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Zuotengdazuo Posted 7 years ago
Grammar

On vs at when they mean “in response to”

1. One scoundrel hit him, on/at which the latter raised his arms to defend himself.

2. The thief fled at/on the appearance of the police.

Hi. Can we use “on” and “at” interchangeably in both examples? If not, could you please explain why?

Thank you.

Previously asked here:

http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/on-which-he-raised-his-stick-to-defend-himself.3626533/#post-18477150

  

Top answer

zuotengdazuo 1. One scoundrel hit him, on/at which the latter raised his arms to defend himself. I would use "at" which is short for " at that point in time".

— AlpheccaStars

  • zuotengdazuo 1.
  • One scoundrel hit him, on/at which the latter raised his arms to defend himself.
  • I would use "at" which is short for " at that point in time".
  • zuotengdazuo 2.
  • The thief fled at/on the appearance of the police.
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1 Answers
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zuotengdazuo1. One scoundrel hit him, on/at which the latter raised his arms to defend himself.

I would use "at" which is short for "at that point in time".

zuotengdazuo2. The thief fled at/on the appearance of the police.

The thief fled [ at the appearance ] of the police.

Prepositional p

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