Sometimes I feel confused about if I should add a preposition, like "come back to Seattle" or "come back Seattle".
If I want to ask a question about where something is made, how to say the question "Where is it made?" or "Where is it made in"?
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You don't normally need [another] preposition in constructions using where/when, because these words already imply at/in/on some location or day/date.– FumbleFingersCommented Dec 2, 2011 at 17:24
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1You don't necessarily need it, but something like "where did you go to?" is common colloquial English.– James MooreCommented Dec 2, 2011 at 20:48
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Not your main question but there should be no confusion with Seattle. Being a city Seattle hasn't been anywhere so it can't come back, the expression is telling someone to return to Seattle. "Come back Seattle" would normally only make sense if your dog, child or lover was called Seattle and you wanted them to return to you.– BoldBenCommented Feb 27, 2018 at 11:02
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5 Answers
The correct way to put this is "Where is it made?"
The rule about adding prepositions at the end of a sentence is: only do it if the sentence doesn't make any sense without it. "Where is it made?" makes sense without a preposition, so don't add one.
This resource cleared up this issue for me: http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/ending-prepositions.aspx
Use Where is it made?
In general, if you can remove the preposition without altering the meaning of the sentence, then it should be left out: Where is it made in? has the same meaning as Where is it made?
If you are just asking without the context of a location, use Where is it made? If you are asking specifically about a building or country where something is made, you can use in, but you need the context, like this:
What country is it made in?
Some people will disagree with ending the question with in, and say you should use In what country is it made?, but they mean the same thing.
So, context = use in. No context = no in.
First: Where WAS it made?
If the thing exists now, it was made in the past, so you need the past tense. On the other hand, if you are writing/talking about something still in production and need a general term, then you will write/ask, "Where ARE THESE made?"
Second:
"In" is not a preposition here. It is an adverb describing where the action occurred.
Where was it made in:
The version of this I often hear is "where was it made at?" This is redundant because "in" and "at" both refer to "where." Because you already have "where," you don't need "in" or "at."
Note: "in what country is it made"
Here, "in" is a preposition. Also, in "It was made in what country," "is" is also a preposition. One easy way to know that "in" is a preposition here is to look for the object of the preposition. Prepositions have objects; adverbs don't.
"Where was it made?" is the right question.
For example: Person 1 walks into the room with a cool T-shirt. Person 2 asks: Where was it made? Person 1: In Germany.
So you see that the replier puts the "in" into the conversation for you. :)
