Irregular in both pronunciation and spelling

The following nouns ending in the singular in [f], spelled - f(e), end in the plural in [vz], spelled - ves:

calf	calves	loaf	loaves
half	halves	shelf	shelves
knife	knives	thief	thieves
leaf	leaves	wife	wives
life	lives	wolf	wolves

 

Note:

[a] The nouns dwarf, handkerchief, hoof, scarf, wharf have both regular and voiced plurals.

[b] The painting term still life has a regular plural: still lifes.

 

2.9

 

The following old plural forms have survived into Modern English:

(a) mutated plurals (vowel change in the plural):

foot	feet	man	men	woman	women
tooth	teeth	mouse	mice	cow	kine
goose	geese	louse	lice		(archaic)

(b) plurals in - en:

ox - oxen

child - children (with vowel change [ai] - [i] and “r” survived from Old English)

brother - brethren (with vowel change), used to refer to fellow members of the same society

(c) collective plurals:

die - dice (used to denote gambling cubes),

e.g. to play dice

penny - pence (combined with numbers),

e.g. twopence ['tApqns], sixpence

(d) zero plurals (plural forms homonymous with the singular): sheep, deer.

A few dirty sheep wandered in vain hope of pasture; These deer are very beautiful.

 

Zero plurals of later development

2.10. Plural of animal names

 

Animal names often have a zero plural. Apart from the above mentioned sheep and deer, the names of certain other animals, birds and fish, namely moose, grouse, pike, plaice, mackerel, hake, cod, salmon ['sxmqn], trout have only zero plurals. The nouns antelope, reindeer, fish, herring have both regular and zero plurals. The noun shark has a regular plural: sharks.

 

2.11. Plural of nationality words ending in [z] or [s]

 

Nouns, meaning “a person or people of that nationality”, ending in the sound [z] or [s] do not inflect for the plural, e.g. Congolese, Portuguese, Burmese, Swiss.

A hundred Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese.

 

2.12. Plural of quantitative nouns

 

In definite numbers and measurements hundred, thousand, dozen, gross (=12 dozen), score (=20), stone (=14 pounds), head (of cattle) have zero plurals.

Two hundred dollars; Three thousand four hundred men; I want three dozen of these.

The measurement words foot and pound can take either a plural or a singular form: Kate is five foot / feet eight; …that comes to three pound / pounds fifty.

 

2.13 Miscellaneous

 

Craft (but only with the meaning of “vessel”): The harbour was full of all kinds of craft; Terminal gates, taxiways, and ground holding areas were crammed with waiting aircraft, many with engines running.

Counsel (but only with the meaning of “legal adviser, barrister”)

The Jury had heard counsel on both sides.

Means (= “method, way”)

We must find a means of solving our problem.

There are several means of solving our problem.

Series ['siqrJz]

He gave one series/two series of lectures.

Species ['spJSiz]

Each of them is a separate species; They looked different from his own crew; generally older, fatter, and more peaceful; they were other species of sailors.

 

Notes:

[a] Fish has two plurals: the zero plural is commoner in contexts of fishing (e.g. The old man had seen many great fish), whereas the regular plural is used to denote more than one unit or species (e.g. two fishes; one of those fishes: the fishes of the Atlantic).

[b] The normal plural of hundred and other quantitative nouns is found with indefinite numbers (e.g. I’ve told you that dozens of times, hundreds of times).

[c] With certain nouns in -(e)s, such as barracks, bellows, crossroads, gallows, headquarters, innings, kennels, works (=factory), shambles, usage varies; they are sometimes treated as variable nouns with zero plurals.

 

2.14. Foreign plurals

 

Foreign plurals often occur along with regular plurals. They are restricted to specialized uses in scientific context, whereas the - s plural is commoner in everyday language; thus formulas (general) - formulae (in mathematics). Here is a list of some nouns which have foreign plurals:

 

2.15. Nouns in - us (Latin)

 

The foreign plural is normally - i [ai]:

magus ['meIgqs] - magi ['meIGai].

Alumnus, nucleus, bacillus, stimulus, fungus, locus and focus have only foreign plurals, whose pronunciation wavers in case of the last three:

fungi [fAnGai/GI], loci ['lousaI/kaI], ['lokJ], foci ['fousaI/kJ]. The plural of beatus is beati [beI'RtJ].

Cactus, hippopotamus, papyrus, syllabus have both regular and irregular plurals. More common nouns take the plural in –es: chorus, virus, campus.

 

Note:

Genius has two plural forms: geniuses –in the sense of “highly intelligent person”, genii – in the meaning of “demon, supernatural being”.

 

2.16. Nouns in - a (Latin)

 

The foreign plural is - ae, pronounced [J]: alga ['xlgq] - algae ['xlGJ], alumna – alumnae, larva – larvae, vertebra – vertebrae.

antenna and formula have both plurals:

antenna [xn'tqnq] - antennae [xn'tqnJ], antennas [xn'tqnqz]

formula ['fLmjulq] -formulae ['fLmjulJ], formulas ['fo: mjulqz]

More common nouns take the plural in –s: drama, arena.

 

2.17. Nouns in - um (Latin)

 

The foreign plural is - a, pronounced, [q]: erratum – errata, ovum – ova, addendum – addenda.

bacterium, datum, stratum have only a foreign plural:

bacterium [bxk'tIqrIqm] - bacteria [bxk'tIqrIq]

datum ['deItqm] - data ['deItq]

stratum ['strRtqm] – strata BrE ['strRtq], AE ['streItqm]

curriculum usually has a foreign plural:

curriculum [kq'rIkjulqm] - curricula [kq'rIkjulq]

aquarium, millennium, medium, memorandum, stadium, symposium have both plurals:

aquarium – aquaria – aquariums

Most common ones have –s: museums

 

2.18. Nouns in - ex, -ix (Latin)

 

The foreign plural is - ices, pronounced [isi: z].

apex, appendix, index, helix, matrix, vortex have both foreign and regular plurals:

apex ['eipqks] - apices ['eIpIsJz], apexes ['eIpqksIz]

appendix [q'pendIks] - appendices [q'pendIsIz], appendixes [q'pendIksIz]

index ['Indqks] - indices ['IndIsi: z], indexes ['IndqksIz]

helix ['hJlIks] - helices ['helisJz], helixes ['hi: lIksiz]

matrix ['meItriks] – matrices, ['meItrIsJz], matrixes ['meItrIksIz]

vortex ['vLtqks] – vorticex ['vLtIsJz], vortexes ['vLteksIz]

scolex ['skoulqks] has only a foreign plural: scoleces ['skoulisJz]

 

2.19. Nouns in - is (Greek)

 

The foreign plural is - es, pronounced [i: z].

analysis, axis, basis, crisis, diagnosis, hypothesis, oasis, parenthesis, synopsis, thesis belong here:

e.g. analysis [q'nxlqsIs] -analyses [q'nxlqsJz]

axis ['xksIs] -axes ['xksJz]

but: metropolis – metropolises.

 

2.20. Nouns in - on (Greek)

 

The foreign plural is - a, pronounced [q].

criterion and phenomenon belong here:

criterion [kraI'tIqrIqn] - criteria [kraI'tIqrIq],

phenomenon [fi'nOmInqn] -phenomena [fi'nOmInq].

Automaton [L'tOmqtqn] has two plurals: automata [L'tOmqtq], automatons.

More common ones have –s: demons, electrons.

 

Notes:

[a] Informally, criteria and phenomena are sometimes used as singulars.

[b] The French noun, corps [kL] takes a regular [z] in the plural, with no spelling change: corps [ko: z].

Nouns of French origin in –eu/eau have a foreign plural ending –x [z]: gateau- gateaux, tableau – tableaux. Plateau, bureau have both foreign and regular plurals: plateau- plateaus, plateaux; bureau – bureaus, bureaux.

[c] The compound mass media takes the predicate verb in the singular.

 

2.21. The plural of compounds

 

Compound nouns form the plural in different ways.

(a) compounds consisting of noun elements, take the plural on the head: boy friend - boy friends; father-in-law – fathers-in-law; (but in-laws in general reference: Our in-laws are staying with us);

(b) the inflection - s is added to the last element if there is no noun element in a compound: forget-me-not – forget-me-nots; merry-go-round – merry-go-rounds; breakdown - breakdowns; sit-in - sit-ins, etc;

(c) plural of both elements is possible if man and woman in compound nouns refer to the sexes: manservant - menservants; woman policeman - women policemen. (But the first element can also be singular). Other compounds with man and woman form their plurals only in the second component: man-eater – man-eaters, woman-hater – women-haters;

(d) measures in – ful can have the – s on either element: spoonfuls/spoonsful.

 

Note:

Care should be taken that German, Norman, Roman, Mussulman are not compounds but simple roots: Mussulman – Mussulmans.

 

2.22. The plural of proper nouns

 

Surnames can occur in the plural when they are used to denote a family: the Robinsons, the Bowmans, the Berrys, the Joneses.

Occasionally the first names are pluralized: Maria – Marias/Maria’s. If a personal noun is preceded by a title the inflection is added either to the title or to the proper name itself:

the two doctors Thomson	the two doctor Thomsons
Messrs ['mesqz] Brown	Mr Browns
the Misses Smith	the Miss Smiths
(of sisters)	(of sisters)

 

2.23. Case

 

Case indicates the relation of the noun to the other words in the sentence. There are two cases in Modern English, the common case and the genitive case.

The common case has a zero inflection: girl, men. The genitive case inflection is –‘ s (apostrophe s ): girl’s, men’s.

The common case has a very general meaning which manifests itself through various syntactical relations of the noun phrase (subject, object, etc).

The genitive case, sometimes called possessive, usually denotes “possession”, i.e. ownership or close association: Mary’s bag, the boy’s arm, Dick’s father, a soldiers’ canteen.

The noun in the genitive can also denote source or authorship. Such instances are known as the genitive of origin: his wife’s information, the uncle’s decision.

If the head noun is of verbal origin the noun in the genitive can be the doer of an action. It is the so-called subjective genitive: my brother’s arrival  my brother arrived, Ann's sorrow  Ann is sorry. In other cases the noun in the genitive can point out the object of an action. It is the so-called objective genitive: the murderer's arrest the arrest of the murderer, the boy's release  the release of the boy.

In all the above cases the genitive denotes a particular person or thing. It may be called a specifying genitive distinct from a classifying genitive whose meaning is descriptive. The classifying genitive refers to a whole class of similar objects: a wife’s duty, gents’ clothes, a teachers’ conference, a mile’s distance.The indefinite article is common here even if the head noun is plural: a cat's eyes.

 

2.24. The genitive inflection

 

The –‘ s inflection takes the forms [iz], [z], [s], following the rules for the -( e)s inflection of the plural*: waitress's ['weitrisiz], girl's ['gq: lz], Nat’s [nxts].

There is no plural genitive ending in speech for nouns whose plurals are formed in the regular way. In writing, an apostrophe is put after the plural - s: waitresses', girls'. Such instances are called zero genitives.

For nouns with irregular plurals, the plural genitive is formed by the addition of -' s to the plural form: women's, children's.

The genitive of nouns whose singular ends in s or x may be regular in spelling and pronunciation: James's ['Geimziz], Alex's ['xleksiz].

 

Notes:

[a] Compounds take the genitive inflection at the end: e.g. the babysitter's duties, a passer-by’s glance.

[b] The genitive of plural compounds is built after the following patterns: Woman-haters’ beliefs, man-eaters’ behaviour, a menservants’ strike, the editors-in-chief’s conference, lookers-on’s remarks.

[c] The zero genitive occurs (i) occasionally with names ending in [z] or [s]: e.g. Burns’ [bq: nz] verses, Dickens’ ['dikinz] novels, Keats’ [ki: ts] poetry; (ii) in set expressions of the form “for... sake”, as in “for convenience’ ['kqn'vi: njqns] sake”, “for goodness’ ['gudnis] sake”.

 

2.25. Nouns used in the genitive

 

The genitive case is mainly used with proper and common nouns denoting human beings and animals: Peter’s answer, the worker’s wages, the horse’s track.

The -‘ s inflection is also used with certain kinds of inanimate nouns:

- geographical names, denoting continents, countries, states, cities: Europe’s future, England’s interests, London’s water supply;

- locative nouns, denoting regions, institutions, etc: the world’s recognition, the river’s bank, the school’s history;

- temporal nouns: a day’s work, this year’s sales;

- nouns denoting means of transportation and their parts: the ship’s surgeon, the speedometer’s needle;

- nouns, denoting social, political and economic phenomena, and other nouns of special interest to human activity: television's popularity, the Soviet hockey's fame, the book's true importance, a word's function.

Some inanimate nouns are used with the –‘s inflection in set expressions: for appearance's sake, at one's wits' end, at arm's length, at a stone's throw, within a hair's breadth of something, to one's heart's content, at a foot's pace, etc.

 

Note:

When we refer to material which is produced or made by a living animal ‘s is generally required: a bird’s nest, cow’s milk, lamb’s wool. Where the source of a material is an animal that has been slaughtered, ‘s is not generally used: beef broth, cow hide, a ham sandwich, sheep skin.

 

2.26. The genitive and the “of”-phrase

 

When we put nouns together in a sentence, it is not easy to choose the right construction. There are three common patterns which are easy to confuse: N ‘s N, N of N, N N (government’s decision, the decision of the government, the government decision).

The choice between the genitive case (the youngest children's toys, the ship's name) and the of-phrase (the toys of the youngest children, the name of the ship) is governed by certain factors.

Animate nouns, particularly nouns denoting persons, commonly inflect for the genitive. We cannot say, for example, the dress of Mary. An of-phrase with personal nouns becomes acceptable when they have modification: the portrait of the old lady, the toys of the youngest children.

The of-phrase is the usual construction with inanimate nouns (the borders of the drive, the smell of roses), but, as has been noted, a great many occur in the genitive case: Italy’s progress, the city’s traffic problems, this week's events, etc. However, such inanimate nouns permit an of-phrase: the progress of Italy, the traffic problems of the city, the events of this week, etc. Although either is possible in a given context, one of them is generally preferred by native speakers for reasons of rhythm, emphasis, or implied relations between the nouns.

 

2.27. The genitive plus noun and noun plus noun structures

 

In many instances the noun in the genitive can be easily confused with the noun modifying another noun. Compare:

my father’s house	a book case
the government’s decision	an oil well
a child’s bicycle	a garden chair

The main factor influencing the choice of the structure is the relationship between the first and the second nouns in the phrases. When the genitive is used the first word is usually rather like the subject of a sentence, and the second word is like a predicate or object:

my father’s house (= my father has a house)

the government’s decision (= the government decided)

a child’s bicycle (= a child rides this kind of bicycle)

When we use the noun plus noun structure, the relationship is usually completely different. Generally, the second word is more like a subject, and the first is like an object or adverbial modifier:

a book case (= a case that holds books)

an oil well (= a well that produces oil)

a garden chair (= a chair in or for the garden)

There is another difference between the two structures. Compare these two sentences:

Please don’t put the dog’s food under the kitchen table, Lucy.

Dog food costs nearly as much as steak.

The genitive structure is used when the first noun is a particular individual. But in case of the noun plus noun structure the first noun usually refers to a whole class.

 

2.28. The group genitive

 

The –‘ s inflection may be added not only to a single noun but to a whole group of nouns. This group genitive is used with coordinate noun phrases: Lucy and Dick’s aunt, a mile and a half’s distance, a month or so’s vacation, as well as with postmodified noun phrases: the teacher of music's room, the Duke of York's theatre, someone else's report, Charles the Second's time, the shop across the road's sale.

Your honour is more important than somebody else’s life; J.B.Priestley went on to four and a half years’ service with the Duke of Wellington’s Regiment.

There are some idiomatic patterns with the group genitive:

It’s Mr. What’s-his-name’s remark. Old man what-do-you-call-him’s house has been painted. He said it in plenty of people’s hearing.

 

Note:

The –‘s inflection is added to each element of the coordinated phrase if the thing(s) denoted by the headnoun is (are) not jointly owned: e.g. Jan’s and Nick’s flats (= one is Jan’s, and the other is Nick’s); Shakespeare’s and Marlowe’s plays(= some are Shakespeare’s and some are Marlowe’s).

 

2.29. The absolute genitive

 

The absolute (independent) genitive is found in such cases when the head of a phrase is omitted: at the butcher’s, at St. Paul’s.

The absolute genitive is used:

(a) to avoid repetition of the head word: e.g. Suddenly a pair of eyes met Carrie’s in recognition.

(b) to attach prominence to the idea: e.g. Lily’s was a happy marriage.

(c) to denote firms and institutions, hospitals, shops, churches and cathedrals: e.g. Donald was their son, who was now in the Sixth form at St Bride’s; At Rector’s. Drouet had met Mr. G.W. Hurstwood, manager of Fitzgerald and Moy’s; The baker’s was next.

(d) to refer to people’s houses when talking about the host-guest relationship: e.g. Roger was down at the Watsons’ last night.

The genitives with ellipsis marked by (c) and (d) may be called local.

 

2.30. The construction N₁ of N₂’s

 

An of-phrase can be combined with the genitive in a construction traditionally called the “ dоuble ” genitive (N₁ of N₂’s). It may have the meaning of “one of many” (the so-called partitive genitive): Gingee used to wear an old coat of Ted’s.

A “double” genitive makes it possible for the speaker to use as a premodifier such demonstratives as “this/these, that/those”:

This visit of Muriel’s drew them temporarily together;

And that old failure of Stephen Condon’s had somehow linked itself in his mind with his own.

In colloquial use a “double” genitive may express disapproval and irony: e.g. That’s another big idea of Dad’s.

Notes:

[a] In the “double” genitive construction the noun with –‘s must be both definite and personal:

an opera of Verdi’s; an opera of my friend’s

but not:

*a sonata of a violinist’s; *a funnel of the ship’s

[b] The definite article cannot begin a “double” genitive construction: *the trick of my children’s. An of-phrase is used instead: e.g. And, to the intense delight of Stanley, one hand fell heavily on the hat.

[c] Of-phrases often occur along with the “double” genitives: e.g. Miss Handforth was Mr Demoyte’s housekeeper, an old enemy of Nan.

 

2.31. Genitive governing another genitive

 

The relations rendered in Russian by a genitive governing another genitive (слова отца моего друга, дом Петиного дяди) are usually expressed in English by a phrase built after the pattern N₁ of N₂’s N₃: the words of my friend’s father, the house of Pete’s uncle, though the structures N₂’s N₃’s N₁ are also possible:

Some of Mrs. Franklin’s family’s friends used to put up there; Billy went back to Belfast to work in his uncle’s grocer’s shop for a while.

 

2.32. Determiners

 

Determiners are words which appear in the article position (the article included). They comprise articles, the demonstrative pronouns this and that, possessive pronouns (in the conjoint form) and the indefinite pronouns some, any, no, each, either, neither, much; interrogative and conjunctive pronouns what, which.

 

2.33. The article

 

The article is a structural part of speech which specifies the noun. There are two articles in English: the definite article the and the indefinite article a(n). The absence of the article before a noun (unless the required article is omitted for the sake of economy or some other reason) is meaningful and is also a means of specifying it.

When a common noun is specified by the definite article it has definite reference, i.e. the object or group of objects denoted by the noun is regarded as definite, distinct from other objects of the same class.

When a common noun is specified by the indefinite article or no article precedes the noun, it has indefinite reference, i.e. the object or group of objects denoted by the noun is not regarded as definite, distinct from other objects of the same class.

Thus, with common nouns, the definite article is opposed to both the indefinite article and the absence of the article.

Proper nouns differ from common nouns in the type of reference. A proper noun, being the name of a person, animate or inanimate object considered to be unique, is understood to have unique reference, or at least unique reference in context. Therefore proper names usually do not need the article or any other determiner.

On the other hand, sometimes proper nouns act as common nouns and can take both the definite and the indefinite article.

Thus, with proper names, the absence of the article is opposed to its use.

It should be mentioned, however, that the definite article may also be used as part of a proper name (e.g. the Crimea)*.

 

2.34 The indefinite article and the absence of the article with common nouns (indefinite reference)

 

The indefinite article goes back to the Old English numeral ā n (Modern English one ). Its original numerical meaning of oneness is clearly felt in such expressions as “Not a word was said”, “A stitch in time saves nine”, etc. Due to this numerical meaning the indefinite article is confined to countable nouns in the singular (or uncountables used as countables in the singular).

The indefinite article used with a countable noun in the singular indicates that the object denoted by the noun is one of a class without defining its place in the class. This function of the indefinite article may be called classifying.

He hung his coat on a peg; He was given a prize.

Nouns having indefinite reference are often modified by a descriptive attribute. A descriptive attribute describes the person or thing denoted by the noun by giving additional information about it. This information only narrows the class to which the object belongs:

Pegotty had a basket of refreshments on her knee; She put on a hat and a heavy coat because it was still cold at night.

 

The function of the indefinite article with countable nouns can be generic, i.e. a common countable noun serves as a representative of a class.

A cat is a small domestic animal.

With indefinite reference, countable nouns in the plural and uncountable nouns do not take the article. The absence of the article before a countable noun in the plural is parallel to the use of the indefinite article with a countable noun in the singular. Compare the following example sentences with those above:

They put on hats and heavy coats because it was still cold in the night; Cats are small domestic animals.

The absence of the article with uncountable nouns usually has generalizing force. A number of uncountable abstract nouns are never used with the indefinite article. Here belong advice, assistance, admiration, guidance, health, concern, fun, information, nature, news, luck, permission, progress, recognition, research, torture, weather.

No news is good news (proverb); You should take legal advice: Apply for information to the administration; He is making progress in his maths; He stays indoors in wet weather.

The same rule applies also to such collective nouns as linen, leafage, foliage, crockery, pottery, etc, which are always used as uncountables.

Many nouns may be used both as countable and uncountable nouns. Compare:

Uncountables	Countables
work	работа	a work	произведение
silence	тишина	a silence	пауза
decision	решительность	a decision	решение
kindness	доброта	a kindness	доброе дело

A number of uncountable abstract nouns become countable and can be used with the indefinite article when they are modified by a descriptive attribute which brings out a special aspect of the notion expressed by the noun.

His love gave him a wonderful happiness; What he said had a hateful truth in it; His staring at David now had a desperate concentration, almost a clinging.

This function of the indefinite article may be called aspective. The aspective function of the indefinite article is also evident when it is used with nouns denoting objects considered to be unique which usually require the definite article.

He had never seen so red a moon; It was a cold morning, a grey sky shifting in cold wind.

There are several semantic groups of nouns (abstract and concrete) which are regularly used both as countables and uncountables.

Names of meals

Used as uncountables, names of meals take no article.

It’s time for dinner; They were at lunch when I called.

They become countable and are used with the indefinite article when they denote:

(a) a certain quantity or portion:

Have a good breakfast; Are you going to buy me a dinner?

(b) official meals (dinner-parties, banquets):

Shall we give a dinner for her?

 

Names of material

Used as uncountables they take no article:

I like to drink champagne from magnums.

They are used as countables and take the indefinite article when they denote:

(a) a portion of food or drink:

If you want to please the boy, buy him an ice; Make it two coffees. And a salad for me.

(b) a kind of the substance:

This is a very good butter; It is a very rare wine.

(c) an object made of a certain material:

The fever within her was like a red-hot iron pressing upon her breast; She then proceeded to fill a glass with water...

The nouns school, college, hospital, court, church, prison, town, market, bed, table used as abstract nouns indicating the state or activities associated with these places take no article:

He left school to earn his living; He was taken to hospital; The prisoner was brought to court for trial; He is out of town just now; The boy was in bed by ten; They were at table when we called.

Used as concrete nouns indicating concrete objects, they are countable and may take the indefinite article:

It was a college as he could see by the gateway; “Mine is not a nice school”, he said suddenly; “Would you rather live in a town or in the country? ”

Nouns denoting parts of the day used in a general abstract sense are uncountable and take no article. This is usually the case

(a) when they are used as predicatives

It was midnight.

(b) when they are used as subjects to the verbs “break, be at hand, fall, gather, set in, come”:

Day was beginning to break; Night of extraordinary beauty fell; Night came slowly on.

(c) when they are modified by the adjectives “early, late, broad, high”:

I like early morning - especially in spring; It was late night when Lan arrived; It was high noon.

(d) when they are modified by the names of the days of the week and by the words “tomorrow” and “yesterday”:

He spoke to Lin on the telephone on Friday evening; I shall see him tomorrow morning.

(e) when they are used in prepositional phrases with the prepositions “at, by, about, past, before, towards, till, until”: Paul didn’t come till afternoon; The post leaves at midday; We travelled by day and stayed at hotel every night.

Names of parts of the day are treated as countables and take the indefinite article when they are modified by a descriptive attribute /with the exception of the attributes mentioned in (c) /:

It was a wild stormy night on the West Coast of Scotland; She had a bad night; What a still, hot perfect day!; It was a rainy evening.

There are also cases when no article is used with nouns which are always treated only as countables.

(1) Nouns denoting rank, title, post used predicatively do not take the article.

A noun used as a predicative may be

(a) part of a compound nominal predicate:

He was president for two terms.

(b) objective predicative:

They chose him chairman of the society.

(c) subjective predicative:

He was chosen chairman of the society.

Nouns denoting rank, title, post also take no article when they are used in apposition*:

I’ve just seen professor Grant; Mr. Merwin, president of the club, will be in the chair.

(2) Nouns in direct address are always used without the article:

What’s the trouble, boy?

(3) The nouns man and woman take no article when they are used generically:

Woman is not inferior to man.

(4) A considerable number of nouns of different character take no article when used in adverbial prepositional phrases: by train, by bus, at sea, at hand, on deck, etc:

Shall we walk or go by bus?; The examinations are at hand.

(5) No article is used in parallel phrases:

They walked arm in arm/hand in hand; They are husband and wife.

(6) Nouns indicating relationship, such as father, mother, sister, aunt, etc, take no article when they are used by the members of the family or intimate friends:

Is Father like him?

(7) No article is used when a noun is followed by a cardinal numeral:

Open your books at page 15.

 

2.35 The definite article with common nouns (definite reference)

 

Unlike the indefinite article which combines only with singular countables, the definite article may be used with any common noun in the singular and in the plural. It is used with common nouns to express definite reference. Its function may be called individualizing, since the definite article shows that the object or group of objects denoted by the noun is marked as a particular object or group, distinct from other objects of the same class.

A common noun has definite reference in the following cases:

(a) when it is mentioned for a second time (provided the noun is not the center of communication):

The road plunged down, steep and straight, into a considerable valley. There, on the opposite slope, a little higher up the valley, stood Crome, his destination. (A. Huxley)

(b) when it has a limiting attribute, which singles out the object denoted by the noun from other objects of the same class. The limiting attribute may be expressed by a noun with a preposition, a participle phrase, a subordinate attributive clause:

Her face had the hardness of a face on a coin; It was the morning appointed for Richard’s departure; She is not the girl she was at all.

It may also be expressed by an adjective when contrast or choice is implied:

Let us take the narrow path, (not the wide one).

Some adjectives and adjectivized participles are nearly always used as limiting attributes, e.g. right, wrong, left, same, only, coming, following, present, former, latter, principal, central:

What’s the right time?; In Great Britain traffic keeps to the left, not to the right, side on the road; He wasthe only child of Professor Brown. But: We took a wrong turning; She’s an only child in the family.

(c) by reason of locality it can represent only one particular object or group of objects. In other words, when a given noun is used with reference to objects that surround the speaker or the people and things described by him:

Please, pass me the sugar (i.e. the sugar which is on the table); She stood at the window; The tree swayed to and fro under the sky.

(d) when it denotes objects and notions considered to be unique: the sun, the moon, the earth, the ground, the south, the north, the east, the west, the horizon, etc:

The sun sank below the horizon.

(e) when it denotes an institution shared by the community: the radio, the telephone, the press, etc:

Then he heard the sound of the phone being dialed, and Richard’s voice.

However, when the nouns radio and telephone have indefinite reference and denote concrete objects, the indefinite article is used.

Somewhere a radio softly played.

The definite article may have a generic function. The definite article in this function shows that the noun is used generically, i.e. it represents a whole class. A certain class is contrasted here to other classes:

The verb is a part of speech denoting an action; The tiger is a big cat-like animal.

The generic article is also found with collective nouns in the singular and plural expressing political and social notions: the aristocracy, the bourgeoisie, the proletariat, the public, the peasants, the workers:

The bourgeoisie displaced the old feudal nobility; The true history of capitalist society can only be written by the proletariat; The Tories will not lift a finger to help the workers.

Note, however, that the definite article in the generic function is used with nouns in the plural only when the idea of collectivity is definitely emphasised. When separate representatives are meant, no article is used:

Italians are often good singers.

The same generic function of the definite article is found with partially substantivized adjectives and participles:

Tenderness to the young was perhaps the most sacred article of his belief; The rich were my enemies, I felt; Geibel and his daughter were again among the invited: He was describing the sufferings of the unemployed.

Substantivized adjectives denoting names of some nationalities also belong here:

The English and the French were in arms against each other.

 

2.36 The absence of the article with proper nouns (unique reference)

 

As was already mentioned proper nouns usually do not require any determiner because they are characterised by unique reference or at least unique reference in context. Generally no article is used

(a) with names of persons (in the singular):

Denis woke up the next morning to find the sun shining, the sky serene.

(b) with names of continents, countries, states or provinces, cities, towns and villages:

The indigenous population of Africa may roughly be divided into four groups, by race and language; Administratively France is highly centralised; When he had been in Montana for less than a month and things were going very poorly indeed, he stumbled on his great discovery; In the heart of England, about 112 miles north-west of London, is Birmingham, a city of over a million inhabitants; Willow End was a green and placid place hidden away among dim grey meadows.

(c) with names of lakes when they are preceded by the noun lake:

Lake Nyasa and Lake Tanganyika are in the African part of the Great Rift Valley.

(d) with names of peninsulas when the proper name is used alone:

Indo-China is sometimes called Further India.

(e) with names of seasons, months and the days of the week:

Spring went swiftly by and summer came; In regard to coming of a grandchild, Soames knew no more than in October; On Sunday Clifford wanted to go into the wood.

(f) with names of buildings and bridges:

Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Westminster Bridge; but: the White House, the Tower, the Tower Bridge.

(g) with names of streets, squares and parks:

Broadway, Wall Street, Fifth Avenue, Fleet Street, Piccadilly, Trafalgar Square, Central Park.

 

2.37. The indefinite article and the definite article with proper names

(non-unique reference)

 

Sometimes proper names are treated as common nouns. In this case their reference is no longer unique; they may be used in the plural and take the article.

The indefinite article is used

(a) with personal names to indicate that one member of the family is meant:

Of course he was a Forsyte!

(b) with a personal name (usually preceded by ‘Mr, Mrs’ or ‘Miss’) to denote ‘a certain person named’:

He made me write to a Mr. Jackson, of some theatre or other.

(c) with names of seasons, months and days when they have a descriptive attribute:

It was a bitter cold winter, with long, hard frosts and heavy gales; April advanced to May, a bright serene May it was. (Ch. Bronte); It was a sparkling, cold Saturday in March.

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