Timeline for "For a noun" refers to an individual or the general case?
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
5 events
| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| May 26, 2017 at 14:39 | comment | added | J.R.♦ | @Scott - "I'm going out for a sandwich" is normal, idiomatic English. The answer here parrots a general truth about "for a" vs. "for the", but choosing the right article is not always so cut-and-dried. Sometimes it's context dependent, and exceptions can be found. | |
| May 26, 2017 at 13:50 | comment | added | SovereignSun | @Scottmeup I'm not native but "for a sandwich" doesn't sound right to me in this context. I'd say "to get (have, buy, eat, order) a sandwich" but not "for a sandwich". | |
| May 26, 2017 at 12:32 | vote | accept | Scottmeup | ||
| May 26, 2017 at 12:30 | comment | added | Scottmeup | Thanks for the answer! I am curious if you might know a bit more about the specific usages, for example given the conversation: "Where are you going?" - "For a sandwich." would not imply to me that I'm going for the general case of any sandwich, but for a specific one. I assume this is due to the implied "I'm going..." that is omitted from the beginning of "For a sandwich."? | |
| May 23, 2017 at 11:45 | history | answered | SovereignSun | CC BY-SA 3.0 |