The source.
I don’t understand why wariness, abstract and uncountable, did take article “a” before it? 
- there was a wariness in her tone.
asked Jan 5, 2018 at 19:20
-
1It's an optional article. It would be grammatical with or without the "a".– J.R. ♦Commented Jan 5, 2018 at 19:47
-
1I was taught that with uncountable abstract noun we can’t put article unless it turned to be specific rather than in general. @J.R.– Bavyan YaldoCommented Jan 5, 2018 at 19:52
-
4@BavyanYaldo This is really a literary device. Although "wariness" is an abstract noun, by putting the article before it, the author is giving the sense that this is a specific and perhaps particularly notable wariness.– Canadian YankeeCommented Jan 5, 2018 at 20:18
-
2I agree with Canadian Yankee. This was written this way for style and to evince a specific or notable wariness.– NickCommented Jan 5, 2018 at 20:31
-
4@CanadianYankee - I might paraphrase it like this: "There was a [certain] wariness in her tone."– J.R. ♦Commented Jan 5, 2018 at 20:47
|
Show 1 more comment
1 Answer
The indefinite article can be used to refer to slight quality or tendency, something just beginning to show itself or showing itself only slightly, or to a quality which is difficult to name or pin down, either because it is a mixture of things or ephemeral in nature.
There was an excitement in her voice.
She was not bubbling over with excitement, but a degree of excitement was present and detectable.
There was a certain something in her voice, but I can't say just what it was.
-
I can't say exactly why, but an excitement here doesn't sit very well with me. Nnot compared to sharpness, softness, tenderness, for example - all of which sound just fine to me with or without an article (and they also work with a different preposition in ... to her voice). Commented Jan 19, 2021 at 18:44