Prepositions of Movement or Direction:

Prepositions that express movement toward something are to, onto, and into. To, onto, and into can be defined in the same way as at, in, and on (which explain the relationships of point, surface,  area and volume. See Prepositions of Place or Location.)

The most common preposition of movement or direction is to. To indicates orientation toward a goal. If the goal is a physical one (the store, a party, the kitchen, etc.), to shows movement toward that point. “Bailey ran to the corner.” (He is running in the direction of the corner.) If the goal is not an actual place, but is an action or a thought, to is used with another verb in the infinitive form and expresses purpose (in order to). “We cleaned the house to prepare for the reception” (We cleaned in order to prepare for the reception.) Both meanings of the word to can be used in the same sentence: “Paul went to Lucy’s house to deliver the gift.” (Lucy’s house is the physical destination, and Paul's purpose is in order to deliver the gift'.)

Uses of "to":

a ) The preposition to is used as an ordinary preposition with verbs of communication such as listen, speak, relate (as in telling someone something), appeal (meaning 'pleading', not as in 'be attractive to')

• Betty began to speak on the microphone.  

• Jonah started to listen to her, but his phone rang.

b) The preposition to is used as an ordinary preposition with verbs of movement such as move, go, transfer, walk, run, swim, ride, drive,  fly, travel.

•   Maryann needed to drive to the cabin. She had planned to fly there, but then changed her plans.

  Note: All these verbs (except transfer) can be used with toward, as well as with to. Be aware that to suggests movement toward a specific point, and toward suggests movement in a general direction without actually arriving at a specific goal or destination.

• I have to go home now. (I must arrive at my home.)

• Let’s walk toward the park. (Walk in the direction of the park; we may or may not arrive there.)

• Brandon drove toward the seaside. (He was going in that direction, but he may not actually go there at all.)

c) The preposition to can be added to a verb in order to create an infinitive. (to walk, to think, to eat, etc.) This use of to shows: willingness, purpose, obligation, desire, or intent.

• I will agree to let you join us. (I am willing to allow you to be with us.)

• She plans to leave on Saturday. (Her intent is to leave on that day.)

• Ronnie wanted to have a leave of absence from work. (He desired time off from work.)

• Annie had to teach when CC was ill. (Annie was obligated to teach.)

The other two prepositions of direction are compounds formed by adding to: on + to = onto: signifies movement toward the top of a surface; in + to = into: signifies movement toward the interior of something. With some action verbs, on and in have a directional meaning and may also be used, but not in every instance.  

• Shawn climbed in/into the bathtub. (Both in and into are correct. Choose one.)

  The difference between the compound prepositions into and onto and the simple prepositions in and on is that the compound prepositions indicate the completion of an action, and the simple prepositions show the position of the subject as a result of that action. 

• Patricia fell onto the ground. (completion of the action of falling)

• Patricia is on the ground. (position of Patricia)

• Mario jumped into the river. (completion of the action jumped)

• Mario is in the river. (position of Mario)

Uses of into:

Remember that into shows completion of an action, in shows the position of the object as a result of an action.

• Connie put the vase into the sink. The vase is in the sink.

• Harriet threw her coat into the closet. Her coat is in the closet.

• The chef put the soup bones into the pot. The bones are in the pot.

   a) With verbs expressing motion, into and in are may be used interchangeably except:

•  when the preposition is the last word in the sentence

•  when it comes directly in front of an adverbial. (An adverbial or an adverbial clause provides information about when, why, or how something happens). In those cases, only in is correct.

• Don went into the library.

• Don went in. (not into, because in is the last word in the sentence)

• They drove into the garage at 6 p.m.

• They drove in yesterday. (yesterday is an adverbial showing when, so in is the correct preposition to use.)

Note: Into may be used as the last word (with the exception of the adverbial) in a question that asks who, when, what about the subject.

• What sort of mess has the dog gotten into now?  (now is an adverbial showing when)

• Now, what sort of mess did the dog get in? 

    b) Using in or into with the verb move:

  move in followed by a clause showing reason or purpose that indicates approaching. Move in is a phrasal verb and is sometimes an idiom.

• The patrol moved in to report artillery positions.

• The gangsters moved in to take over the town.

When into is used with move, it's used as an ordinary preposition and means moving something from one place to another:  

• She moved all her clothes into a different closet.

• Let’s move into the living room where we can be more comfortable. (simply means 'go')

• We will move into the new house by the end of the month. (bring all belongings and take possession of the house.)

Uses of onto:

  a) With verbs of motion, onto and on are usually interchangeable. 

• Daniel bounced on/onto the floor. 

• Peter climbed on/onto the fence.

Note: Some motion verbs indicate that the subject causes itself or some other object to be located in a specific place.  Some of these verbs can only be used with on. Others can be used with both on and onto. There are also times when the word "add" is used alone, or used with the word to.

• The cat landed on its feet after the fall. (not onto its feet)

• Louis hung his pants on the line to dry. (not onto the line)

• Dick spilled the soup on his shirt. (not onto his shirt)

• Heather threw her coat on/onto the bed. 

• The birds scattered the seeds that had fallen on/onto the ground. 

• They are adding another employee at the factory.

• She wants to add to the wedding invitation list.

• "Your behavior is adding to my stress," warned Mother.

• I would like to have one more room added to/onto the house.

Important note:  Simple prepositions can combine with verbs, but compound prepositions cannot!

b) With verbs showing a stationary position, on or in are used as the ordinary meanings of those prepositions.

• The car is in the driveway.

• The cat is in the garage 

• William is in the barn.

• Megan is on the couch.

• Pete is on the ladder. 

• The newspaper is on the table.

c)   There are other verb/preposition combinations which mean "continuing or resuming an action" when they are used in an imperative sentence. These combinations are used only with on, except for hang, which takes both on and onto. Some of these combinations are idiomatic. In this exercise, only the regular meanings are being used: hang on (or onto = continue to grasp tightly), carry on = continue/resume doing what you were doing, dream on = continue dreaming, lead on = continue/resume leading us.