I was sitting in a chair. vs I was sitting on a chair.

Both phrases are correct, but they convey slightly different meanings. 'I was sitting in a chair' implies that you were physically inside the chair, which is not the intended meaning. 'I was sitting on a chair' is the correct phrase to use, as it means you were seated on top of the chair.

Last updated: March 23, 2024 • 1167 views

This phrase is not correct because it implies being physically inside the chair, which is not the intended meaning.

"I was sitting in a chair."

This phrase is not commonly used in English. To express that you were seated on top of a chair, it is better to use 'I was sitting on a chair.'

Show examples from the web [+]

I was sitting in that chair a minute ago.
Maybe I'm supposed to be sitting in a chair.
I was in a red room with a small man dressed in red and an old man sitting in a chair.
Larry King is so old he had to retire from sitting in a chair.
The moment I heard my daughter's vision had finally failed her, and that she would forever be blind, I was sitting in that very chair.
Didn't realize how much I'd miss sitting in chairs.
Amanda was sitting in her chair.
I'm sitting in your chair. I can move.
I spent years in this office, sitting in that chair.
I work for whoever happens to be sitting in your chair.
He'd fall asleep sitting up in a chair.
I want you to tell me, if possible, sitting on a chair.
Charlie, I respect you more than anyone I know, but I'm the one sitting in that chair.
I'm not fooled by the Mayberry setting; I'm very aware of what happened to the last person sitting in this chair.
If he'd lived, Vincent Marsh would have been the next president of the United States and I'd be sitting in that chair.
Excuse me. I do believe you're sitting in my chair.
'Cause the way I see it, you're sitting in my chair.
Anyway, I get home and Harold is sitting in his chair.
Lon Chaney Junior was a much bigger man than Jack Pierce, and I'm sure he didn't like sitting in the chair.
That half-blind portrait artist didn't realize I was sitting in a chair while my sister was standing, and now half of Europe thinks I'm a dwarf.

Alternatives:

I was sitting on a chair.

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to express that you were seated on top of a chair.

"I was sitting on a chair."

Use this phrase to indicate that you were seated on top of a chair. It is the appropriate way to convey this idea.

Show examples from the web [+]

I want you to tell me, if possible, sitting on a chair.
It's a man sitting on a chair.
My wife is sitting on a chair someplace.
A cat was sitting on the chair.
Maybe I'm supposed to be sitting in a chair.
The moment I heard my daughter's vision had finally failed her, and that she would forever be blind, I was sitting in that very chair.
I'm sitting on an Estonian chair.
I was in a red room with a small man dressed in red and an old man sitting in a chair.
Didn't realize how much I'd miss sitting in chairs.
Amanda was sitting in her chair.
Big hair, Bambi eyes, sitting on the chair.
Big hair, Bambi eyes, sitting on the chair.
When the empress died, she was buried sitting on this chair.
I'm sitting in your chair. I can move.
I spent years in this office, sitting in that chair.
I work for whoever happens to be sitting in your chair.
Larry King is so old he had to retire from sitting in a chair.
But I've been sitting on a chair for too long.
Charlie, I respect you more than anyone I know, but I'm the one sitting in that chair.
I'm not fooled by the Mayberry setting; I'm very aware of what happened to the last person sitting in this chair.

Alternatives:

I was seated on a chair.
I sat on a chair.
I was perched on a chair.
I was occupying a chair.

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I was sitting in a chair. vs I was sitting on a chair.