On the weekend OR at the weekend?

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Bahiya
Posts: 3
Joined: Sun Jan 29, 2006 8:37 pm
Location: Germany

On the weekend OR at the weekend?

Post by Bahiya » Sun Mar 26, 2006 5:31 pm

Native speakers, I need your help!

Growing up in the US I learned it's "on the weekend" and that's the way I teach it to my students. Now I came across "at the weekend" in Murphy's grammar. My students asked me which one was correct and I had no other answer than "at" might be British and "on" American English. Can anyone tell me when it's "on" and when "at"? I could not make it out from the context!

Conchita57
Posts: 1
Joined: Sun Mar 26, 2006 11:55 am
Location: Madrid, Spain

At/on the weekend

Post by Conchita57 » Sun Mar 26, 2006 6:55 pm

You've replied to yourself already, since it's one of those little "geographical" differences. Both 'at the weekend' and 'on the weekend' are correct. The former is British and the latter is American English.

sparkysadie
Posts: 2
Joined: Mon Apr 24, 2006 8:50 am
Location: Beijing, PRC

Post by sparkysadie » Mon Apr 24, 2006 9:05 am

Beijing one of the only native speakers at the school I work at, I am contsantly getting questions like this. And actually just the other day I got asked the same thing! My fellow teacher said that the book said "at the weekend," and I just chalked it up to being a lousy text ---as I have caught more than one very obvious mistakes. But the more we asked around we came to the same conclusion: its and American vs. British thing. I learn more British everyday, like revise/review and others. We actually found a on-line American to British English dictionary, which is pretty interesting.

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