Anonymous  +  392176 Sat, 14 Jul 07 09:36 PM Hi, 1.'In/At the beginning of the month/book/movie.' Are 'in' and 'at' both fine to use here? If so, what is the difference between 'in' and 'at' here? 2.'I thought he loved me; perhaps he did in/at the beginning.' Could we use 'at' instead of 'in' here? What is the difference between 'in the beginning' and 'at the beginning' here? Thank you very much. Anonymous Difference Between

	Grammar Geek  +  392220 Sat, 14 Jul 07 11:32 PM They both sound okay to me. I'm not sensing any difference. Perhaps others might feel there is one, but I don't. Grammar Geek Joined on Tue, Jan 10 2006 Veteran Member 19,508 Barbara, who answers in American English. My housekeeping skills attest to the truth of the second law of thermodynamics: Left to themselves, things get more and more random!

	Cool Breeze  +  392645 Sun, 15 Jul 07 10:45 PM A fairly good rule of thumb is to use at when of follows: at the beginning/end of the movie at the beginning/end of the month If there is no of, in is usually the better choice: In the beginning I didn't know what to do. He became happy in the end. (= eventually) However, many people say in the beginning of the month as GG has said. CB Cool Breeze Joined on Fri, Apr 7 2006 Senior Member 3,929 "I hope you'll all live to be 150 years old - and the last voice you hear is mine!" Frank Sinatra on stage in Oslo, Norway, 28 September 1991

	Grammar Geek  +  392722 Mon, 16 Jul 07 02:58 AM Hi CB, I'm glad you wrote that. I had originally written that if I heard "at the beginning" I would infer the "of our relationship" part that wasn't explicitly stated, but then I doubted myself. Your rule seems like a very good one to me! Grammar Geek