Let in means to open the door and allow a person or animal to enter. The second meaning is to let something through: people say it about windows that let in light or old shoes that let in water.
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let + me/us/him + in; let in + the cat/visitors; let in + light/water; let sb in on + a secret
- I forgot my key, so my neighbour let me in through the back door.
- Don't let the dog in until I've cleaned the floor.
- The big windows let in plenty of light, even in winter.
What changed
First versionThe guard wouldn't let in us without a pass.
RevisionThe guard wouldn't let us in without a pass.
With a pronoun, the word order is fixed: the pronoun goes between let and in, as in let us in, let me in. Let in us sounds wrong. A noun can also go after in: let in the visitors. The corrected version uses the same words; only the order has changed.
Let someone in on something means to tell them a secret: Can I let you in on a secret? The opposite of let in is let out, to allow someone or something to go outside: Could you let the cat out into the garden?
Your turn
When I rang the bell, my friend opened the door and ___.
Show the answer
let me in — The pronoun me goes between let and in, so let me in. Let in me copies the pattern let in + noun, but a pronoun can't come after in.
Describe a room or flat where you live or work. Say how much light the windows let in and whether you like it.
The windows in my bedroom let in a lot of morning light, and I love it because I wake up without an alarm.
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