At basic level, students need to talk about going to places, arriving at school, coming home, and reaching their destination. English has several verbs for these situations and they are not interchangeable. 'Come' is about movement towards the speaker — 'come here', 'come to my house'. 'Arrive' focuses on the moment of getting to a place — 'we arrived at the school'. 'Reach' suggests effort, often after a long journey — 'we finally reached the village'. 'Get to' is the casual everyday way to say arrive — 'I got to school at 8'. The grammar matters too. 'Arrive' takes 'at' for specific places (arrive at the school) and 'in' for cities or countries (arrive in London). 'Reach' takes a direct object — no preposition (reach the village, not 'reach to the village'). Students who use the wrong verb or the wrong preposition produce errors that are very common at A2 level. This lesson covers the four main arrival verbs and their grammar.
Before you start — think honestly about your own teaching and experience.
Look at the examples. Answer each question before reading the explanation — this is how your students will learn too.
I come to school every day at seven. (movement towards a place — often the speaker's place)
We arrived at the school at eight. (focus on the moment of getting there)
After a long walk, we reached the top of the hill. (suggests effort, often after a long journey)
I got to school just before the bell rang. (casual everyday way to say arrived)
All four describe getting to a place. What is the small difference between them?
Each verb fits a slightly different situation. 'Come' is about movement towards a place — usually the speaker's location or a place the listener is in. 'Come to my house' (towards me). 'I come to school every day' (the speaker is at school when speaking, or thinking of school as 'here'). 'Arrive' focuses on the moment of getting there — the journey is over. 'We arrived at five o'clock' (the moment of arrival). 'Reach' suggests effort or distance — getting to a place after some difficulty. 'After a long walk, we reached the village.' It is often used with destinations after journeys. 'Get to' is the everyday casual word for arrive. 'I got to school at 8' (= I arrived at school at 8). All four are useful but they are not full synonyms. The right choice depends on what aspect the speaker wants to highlight.
I arrive AT school. (specific place)
We arrive IN London. (city)
They arrive IN Nigeria. (country)
We reached the school. (NO preposition — 'reach' takes a direct object)
We reached the top of the hill. (NO preposition)
I got TO school. (always 'to')
We got TO the village. (always 'to')
Come HOME. (no preposition with 'home' — special case)
Come TO my house. (preposition 'to')
Which verbs need prepositions, and which do not? What is the rule?
The grammar of arrival verbs is one of the most error-heavy areas at A2 level. 'Arrive' takes 'at' for specific places (the school, the station, the airport) and 'in' for larger areas (cities, countries, regions). It NEVER takes 'to' — 'arrive to' is a very common error and is wrong. 'Reach' takes a direct object with no preposition — 'we reached the village' (not 'we reached to the village'). 'Get to' always uses 'to' — 'I got to school'. 'Come' takes 'to' for most places — 'come to my house', 'come to the meeting' — but 'come home' is a fixed exception with no preposition. Students must learn each verb with its grammar pattern. Drilling the patterns as fixed chunks (arrive at, arrive in, reach + object, get to) prevents the most common errors.
A friend phones you and says: I want to see you. → Come to my house. (you should move towards the speaker — your friend's house)
A friend says: I will be at home tonight. → Come and visit me. (movement towards the friend)
A teacher says: I am going to the staff room. → I will go to the staff room. (movement away from where the speaker is now)
You are at school and your mother says: Please come home for dinner. (movement towards the speaker — your mother is at home)
What is the rule for choosing between 'come' and 'go'?
'Come' and 'go' are not just direction words — they are about the speaker's position. 'Come' means movement towards the speaker (or towards the place the speaker is in or imagining themselves in). 'Go' means movement away from the speaker. The rule is not about geography — it is about who is where. If you are at school and your mother phones from home asking when you will arrive, she says 'when will you come home?' (towards her). When you talk about it later at school, you might say 'I went home for dinner' (away from school, the place where you are now). Students often confuse 'come' and 'go' especially when describing past or future events from different perspectives. The test: where is the speaker? If the speaker is at the destination, 'come' is right. If the speaker is at the starting point or somewhere else, 'go' is right. This rule is hard to learn quickly but becomes automatic with practice.
| Verb | Meaning | Preposition / pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| come | Movement towards the speaker or speaker's place | come to + place / come home (no preposition) | Come to my house this evening. / Please come home before dark. |
| go | Movement away from the speaker | go to + place / go home (no preposition) | I am going to the market. / She went home early. |
| arrive | Reach a destination — focus on the moment | arrive at + specific place / arrive in + city or country | We arrived at the school at 8. / She arrived in London yesterday. |
| reach | Get to — often suggests effort or distance | reach + direct object (NO preposition) | After a long walk, we reached the village. / The plane reached London on time. |
| get to | Casual everyday word for arrive | get to + place | I got to school at 8. / What time did you get to the meeting? |
| return | Come or go back to a place | return to + place / return home (no preposition) | He returned to school after lunch. / She returned home late. |
| approach | Get close to (often slowly) | approach + direct object (NO preposition) | As we approached the village, we saw the smoke from the cooking fires. |
DISTINCTION 1 — Come vs go: Both describe movement, but they differ in direction relative to the speaker. 'Come' = movement towards the speaker. 'Go' = movement away from the speaker. 'Come to my house' (towards me). 'Go to the market' (away from me, away from where I am). The rule is about the speaker's position, not about geography.
DISTINCTION 2 — Arrive at vs arrive in: 'Arrive at' is for specific places — buildings, stations, airports, particular spots. 'Arrive at the school', 'arrive at the airport', 'arrive at the bus stop'. 'Arrive in' is for larger areas — cities, countries, regions. 'Arrive in London', 'arrive in Nigeria'. 'Arrive to' is always wrong. This is the most common error with this verb.
DISTINCTION 3 — Reach takes no preposition: 'Reach' is a transitive verb — it takes a direct object with no preposition between. 'We reached the village' (not 'we reached to the village'). 'The plane reached London' (not 'reached to London'). Adding 'to' is wrong. Students often add the preposition by habit from other languages.
DISTINCTION 4 — Get to is casual: 'Get to' is the everyday way to say arrive. 'I got to school at 8' is more natural in conversation than 'I arrived at school at 8'. Both are correct but 'get to' fits casual speech better. In formal writing, 'arrive' is preferred.
DISTINCTION 5 — Reach suggests effort: 'Reach' often implies the journey was long, difficult, or significant. 'We finally reached the village after a six-hour walk.' 'After three days of climbing, the team reached the top.' For ordinary daily journeys, 'arrive' or 'get to' are more natural. 'We reached school at 8' sounds slightly dramatic for a routine arrival.
Verbs of arrival are essential for everyday talk about journeys, daily routines, and visiting places — topics that come up constantly at A2 level. The grammar errors with these verbs (especially 'arrive to' and 'reach to') are persistent and hard to fix. Once they become habits, they last into B2 and beyond. Drilling the patterns early prevents this. Students should learn the verbs together with their prepositions: 'arrive at', 'arrive in', 'reach' (no preposition), 'get to', 'come to'. These chunks should become automatic. Cultural awareness also matters: in some communities, the 'come/go' distinction works differently in the first language, and students need explicit practice to learn the English rule.
Use real journeys students know to drill arrival verbs. 'How do you get to school?' 'What time do you arrive?' 'When did you reach the village last weekend?' 'Come to the front of the class.' Real-life context makes the patterns memorable. Correct preposition errors immediately and have students repeat the correct form. Over time the chunks become automatic.
Choose the best verb and preposition for each situation. Think about which verb fits the meaning and what grammar each verb needs.
Each sentence has a problem with a verb of arrival — wrong verb, wrong preposition, or both. Suggest a better version and explain.
Use this sequence directly in class — guided discovery, no textbook needed. Tap each step to mark it done.
STEP 1 — Four verbs for getting somewhere (5 min): Write on the board: come, arrive, reach, get to. Show one example sentence with each. Discuss the small differences. Come is towards the speaker. Arrive focuses on the moment. Reach suggests effort. Get to is casual everyday.
STEP 2 — Drill the prepositions (7 min): Focus on the grammar. Arrive AT (specific places): the school, the station, the airport. Arrive IN (cities/countries): London, Nigeria, the city. Reach + direct object (NO preposition): the village, the top, the river. Get TO (always 'to'): school, work, the meeting. Drill each pattern with five examples.
STEP 3 — Common errors (5 min): Address the most frequent mistakes head-on. Arrive to ✗ → arrive at / arrive in. Reach to ✗ → reach + object. Get at ✗ → get to. Come to is right for invitations towards the speaker. Drill the wrong forms with crosses next to them and the right forms underneath.
STEP 4 — Come vs go (5 min): The direction-from-the-speaker rule. Come = towards the speaker. Go = away from the speaker. Practise with phone-call situations: someone at home phones someone at school. The person at home says 'come home' (towards me). The person at school says 'I am going home' (away from where I am now).
STEP 5 — Talk about your day (3 min): Each student describes their morning journey using three different arrival verbs. 'I left home at 6.30. I got to the bus stop at 6.45. I arrived at school at 7.30.' Share in pairs. Partner checks: were the prepositions correct?
Use directly in class — copy, adapt, or read aloud. No printing needed.
For each strategy, choose the option that best describes where you are now.
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