doctor wants to see her again in six months.
Her flight lands in three hours, so we have time for lunch.
UsageIn six months means six months from now; for a deadline, within is clearer.
Note
Counting forward from now is the key: they will call in a week means once a week has passed, not at some point during it. That sets it apart from the within-a-time-limit meaning, where in a week means no later than a week from now.
21
adjective
Having arrived or been received; of goods, delivered to a shop and available to buy.
With the last ballots in, the count could begin.
The harvest was in before the rains came.
UsageAfter be: the ballots are in, the new stock is in.
Similarreceived, collected, gathered
22
mixing withadjective
Followed by with: on friendly or favored terms with someone, especially someone who has influence.
Her parents worried when she got in with older kids who skipped school.
Nobody trusted him once he was in with the smugglers.
UsageUsually be in with or get in with someone.
Similarinvolved, friendly
23
nouncountable
A position of power or influence, or a means of getting one, often with a particular person or organization.
Without an in at one of the big studios, the young director struggled to get meetings.
Joining the golf club gave him an in with the town's business leaders.
UsageMostly an in with someone or an in at a company.
Similarconnection, contact, opening
Note
It names an advantage that comes through connections rather than merit, which can make it sound faintly cynical.
24
inside linesadjective
Of a ball or other object in play: landing or staying within the boundaries of the playing area.
The replay showed the ball had clipped the back line, so it was in.
The shuttlecock dropped just in, and the home crowd groaned.
UsageAfter be or verbs like land: the ball was in. The opposite is out.
Similargood
Oppositeout
Note
Officials and players call a ball in or out, and in tennis a ball that touches the line counts as in.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
Officials and players make line calls determining whether a ball is in or out. usta.com
In tennis, a ball touching the relevant boundary line counts as in. itftennis.com
25
adjective
Of the tide, at or close to its highest level.
Fishing off the pier is best when the tide is in.
The road to the island floods whenever the tide's in.
UsageMostly the tide is in; the opposite is out.
Similarhigh
Oppositeout, low
26
inchnounabbreviation
Short for inch or inches: a unit of length equal to one twelfth of a foot, or 2.54 centimeters, written after a number.
The frame measures 10in by 8in.
Rainfall reached 3in in a single day.
UsageUsed after a number, sometimes with a space: 10in or 10 in. The form in. is also used.
Note
It also carries the inch's other uses, so 3in of rain measures the depth of rainfall.
Checked 2 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
Inches of rain measure precipitation depth. content-drupal.climate.gov
27
adjective
Taking a turn with the bat at the present time in cricket, whether as a single batter or as the batting side.
The captain has been in for two hours and shows no sign of getting out.
With both openers still in at lunch, the visitors needed only forty more runs to win.
UsagePaired with out: a batter is in while batting, and the next man in bats next.
Oppositeout
Note
The same word covers a whole side, which is in for as long as its innings lasts while the other team fields. The player due to bat when the next wicket falls is the next man in, so a captain may say who goes in next.
Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 2 facts
One side bats throughout its innings while the opposing side fields. en.wikipedia.org
The captain can decide which player bats next. en.wikipedia.org
28
preposition
Used in grammar and phonetics to mean ending or beginning with a stated letter or sound.
29
preposition
Used to treat a person or thing as the place where certain qualities are found, as in "you have a loyal friend in her."
30
verbobsolete
To shut something in or surround it with a fence or wall.
31
verbobsolete
To bring crops in from the fields at harvest time.
He that ears my land spares my team and gives me leave to in the crop.
c. 1604, William Shakespeare, “All’s Well, that Ends Well”
32
noun
A person or group currently holding power, especially those in office, as in "the ins and the outs."
33
noun
The position of a player who is batting at the moment, in cricket and similar games.
34
adjective
Of a sail, rolled up and tied or put away.
35
adjective
Of a legal claim to land: held, as when someone is said to be "in" by inheritance.
36
adjective
Of a fire, still lit and burning.
37
adjective
Having reached a given amount of spending, using or investing, as in 'I'm fifty dollars in' or 'three drinks in.'

Practice

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Origin

English in combines two lines of descent. The preposition and verb passed through Middle English in from Old English in, tracing back to Proto-Germanic *in. The adverb, noun, and adjective derive from Old English inn and inne, whose Proto-Germanic sources were *inn and *innai respectively. Both lines ultimately trace back to the Proto-Indo-European root *h₁en, meaning "in".

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 7 facts

English in combines distinct lines of descent; the preposition and verb descend through Middle English in and Old English in from Proto-Germanic *in. en.wiktionary.org
The adverb, noun, and adjective derive from Old English inn and inne. en.wiktionary.org
Old English inn derives from Proto-Germanic *inn. en.wiktionary.org
Old English inne derives from Proto-Germanic *innai. en.wiktionary.org
Proto-Germanic *inn derives from *in. en.wiktionary.org
Proto-Germanic *innai derives from *in. en.wiktionary.org
The common ultimate source is Proto-Indo-European *h₁en, meaning "in". en.wiktionary.org