Admitted In, At or To Hospital? Which is the correct preposition?

Prepositions and correct verb pairing are important to writing. All prepositions express location. However, each preposition has additional functions too.

When completing an action like admission to the hospital, use a word like to if you want to use proper grammar. We use the preposition to with the verb “to be admitted” in the expression “to be admitted to hospital.

Visiting the hospital can use any of the prepositions to, in, or at. However, only to is considered ‘good’ grammar. The best way to phrase a sentence would then be, “I am being admitted to the hospital.”

What is the correct preposition “admitted to,” “admitted in,” or “admitted at”?

The correct preposition is “admitted to” because you are completing an action. Being admitted somewhere is an action, which means that it requires a preposition influencing action.

Out of the three adjectives, in, to, and at, only one of these indicates action correctly. The other two indicate location without function. As a preposition, it requires a function to indicate that it is working.

When do you use the preposition “at”?

Use the preposition at, to demonstrate presence at a location. When using the preposition, at, you indicate a location but not action. This preposition’s lack of action means it is not the correct preposition to pair with an action verb like admitted.

Examples of correct usage of the preposition at include:

The group canceled the plans at the last minute.
We are meeting at the park.

When do you use the preposition “in”?

Use the preposition in to refer to a location. Locations can include places, buildings, destinations, generalized locations, and even places in time. “In” is used when the subject is inside of the destination or location. These prepositions do not indicate any action from the subject.

Examples of correct usage of the preposition in include:

I am in room 23.
The meeting is in fifteen minutes.

Unlike the proposition at, in refers to being inside of a specific location. Stating that you are being “admitted in the hospital” means that you are already inside the hospital, being admitted. It can be correct. However, it is considered poor grammar.

When do you use the preposition “to”?

The preposition to indicates movement regarding time, location, or as the recipient of the action. This preposition also indicates approximations and ranges between two distinct measurements.

The preposition to is often followed by a verb that indicates movement or action, such as jump, go, or talk. These verbs can be active or passive to indicate a point in time, “we went to the park.”

Examples of correct usage of the preposition to include:

I am going to the park.
The destination is roughly ten to fifteen miles away.
Will we get to the airport on time?

This preposition indicates movement and action. Being admitted to the hospital means that you are the recipient of the admission at or in the hospital. The location does not change. However, by using to you show completion of an action.

Conclusion

The correct phrase is”to be admitted to hospital”. You can also use the preposition to with the verb in its active form  “to admit” as in “He admitted to the crime“.

Conor