grammar - "I am back to city" vs. "I am back in city"


Which is the correct usage when I tell someone that I am back?



I am back to [some city]



Or



I am back in [some city]




Answer



FumbleFingers comment on EdGuiness answer is, I think, the real answer. When you are describing a destination, using a verb such as "go", you use the preposition "to". When you are describing a "state of being", using a verb such as "to be", you use the preposition "in".



I go to Detroit.


I am in Detroit.


I travelled to Detroit.


I live in Detroit.



Note that if you do use a non-proper noun like "city" or "town", you need to include an article.



I live in a city.


I went to the town.



Side note: "Town" without an article has a varity of special meanings. "I live in town" means that I live within the city limits, as in:



Bob: I live in the suburbs. Alice: Oh, I live in town.



"I am/was/will be in town" means that I am in the city under discussion as opposed to travelling somewhere else. Like:



"I was on a business trip last weekend, but this weekend I'm staying in town."



"We went to town" can mean that we went to the city under discussion, but it is also a slang term meaning we had a wild party or had sexual relations.


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