2017-11-01
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ARTICLES WITH COUNTABLE NOUNS
Most of the class nouns and some abstract nouns are countable. The indefinite article is used with nouns in the singular and it has the nominating, classifying, numeric and generalizing meaning. The absence of article (the zero article) before plural nouns has similar meanings.
Use of the Indefinite Article
The indefinite article has the nominating meaning when we give a name to an object:
A man is waiting for you.
We may use some, several, few, or a numeral if the noun is in the plural:
Some girls are waiting for you.
The indefinite article has nominating meaning in sentences with " there is/there are ", after ' have " and " have got ":
There is a man in the room. I have got a problem.
The indefinite article has the classifying meaning when it refers an object to a certain class of similar objects:
John is a student. His sister, a girl of 16, was extremely beautiful.
There is no article before a noun in the plural:
All my friends are students.
Nouns with the indefinite article in the classifying meaning are usually used as predicative or apposition.
The indefinite article has the numeric meaning when it expresses oneness. It is often used with nouns denoting time, distance, and weight, with the nouns dozen and score and numerals hundred, thousand, million:
An hour passed, than another one.
She bought milk and a dozen eggs.
About a hundred people were already in the room.
It can also have the meaning of " every " in expressions of time or quantity: two times an hour.
The indefinite article has the generalizing meaning when the noun it modifies denotes a typical member of a class:
A dog is a domestic animal.
Note: Among abstract countable nouns are the following: answer, belief, conclusion, decision, fact, holiday, idea, job, lie, mistake, opinion, plan, promise, question, reply, sentence, word.
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Use of the Definite Article
The definite article is used both with nouns in the singular and in the plural. It has the specifying and the generic meaning.
The definite article has the specifying meaning when the noun refers to a particular object or objects distinct from the others of the same class:
He entered the house expecting to find his parents there.
It is also used with the nouns denoting unique objects:
The sun hadn't risen yet when they started.
Note: If nouns denoting unique objects are modified by descriptive attributes they take the indefinite article:
A bleak winter sun gave no warmth.
The definite article has the generic meaning when the noun refers to a class of objects as a whole:
The tiger is a dangerous animal.
The plural noun in a generic sense takes no article:
The daisy is a pretty flower.
Daisies are pretty flowers.
The noun man has no article when used in the generic sense; the noun woman is used with the definite article or without any article:
Man has to take care of nature. (The) woman is more sensitive than man is.
The definite article has the generic meaning when used with nouns denoting genres, e.g. the tragedy, the comedy, or collective singular nouns denoting classes or groups, e.g. the aristocracy, the public, the press.
The nouns mankind and humanity are used without any article:
Mankind has no choice but fight against terrorism.
It is often used with nouns that are names of animals, plants, professions and scientific terms:
The teacher is a noble profession.
