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Dete*miners - Coggle Diagram
Dete*miners
Articles
Basic rules
- a/an/the + N/some other words in a noun phrase
- the article is usually the first in a noun phrase but
all/both/ half + the + N
quite/rather/ such/ what/ half + a/an + N
- a/an - singular countable N,
- the - singular countable N, plural N, uncountable N.
(we can omit the with uncountable and plural nouns)
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Naming, describing, classifying
- a/an
1) we name or describe smth.
2) refer to one example of a class or a species
- the
1) refer to the whole class or species
:warning: it is more common to refer to the whole class with the plural.
2) the + adjective - to refer to the whole class of people
That's a scarab beetle.
An African elephant has larger ears than an Indian elephant.
The African elephant has larger ears than the Indian elephant.
African elephants have larger ears than Indian elephants.
The homeless will be removed from the streets and placed in hostels.
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Known or unknown topics
- a/an
1) when the topic (noun) is not known to our listener / reader
2) for the first reference to a topic in the text.
- the
1) when the topic (noun) is known to our listener / reader
2) for the subsequent references to the text.
- We don't have to mention smth for it to be known to the listener.
We consider that it is known in the following situations:
:pencil2: smth is unique
:pencil2: superlatives
:pencil2: the context makes it 'known'
:pencil2: a defining phrase makes it 'known'
:pencil2: a prepositional phrase makes it 'known'
- A new travel guide has advised would - be tourist to Morecambe that it is a place to avoid... The guide paints a bleak -if not third-world-picture.
- We are in danger of permanently damaging the Earth.
- Muhammad Ali is the greatest heavyweight boxer ever.
- Has Edward arrived yet? Yes, he's in the dining-room. (the dining room of the house we are in)
- Oaisis is the Manchester band that shot to fame in the early 1990s.
- Meet me in the cafe next to the underground station near my house.
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General and specific
- the / no article - with plural nouns
:check: we don't use an article when we want to refer to a group or class in general.
- the + an abstact noun - to make an abstact noun more specific
- nouns such as church, hospital, school 1) don't take articles if we think of their purpose. 2) take an article if we think of the phisical place or building
- Tourists are often blamed for changing the character of a place.(=all tourist)
Did you notice what the tourists in the cathedral were doing?(=specific tourist)
It's commonly accepted today that brown bread is good for you.
Did you remember to get the bread out of the freezer?
- It's impossible to live in a world without hope.
The hope of finfing a cure for cancer drives a lot of medical research.
- Fewer people attend church regularly now than twenty years ago.
Can children leave school at fourteen in your country?
- Is there a school in the vilage or do the children have to go to the town?
The collection for restoring the church has almost reached its target.
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Demonstratives
used as adjectives
- this/that (singular) these/those (plural) + noun
1) to refer to someone or smth known to both speaker and listener.
2) We use them to distinquish btw close and distant things (in both space and time)
:check: close
1) space: Do you recognise this man? These parrots can live to over 70.
2) time: What are you doing this weekend? There's so much crime these days.
:check: distant
1) space: I've seen that man before. Can you see those birds in the tree.
2) time: Do you remember that weekend? There were no drugs i those days.
:pencil2: in very formal speech we can use this, these instead of a/an or some, often to introduce a topic or start telling a story.
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Quantifiers
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Qualifiers as subjects
- we can use quantifiers (except no and every) without a noun as subject of the clause.
:fountain_pen: always singular: each, either, much
:fountain_pen: always plural: both, several, a few, many
:fountain_pen: singular or plural: any, half, some, a lot, all
:warning: neither, none + V (sing) / V (pl - speech and informal writing)
- The vote was split, half were in favour of the motion, half were against it.
- Much of the research has already been completed.
- Some visitors to the new gallery are enthusiastic but many have expressed their disappointment.
*Some of the information is considered top secret.
Some of us are hiring a minibus to go to the match.
Any (books) are better than none.
- None of the students is/are willinf to accept the increase in coursework
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