Prepositions of Time, Place, Direction and Object
书面语中，'于、自、至、朝着'常常替换口语的'在、从、到、向'，语气更正式，多见于新闻、公文、演讲。
于 = 在（时间/地点）：大会于明日上午九点召开（=在明日）；他生于北京（=在北京出生）。
自 = 从（起点，时间或来源）：自古以来（=从古代到现在）；这批货物来自上海（=从上海来）。
至 = 到（终点，常与'自/从'搭配成'自…至…'）：自1990年至2020年（=从1990年到2020年）；至今未有结果（=到现在还没有结果）。
朝着 = 向（方向，强调持续朝某个方向移动/发展）：船朝着港口驶去；公司朝着国际化的方向发展。
常见错误：'于'放在动词前后位置不同，意思会变（生于北京 vs 在北京生活，后者仍用'在'，日常口语描述持续状态不用'于'）；'自'不能单独用作句尾。
Worked examples
| Chinese | Pinyin | English | What it shows |
|---|---|---|---|
| 这位作家生于1985年，现居上海。 | Zhè wèi zuò jiā shēng yú yī jiǔ bā wǔ nián, xiàn jū Shàng hǎi. | This writer was born in 1985 and currently resides in Shanghai. | 于 (formal 'in/at') marking the time of birth — the minimal frame. |
| 这个习俗自古以来就一直流传至今，从未间断。 | Zhè ge xí sú zì gǔ yǐ lái jiù yī zhí liú chuán zhì jīn, cóng wèi jiàn duàn. | This custom has been passed down from ancient times to the present, without ever being interrupted. | 自 (formal 'from') and 至 (formal 'to') combined in the fixed phrase 自古以来…至今. |
| 公司自成立以来一直朝着国际化的方向发展，董事会将于下个月宣布一项重大投资计划，预计至年底前完成海外市场的布局。 | Gōng sī zì chéng lì yǐ lái yī zhí cháo zhe guó jì huà de fāng xiàng fā zhǎn, dǒng shì huì jiāng yú xià gè yuè xuān bù yī xiàng zhòng dà tóu zī jì huà, yù jì zhì nián dǐ qián wán chéng hǎi wài shì chǎng de bù jú. | The company has been developing toward internationalization since its founding; the board will announce a major investment plan next month, expected to complete its overseas market layout by the end of the year. | 自, 朝着, 于, and 至 combined in one formal business-announcement sentence, using all four prepositions together. |
What you need first
Every topic in GraphChinese names its own prerequisites, and these are the grammar points this one is built on. If a sentence here will not parse, one of them is why.
What this opens up
These patterns list Prepositions of Time, Place, Direction and Object among their own prerequisites, so they become readable once this one holds.
Prepositions of Time, Place, Direction and Object is one topic of 829. GraphChinese teaches them in prerequisite order, so this pattern reaches you on the day everything it rests on is proven. The whole course, HSK 0 through HSK 6, is $49 once for lifetime access.
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