Apposition:Margaret, daughter of a history professor,was work- ing as secretary to a Labour member. But usually we find the definite article here, e.g. Predicative:She was the wife of a local tradesman.
One of these young men was the son of an eminent writer.
Apposition:Ann, the daughter of the landlady,cooked break- fast, for the boarders.
Then I was introduced to Charles March, thenephew of ourhost.
Note. On the whole, with the nouns son and daughter used predicatively or in apposition we find the following three variants:
a. She is the daughterof a doctor {which is the most common variant express- ing mere relationship).
b. She is a daughterof a doctor (which expresses the idea that the doctor has more than one daughter, the variant is not used unless this idea becomes im- portant).
с She is daughterof a doctor (which describes the social position of the person in question).
c) when nouns used predicatively serve to denote a certain characteristic of the person indicated by the subject. The noun predicative is usually followed by enough here. (This case is not found with nouns in apposition.)
e.g. He isn't foolenough to believe that sort of thing. She is woman enough to understand it.
d) when predicative nouns are used in clauses of concession with inverted word-order.
e.g. Childthough she was, she had suffered much. Boyas he was, he was chosen their leader.
Constructions of this kind are characteristic only of literary style.
Note. There is no article with the predicative noun in the phraseological units to turn traitor, to turn pirate, to turn miser.
§ 24. In English there are a number of verbs which in the Ac- tive Voice require the use of nouns as objective predicatives (a) and in the Passive Voice — as subjective predicatives (b).
e.g. a) They thought him a prig.
They named the child John. b)He was thought a prig. The child was named John.
The number of verbs which can be used in sentences con- taining an objective or a subjective predicative expressed by a noun is limited. The most commonly used of them are: to appoint, to call, to choose, to elect, to fancy, to imagine, to make, to name, to think.
Note. There are a number of other verbs requiring the same construction but they belong to literary style. Some of these verbs may be used both in the passive and active constructions; others occur only in one of them.
The use of articles with nouns which serve as objective (a) and subjective (b) predicatives is similar to that of predicative nouns and nouns in apposition (see "Articles", § 23).
e.g. a) They appointed him a memberof the delegation.
We elected him an honorary memberof the Committee. He fancied her the most wonderful womanin the world. They chose him chairmanof the Society. They appointed him secretary of the new Committee. b) He was appointed a memberof the delegation.
He was elected an honorary memberof the Committee. She was thought the most impudent little flirtin London. He was chosen chairmanof the Society. He was appointed secretaryof the new Committee.
Note. In the sentences They took him prisoner and He was taken prisoner, They called him names and He was called names we are dealing with set phrases.
§ 25. The rules given for the use of articles with predicative nouns and nouns in apposition also hold good for nouns intro- duced by as.
e.g. I regarded my uncle as a terrible tyrant. Hemeant it as a jokebut forgot to smile. He went to the conference as the headof the delegation. He acted as interpreterfor Mr March. They nominated him as Lord Treasurerof the Council.
Although the use of articles with nouns introduced by as is, on the whole, similar to that with predicative nouns and nouns in ap- position, there is a deviation from the general rule — the indefi- nite article need not always be used after as.
e.g. Rebecca was now engaged as (a) governess.
The man had agreed to serve as (a) witness.
Mr Stapleton had persuaded a leather merchant to take my fa- ther on as traveller('коммивояжер').
"I can't see him doing much good as a traveller,"said my aunt.
Note. The above rules do not concern nouns introduced by as used for compar- ison. In this case the articles are used in accordance with the general rules for countable nouns.
e.g. The city looked to him as brilliant as a precious stone. You were as white as the sheetin your hands.
§ 26. When nouns denoting titles, military ranks, or social standing are followed by a proper name they are used without any article, as in: Colonel Holmes, Doctor Smith, Professor Jones, Aca- demician Fedorou, Lieutenant-General Rawdon, President Wilson, Prime Minister Forbes, Queen Elisabeth, King George, Lord By- ron, Lady Windermere, Sir William, etc.In such combinations only the proper name is stressed.
Note 1.But we say: The doctorhas come. The Prime Ministermade an an- nouncement yesterday.
Note 2. The definite article is used in such cases as the late Professor Smith, the celebrated playwright Osborne.
Note 3. A foreign title followed by a proper name is used with the definite arti- cle: the Baron Munchausen, the Emperor Napoleon III, the Tsar Peter the Great.
The article is not used with some nouns denoting close rela- tionship when they are followed by names of persons, as in Aunt Polly, Uncle Timothy, Cousin John.
Other common nouns, when, followed by proper names, are used with the definite article, as in: the boy Dick, the student Smith, the painter Turner, the composer Britten, the widow Dou- glas, the witness Manning, the geologist Foster, the dog Bal thasar, etc. In this case both the common noun and the proper
name are stressed.
Combinations as above are found not only with names of per- sons but also with lifeless things and abstract notions, as in: the planet Mars, the preposition on, the verb to be, the figure 2, etc.
Note, With names of persons in newspaper style there is a tendency to omit the article in this case too. Thus we find: e.g. World middleweight champion Dick Tigersaid yesterday that he will retain his
title against American Gene Fullmer.
However, such combinations on the whole are not very com- mon. More often we find a proper name followed by an appositive common noun.
e.g. Britten, the modern English composer... Turner, the celebrated English painter... Manson, a promising young actor...
§ 27. The article is not used with nouns in appositive of-phras- es when the head-noun denotes a title or a post, e.g. They nominated candidates for the post of President and
Vice-President.
He got the degree of Master of Arts.
When I was a young man, the position of schoolmaster car- ried with it a sense of responsibility.
§ 28. The article is not used in the adverbial pattern from - to, in which the same noun is repeated after the prepositions, as in: from tree to tree, from street to street, from town to town, from day to day, etc. Such combinations are to be regarded аs free combinations (not set phrases) as the number of nouns thus used is practically unlimited. Care should be taken not to confuse
such free combinations with set phrases, which are somewhat sim- ilar to the above mentioned pattern but limited in number:
a) from head to foot, from top to toe, from top to bottom, from beginning to end, from South to North. (Here after the prepo- sitions from ... to we find two different nouns, not the same noun. The number of such units is limited.)
b) hand in hand, arm in arm, shoulder to shoulder, face to face, day by day. (The same noun connected by different preposi- tions is repeated here. The number of such units is also limited.) § 29. There is no article with nouns in direct address. e.g. "How is my wife, doctor?" "Well, young man," said Eden with a smile, "what can I do for you?" § 30. After the exclamatory what we find the indefinite article with singular nouns. e.g. "What a car!" she exclaimed. I thought what an unhappy man he must be! What a narrow-minded, suspicious woman Maria was! With plural nouns there is no article, in accordance with the general rules.
e.g. What marvellous books you've got!
It is noteworthy that no article is used after the interrogative what modifying a noun.
e.g. What question did you want to ask me?
§ 31. The definite article is found within an of-phrase preceded by one, some, any, each, many, most, none, all, several, the first, the last, the rest, the majority.
e.g. "One of the letters is from Tom," she said.
Most of the lecturers had other jobs in the town.
Several of the boys knew that my father had "failed in busi-
Compare the above given combinations with: one letter, most Lecturers, several boys, etc.
§ 32. There is a fluctuation in the use of articles in the follow- ing type of combinations: a sort of (a) man, the sort of (a) man, what sort of (a) man, this sort of (a) man, that sort of (a) man, some sort of (a) man; a (the, some, what, this, that) kind of (a) man, a (the, some, what, this, that) type of (a) man.
e.g. He showed us a new type of bulb.
"What sort of a day have you had?" I asked him. I said: "It's not the sort of situation one laughs at." It was too dark to see what kind of a house it was. "What kind of car was it?" Ramsden asked.
The more commonly found variant is the one without any article.
THE USE OF ARTICLES WITH UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS
The Use of Articles with Uncountable Abstract Nouns
§ 33. Abstract nouns, like concrete nouns, fall into two class- es: countables and uncountables. 1
Among abstract countable nouns we find, e.g. answer, belief, conclusion, doubt, effort, fact, government, holiday, idea, job, lie, mistake, opinion, plan, principle, promise, question, reply, sen- tence, visit, word and many others.
Countable abstract nouns may be used in the singular and in the plural.
e.g. He had a brilliant idea. I like their method of work.
He always had brilliant ideas. I like their methods of work.
The class of uncountable abstract nouns includes such nouns as: anger, beauty, curiosity, excitement, freedom, grace, happiness,
1 The division of nouns into these two classes is a matter of tradition and can hardly be accounted for either semantically or grammatically.
impatience, jealousy, love, modesty, nervousness, pride, respect, strength, time, violence, work and many others.
Uncountable abstract nouns are used only in the singular.
It is sometimes difficult to draw a line of division between countable and uncountable nouns. Some abstract nouns are used as countables in one meaning and as uncountables in another:
Uncountable Countable
work — работа a work — произведение
silence — тишина, молчание a silence — пауза
decision — решительность, a decision — решение
решимость kindness — доброта a kindness — доброе дело
experience — опыт an experience — случай
из жизни favour — милость, располо- a favour — одолжение
жение failure — неудача, провал a failure — неудачное дело;
неудачник society — общество a society — организация,
кружок
nature — природа a nature — натура, характер
grammar — грамматика a grammar — учебник
(наука) по грамматике
observation — наблюдение an observation — замечание
e.g. They walked in silence along the path. After a long silence he began his story. She spoke with decision. You must carefully think before you take a decision.
He is a wicked person who is insensible to kindness. If you write him you will be doing him a kindness.
He has been doing this kind of work for many years, so he
has a good deal of experience. It was an unpleasant experience and he didn't speak of it.
There are also a number of abstract nouns which appear both as uncountables and countables without any noticeable change of meaning, e.g. chance, change, difficulty, language, profit, reason, temptation, torture, trouble, war and some others.
Some of the nouns that generally tend to be uncountable are in certain constructions regularly used with the indefinite article. Here belong comfort, disgrace, disappointment, pity, pleasure, re- lief, shame and some others. They are found with the indefinite article when they are used as predicatives after a formal it as subject (a) or after the exclamatory what (b):
e.g. a) Itis a pleasure tosee you.
Itwas a reliefto know that she was safely home, b) What a disappointment! What a pity!
But we say: I'lldo it with pleasure. She gave a sigh of relief. He now knew what disappointment was. She felt pityfor the poor child.
§ 34. The use of articles with countable abstract nouns does not differ from their use with countable concrete nouns: in the singular countable abstract nouns are used with the indefinite or definite article; in the plural they are used without any article or with the definite article.
e.g. He told the child astory. He told the child stories.
The child knew thestory he told. The child knew thestories he told.
§ 35. As a general rule, uncountable abstract nouns are used without any article.
e.g. Indifferenceand pridelook very much alike, and he probably
thought I was proud.
I knew that generositywould have been wasted on him. There was sharpness in her bones, sharpnessin her voice,
sharpnessin her eyes. She had attached herself to youthand hopeand seriousness
and now they failed her more than age and despair. The absence of the article (the zero article) serves the same purpose as the indefinite article with countable nouns, i.e. it per forms the nominating function.
Cf, When in distress people look for a friend. When in distress people look for friendship. His desire was simply for a companion. Hisdesire was simply for companionship.
§ 36. The definite article is used with uncountable nouns when they are modified by a limiting attribute, which may be expressed in different ways.
e.g. He was in a state of the greatest excitement.
They were surprised at the curious silence into which he had fallen.
He jumped at the abruptness of the question. Sometimes the limitation is clear from the context.
• e.g. It was very still in the house. Suddenly a faint sound could
be heard in the stillness. A moment afterwards the lights round the garden suddenly
went out. In the darknesswe felt lost. For a long time they walked without saying a word. Jim was
the first to break the silence.
The definite article is used here in its restricting function, to denote a particular instance of the notion, expressed by the noun.
§ 37. The definite article is also found with substantivized ad- jectives denoting abstract notions, e.g. the ordinary, the average, the beautiful, the unusual, the supernatural, the extravagant, the unknown, the regrettable, the normal, the grotesque, the unbear- able, etc.
e.g. "You shouldn't think you're something out of the ordinary,"
she said. "Do you believe in the supernatural?"he asked.
§ 38. The indefinite article is used with uncountable abstract nouns when they are modified by a descriptive attribute which brings out a special aspect of the notion expressed by the noun. The attribute may be expressed in different ways.
e.g. A dull anger rose in his chest.
There seemed to be a wonderful excitement everywhere in
the world.
There was a tenderness in his voice that moved her. She recognized a pleasant irony in his voice. "Didn't you feel a certain impatience?" they asked. His face had a calmness that was new to her. She had a natural grace that was very attractive. He had a patience which amazed his friends.
His new experience filled him with a singular enthusiasm. •
The indefinite article is used here in its aspective function. By way of exception the aspective indefinite article is some- times used even when the noun has no attribute.
e.g. After a time a loneliness fell upon the two men. There was a bitterness in her voice.
A loneliness means 'a certain loneliness' and a bitterness means 'a certain bitterness' here.
It should be stressed that the use of the indefinite article with uncountable abstract nouns is typical of literary style (see the ex- amples above).
§ 39. Sometimes an uncountable abstract noun is used with an attribute and yet has no article. This seems to contradict the gen- eral rule, but it can actually be explained by the nature of the at- tribute (a) or the nature of the noun (b).
a) In some cases the attribute does not bring out a special as- pect of the notion expressed by the noun. The attribute may ex- press degree (e.g. great, perfect, sufficient, huge, tremendous, im- mense, sheer, utter, complete, infinite, endless, major and some others), or qualify the noun from the point of view of time (e.g. modern, ancient, impending, eternal, daily, contemporary, fur- ther, final, original), nationality (e.g. English, French, etc.), ge- ography (e.g. Moscow, London, world, etc.), authenticity (e.g- real, genuine, authentic, symbolic, etc.) or give it social charac- teristic (e.g. bourgeois, capitalist, racial, religious, etc.).
e.g. I have perfect confidence in him.
She has great experience in her work.
I'm sure your work will give you complete satisfaction.
He had sufficient ability to carry out any complicated task. The reward had only symbolic value. I didn't think it had real importance. They talked about modern poetry. He was conscious of impending danger. It's three o'clock by Moscow time. Ron was particularly interested in ancient sculpture. Mrs Peters, feeling instinctively that Greek architecture would leave her cold, excused herself from the excursion.
Note. But the definite article is used with the combinations French poetry, modern art, American literature, German philosophy, etc. if there is a limiting at- tribute, as in: the Russian literature of that period, the French poetry of the 19th century, etc.
b) Some nouns are never used with the indefinite article. They are nouns of verbal character denoting actions, activity, process, such as admiration, advice, applause, approval, assistance, concern, encirclement, guidance, information, permission, progress, recogni- tion, research, torture, trade ('торговля'), work and some others.
This rule applies also to the following nouns: change ('сдача'), fun, health, luck, money, nature, news, {outer) space, weather and some others.
e.g". I am not sure whether it is good news or bad.
He was anxiously waiting for permission to begin his experi- ment.
As I knew, Mr March always expressed gloomy concern if one of his children had a sore throat. He wondered whether her silence was tacit approval. He felt honest admiration for his colleague.
Note 1. It should be noted that in a considerable number of cases both factors, i.e. the character of the attribute and the character of the noun, are found together, e.g. She was making great progress.
They promised Jackson further assistance.
Note 2. Although the above mentioned nouns are never used with the indefinite article, they can be used with the definite article, e.g. He told me of the progress he was making.
The news was so upsetting that she said she would not see anyone that night,
Note 3. Notice the sentence patterns with the noun weather: e.g. The weather is fine (cold, etc).
What is the weather like today?
If the weatherchanges...
We are having fine weather.
What cold weatherwe are having!
Iwouldn't like to go out in such (bad) weather.
A spell of warm weatherset in. (Wehad a spell of bad weather.)
They were discussing (talking about) theweather.
The flight was cancelled because of (the) bad weather.
Note 4.The noun wind is uncountable.
e.g. There isn't much windtoday.
Yet it is regularly used with the definite article.
e.g. The windwas blowing and itwas cold. The windis rising (falling). He ran like the wind.
But if the noun wind is modified by a descriptive attribute it is used with the aspective indefinite article, e.g. A cold windwas blowing from the north.
For stylistic purposes it may be used in the plural, e.g. The cold windsblew the leaves off the trees.
Note 5. Notice the sentence patterns with the noun life: e.g. Lifegoes on, ever changeless and changing. Lifeis worth living. They began a new life. They were leading a happy life. The lifehe is leading now causes everyone distress.
§ 40. Sometimes the use of articles with an uncountable ab- stract noun is affected by the syntactic function of the noun.
1) Nouns in attributive and adverbial prepositional phrases of manner have no article even if they have descriptive attributes.
Attributive prepositional phrases are usually introduced by the preposition of (other prepositions may also be found, but not often).
e.g. His flush of anger died as he began to listen more attentively. An odd feeling of curiosity made him look through the keyhole. He awoke with a feeling of sharp anticipation. His face bore a look of cold disapproval. He had an unsatisfied hunger for knowledge.
Adverbial prepositional phrases are usually introduced by the preposition with, sometimes in. (other prepositions may also be found in this case, but not often).
e.g. The old man looked at the boy with curiosity.
He turned round in annoyance, and then walked away. "You have seen it?" he asked with intense interest. Ann examined everything about her with great care. She kissed him with warm affection.
The tendency to use the noun in attributive and adverbial prepositional phrases without any article is so strong that some- times even countable nouns have no article in these functions.
e.g. It is a question of principle, and it must be discussed before
we take a decision. It was just a plain statement of fact. He refused to help us without apparent reason.
He listened without remark while Robert poured out his heart to him. The young doctor was received in amiable fashion. The door closed without sound. He spoke with effort.
However, the use of the indefinite article in such cases is still the norm with a vast majority of countable nouns.
Although the general tendency is to use abstract uncountable nouns in attributive and adverbial prepositional phrases without articles, occasionally either the definite or the indefinite article may be found.
The use of the definite article is generally associated with the use of limiting attributes modifying the noun.
e.g. "May I speak to you in the strictest confidence?" he asked. "No," said Eric after the slightest hesitation. He watched her go from group to group with the same ease. He trembled all over with the exertion of keeping himself up- right.
The use of the indefinite article appears to be optional — it seems to depend on the desire of the speaker to lay particular stress on the special aspect expressed by the attribute modifying the noun. Thus it would be correct to use the nouns in the follow- ing examples without articles in accordance with the general rule.
e.g. We looked at her face and saw the distorting lines of a deep and anxious weariness.
He smiled at me with agrave sympathy. He walked in asolemn silence.
In some cases, however, the use of the indefinite article is obligatory. It is always used in prepositional phrases in which the noun is modified either by the adjectives certain said peculiar or by
an attributive clause.
e.g. The girl interrupted him with a certain impatiencein her voice. She spoke to strangers with a peculiar intimacy. He gripped his hand with an abruptness that revealed his
emotion. He entertained with an originality that pleased.
2)There is a tendency to use an uncountable abstract noun in the function of a predicative without any article even if the noun has a descriptive attribute.
e.g. The result of the experiment had been dismal failure. "It was righteous punishment,"he exclaimed. When they were together, it was pure happiness. Isuspected that this was not just ordinary anxiety.
Prepositional phrases in the function of a predicative are usu- ally set phrases. Care should be taken to learn the use of the arti- cle in each case, e.g. to be in despair, to be in service, to be in pow er, to be of (the) opinion, to be of importance, to be out of control, to be in danger, to be out of danger, to be in a rage, to be in a good (bad) humour, to be at a loss, to be in a hurry, etc.
The Use of Articles with Uncountable Concrete Nouns (Names of Materials)
§41.Uncountable concrete nouns (names of materials) are generally used without any article. The absence of the article has nominating force.
e.g. These sleeping pills should be dissolved in water.
She had nothing in the medicine chest but toothpasteand mouth-washand shampoo.
Unlike uncountable abstract nouns, names of materials are used without any article even if they are modified by a descrip- tive attribute.
e.g. She said: "I knitted the socks myself of thick grey wool." Iticked off the names written in violet ink. He took out of his pocket an object wrapped in tissue paper.
§ 42.The definite article in its restricting function is used with names of materials if they are restricted in their quantity or by reason of locality.
e.g. The boss took up a pen and picked a fly out of the ink. Together they walked through the slush and mud. He observed everybody who came in, as they shook the thin watery snowfrom their hats and coats.
Note 1. However, there is no restriction implied in such phrases and sentences as: a bottle of milk, a cup of tea or The ground was covered with snow. The pond was covered with ice.
Note 2. As is seen from the examples above, most uncountable concrete nouns are names of materials. However, there are a few other uncountable concrete nouns which are not names of materials (e.g. machinery, equipment, furniture and some others). The same rules are applied to them.
e.g. She hoped she would save enough money to buy new furniture. The furniture they had was enough for a much bigger house.
§ 43. Sometimes, owing to a change in meaning, names of ma- terials become countable J and as such they are used with articles in accordance with the rules for countable nouns. That means that they may then be used with the indefinite article.
Names of materials become countable nouns in the following cases:
a) when various sorts of food products and materials are meant, e.g. They are now giving you bad teasin the club.
There is a beautiful display of cottonsin the shop window.
b) when a portion of food or drink is meant,
e.g. If you want to please the boy, buy him anice.
We went into the pub and I ordered two whiskies. "A saladand twocoffees will do," she said smiling.
1 In the waters of the Pacific, the snows of Kilimanjaro or the sands of the Sahara the plural does not signify any change in meaning but is purely a stylistic device.
с) sometimes the change of meaning is quite considerable — the noun comes to indicate an object made of a certain material,
e.g. A fullglass of orange juice stood beside him. There was a tinof sardines on the table.
The Use of Articles with Some Semantic Groups of Nouns
§ 44.There are certain semantic groups of nouns which are very common in English. These nouns are sometimes used as countables and sometimes as uncountables. Besides, they are of- ten found as part of set phrases. They include the following se- mantic groups:
