Dutch prepositions are small words with big jobs — and their usage often differs from English. The most essential prepositions: in (inside, in a country/city), op (on a surface, in a street address, at certain locations: op school, op het werk, op de markt), aan (attached to, at a river or coast, in certain expressions: aan tafel, aan het werk), bij (near, at someone’s house, at a company), naar (direction: movement toward), van (of, from, belonging to), met (with), voor (for, in front of), na (after).
The op/in distinction for locations requires memorization by category. In for enclosed spaces and geographic regions: in het huis, in Amsterdam, in Nederland. Op for open spaces, floors, and many fixed expressions: op de grond, op de eerste verdieping, op straat, op school. Some locations use fixed prepositions that must be memorized: op het station, op het postkantoor but in het ziekenhuis, in de winkel.
Prepositional phrases with movement use naar (to, direction): “Ik ga naar huis, naar Amsterdam, naar de markt.” Static location uses the appropriate place preposition. A critical distinction: van…naar expresses movement from A to B: “van Amsterdam naar Rotterdam.” After adjectives and verbs, Dutch uses fixed prepositions that do not always match English: bang voor (afraid of), blij met (happy with), tevreden over (satisfied with). These verb/adjective + preposition combinations are best learned as fixed units.