Questions tagged [indefinite-article]
An article is a word that combines with a noun to indicate the type of reference being made by the noun.
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I took the wrong article and changed the meaning. Is it wrong?
If I say ‘’Those are the pencils which I use to write in English’’ you know that I only use these pencils so the definite article excludes the existence of other things in this category.
If I say ‘’...
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Which of the following sentence is correct ?(use of definitive article related)
What is the name of game in screenshot?
What is name of the game in screenshot?
What is the name of the game in screenshot?
What is name of game in screenshot?
Which of the above mentioned sentence ...
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Using an article after “which we call”
I am hesitant in using an article after the sentence which we call.
Example:
We discovered a new attack model which we call "man-in-the-middle"
attack
Or
We discovered a new attack model ...
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1answer
57 views
How do you see the difference between these two sentences?
Could someone explain the difference between these two? Why does the first one take the definite article and the second one takes the indefinite article?
1) Thousands of years ago, it was only ...
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4answers
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Is it true that if we start a sentence with 'the', this 'the' can be omitted?
The data in Tables 1 were assembled from studies in North
America...
Fluxes shown in Table 1 are different from Tables 2 and 3
because...
Results of the calculations indicate that .... ...
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1answer
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The ultimate rule of taking the right article
A while ago I read a grammar book where I was said to use a definite article every time a noun is followed by a qualifying clause with OF or another preposition.
1.1 The first person to run the mile ...
2
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2answers
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A car vs the car - English Article
Consider the following sentence from Oxford learners' dictionary, under their entry for the:
There was an accident here yesterday. A car hit a tree and the driver was killed.
In the first sentence,...
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1answer
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Articles for different types of 'analysis'
All examples, except the last one, are from Longman dictionary
A factor analysis identified ten significant factors affecting women’s rights.
A structural analysis showed that the roof was ...
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2answers
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‘tell a story’ or ‘tell the story’ in a single sentence
The single sentence:
The novel tells the story of a salesman.
Can I say:
The novel tells a story of a salesman?
I chose a story, but the answer is the story.
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2answers
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Should it be “a moon” or “the moon”
I was reading Julian Barnes The Sense of an Ending, when I encountered this line:
And I thought of a cresting wave of water, lit by a moon, rushing past
and vanishing upstream, pursued by a band ...
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2answers
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new puppy vs a new puppy
What is the difference between "new puppy" and "a new puppy"?
Take this sentence for example:
My brother’s daughter and new puppy are already best buds
What if we add an indefinite article berere ...
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1answer
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Can we use a definite article when someone we are talking to doesn't know of the topic yet?
As for my question about the difference between
I like a movie, Pulp Fiction.
I like the movie, Pulp Fiction.
A commenter answered: I would say the only difference in usage is that you would use ...
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38 views
Cases where we can omit articles?
I often get confused with the definite article. For instance in the following sentence should we use the or not?
4 easy steps to update the recipient of your Optiscore Subscription
Putting a ...
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2answers
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difference between “part” and “a part”
What is the difference between part and a part?
What is the difference between these two sentences?
He was a part of the team.
He was part of the team.
I heard that part means a member and a ...
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0answers
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meet a/the target of . . .?
Should the definite or indefinite article be used in the following? The target in question is mentioned for the first time in the passage, yet it seems to be quite specific.
Currently, the Ministry ...
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1answer
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Definite article in definitions
I have noticed a pattern of using the definite article „the” that occurs in definitions, and I don’t know how to explain that. The pattern is as follows: "A/An + term + basic description. The + term + ...
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A and THE, which is correct?
The sentence below
A protocol is the language that a computer uses to communicate with other computers on the network.
Is the usage of a/the correct?
Can I change it to
A protocol is a ...
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1answer
52 views
A bat vs bats vs the bats
Which one of these sentences is correct:
A bat is not a bird, but a mammal.
or
Bats are not birds but mammals
or
The bats are not birds but mammals.
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2answers
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In running such a game, a/the computer may freeze
Having the following sentences and lines of reasoning:
Video Games are becoming more and more hardware demanding. In running
such a game, the computer may freeze. (*)
My line of reasoning: the ...
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1answer
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“It was an April” vs “It was in April”
"It was an April afternoon. And the warm breezes of approaching
summer had sent everyone, including Grandfather, indoors".
The above sentences are from the story 'Adventures in a Banyan Tree' by ...
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2answers
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English article “A” vs “The”
In English Grammar, before ordinals (first, second, third...), we always use the definite article "the."
Consider the sentence below.
If the same person calls a second time within a 15-minute ...
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2answers
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Article usage in “a cow” vs “the cow”
I have referred to many grammar books and they say that
"A cow gives us milk" and "The cow gives us milk" mean the same thing. They mean all cows give us milk or cows give us milk.
I know that the ...
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2answers
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Article needed in “show (a) focus”?
Recruiters prefer candidates to show a focus in their job applications.
Do we need “a” here? What would change if “a” were removed?
After all “focus” is both countable and uncountable noun.
Some ...
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1answer
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A single indefinite article for two items?
As I'm working my way in Duolingo I got an exercise to translate a sentence from Russian to English. The accepted translating is "I have a warm jacket and a warm sweater".
In the comments on this ...
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0answers
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Can definite and indefinite articles be used interchangeably?
I was going to say:
Pronouns and/or be/have/do are occasionally omitted in spoken English at the beginning of the sentence.
But then I thought, I don't have any particular sentence in mind here. ...
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This is a first … - can I use the indefinite article?
I know with words determining somehow the order of things I should use the definite article. But I would say it depends on the context. Is the following correct?
This is a first discussion out of ...
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1answer
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'high blood pressure' vs 'a high blood pressure'
What is the difference between these two sentences:
I have high blood pressure.
and
I have a high blood pressure.
I can only guess that the first one mean that I have high blood pressure all ...
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1answer
25 views
what's the role of indefinite article in this phrase : he went into a rage!
what the role of indefinite article in this phrase :
He went into a rage!
The indefinite article doesn't make sense here what if we eliminate it from the sentence?
edit:
it doesn't make sense to ...
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1answer
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“Toutmai started the second officer's job at..” vs “Toutmai started a second officer's job at”
In 2011, she joined the XYZ Institute as a navigation officer. After
over two years in the institute, in November 2013, Toutmai started the
second officer's job at Siren for Fleet Ship Management.
...
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4answers
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“I am [the / an] owner of a bookstore”?
I'm drafting a letter of invitation for someone. And one sentence goes: "I am [the / an] owner of a bookstore" - which article shall I use?
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1answer
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Confusion in placing Articles a and an before nouns
When I was a kid I was taught that Article An should be placed before nouns starting with a Vowel letter, but now i got to know that it's actually the sound of vowel we should focus not the letter.
...
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Difference between “a”, “one” and “some”
A bus passes my house every hour.
One bus passes my house every hour.
Some bus passes my house every hour.
Buses pass my house every hour.
Some buses pass my house every hour.
What is the ...
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Shall I use “an” before “impact”?
Some uncountable words like the word value should not be preceded with article. I am not sure about impact.
It has impact on the existing approaches.
or
It has an impact on the existing ...
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Using 'a,' 'an,' or 'the' with 'price' and 'discount'
I am confused when to use the correct articles. For example, in an email:
Dear Journal of Business News,
I have received the information about subscribing to your journal. I have a few ...
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1answer
52 views
“To treat someone as property” or “to treat someone as a property”?
"He treats his dog as property."
or
"He treats his dog as a property."
I suspect that the former is correct, is it?
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1answer
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The use of the indefinite article with uncountable nouns after the phrase “more of”
I came across it in this article.
Chloe Foster, a clinical psychologist at the Centre for Anxiety Disorders and Trauma in London, says shyness in itself is quite common and normal and doesn’t cause ...
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2answers
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Why not say ‘in a pencil’, but say ‘in pencil’?
We say:
Shall I write in ink or in pencil.
Why not say:
Shall I write in ink or in a pencil?
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1answer
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“have pain in something” or “have a pain in something”? [closed]
Tell me please which one of the folowing sentences is correct.
Because I have pain in my arm, I cannot pull it.
Because I have a pain in my arm, I cannot pull it.
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1answer
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Which on of the following grammar is correct? I have never seen “a” snow VS I have never seen snow VS I have never seen the snow
Which grammar is correct or all correct?
I have never seen "a" snow VS I have never seen snow
I've inputted both sentences to the Google search and found results as following
I have ...
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Can “a one” be an unambiguous substitution of “a [noun]”?
I want to use "a one" in the following sentence to refer to a single coat:
I heard that coats were invented for this reason and therefore wearing a one will surely keep you warm.
Does "one" take ...
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1answer
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“a client and a doctor” vs. “a client and doctor”
I'm conducting a survey related to health care. You can describe yourself using 3 categories: a client, a doctor or "a client and (a) doctor." I'm wondering if I should repeat the second "a" before ...
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'greater understanding' without the preceding article 'a'
I'm aware that by default it is ...a greater understanding. However, I would like to know if I could leave the indefinite article out in the following case:
The goal of this programme is simple: ...
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1answer
161 views
A question regarding using the definite article
Supposed that I already stated earlier that it was raining for while and I gave a good description of how it looked like. Now, I am wondering if I can use Rain without any articles so that only the ...
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5answers
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a sore throat vs a strep throat vs strep throat
If my throat is red and it feels painful to swallow, I say
I have a sore throat.
Recently, I've come across "strep throat". It's an infection and it doesn't seem to be used interchangeably with "...
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1answer
25 views
Correct use of article 'the'
The indians are genetically incapable of being good or outstanding sportsman.
Here i think it should be only indians. If i want to use the then use as the indian not the indians.
Am i right? If 'no'...
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1answer
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“Siri, set the timer for X minutes”
Every time I ask Siri to
set the timer for X minutes
I get corrected with
set a timer for X minutes
I consulted some tech sites, they seem to agree on "a timer". At least, I didn't find any "...
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1answer
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when does the noun “access” need an indefinite article?
Most usage of the noun "access" follows a similar format as the following -
"have access to" or "gain access to"
Even for the definition of "a way or means of entering or approaching", Merriam-...
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1answer
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Shall I use an article before the word “value”
I am not sure if the word value is countable or non-countable. So I am not sure if i should add an article before it in a context like:
Our method adds a value over their method.
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1answer
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indefinite article with 'school'
Could you explain why is there used indefinite article before school, when the context is about institution rather than building of (a?) school.
For most children, secondary education begins when ...
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2answers
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“If you own” or “If you own a” when talking about a product in an ad
Let's say there is a game console called Bumby that can be used to play every single game available.
"If you own Bumby, you won't need another console."
"If you own a Bumby, you won't need ...
