I was enjoying a friend’s photos on Facebook the other day when I noticed that the album location was showing as “in Gabriola Island”. Which sounds weird and I wondered why. Why are we “on” an island or “on” a boat but “in” a city or “in” a car? What is the unspoken rule here?

The internet suggests you’re “in” small, confined spaces (cars) but “on” large platforms where you can walk (boats, planes and trains). This doesn’t quite explain being in cities though, does it? Then there’s non-object use, like on sabbatical or in a depression. Why can’t I be on a depression and in a sabbatical? Seriously though, can we arrange that?