at: [OE] The preposition at was originally found throughout the Germanic languages: Old English had ?t, Old High German az, Gothic and Old Norse at. It survives in the Scandinavian languages (Swedish att, for instance) as well as English, but has been lost from German and Dutch. Cognates in other Indo-European languages, including Latin ad ‘to, at’, suggest an ultimate common source.
at (prep.)
Old English ?t, from Proto-Germanic *at (cognates: Old Norse, Gothic at, Old Frisian et, Old High German az), from PIE *ad- "to, near, at" (cognates: Latin ad "to, toward" Sanskrit adhi "near;" see ad-).
Lost in German and Dutch, which use their equivalent of to; in Scandinavian, however, to has been lost and at fills its place. In choosing between at church, in church, etc. at is properly distinguished from in or on by involving some practical connection; a worshipper is at church; a tourist is in the church.
The colloquial use of at after where ("where it's at") is attested from 1859. At last is recorded from late 13c.; adverbial phrase at least was in use by 1775. At in Middle English was used freely with prepositions (as in at after, which is in Shakespeare), but this has faded with the exception of at about, which was used in modern times by Trollope, Virginia Woolfe, D.H. Lawrence, and Evelyn Waugh, but nonetheless is regarded as a sign of incompetent writing by my copy editor bosses.
雙語例句
1. I think he means "at" rather than "to"
我想，他是想說at，而不是to。
來自柯林斯例句
2. The world breaks everyone, and afterward, many are stronger at the broken places.
生活總是讓我們遍體鱗傷，但到后來，那些受傷的地方會變得更堅(jiān)強(qiáng)。
來自金山詞霸 每日一句
3. For what do we live, but to make sport for our neighbours, and laugh at them in our turn?
我們活著是為了什么？不就是給鄰居當(dāng)笑柄，再反過來笑他們。
來自《傲慢與偏見》
4. You have to do everything you can. You have to work your hardest. And if you do, if you stay positive, then you have a shot at a silver lining.
你必須全力以赴，最大限度地去努力。如果你這么做，并且保持樂觀，你就會看見烏云背后的幸福線。
來自電影《烏云背后的幸福線》
5. I thought I'd enrol you with an art group at the school.