{"id":1835,"date":"2022-01-18T11:07:36","date_gmt":"2022-01-18T11:07:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/engoo.com\/blog\/?p=1835"},"modified":"2022-01-25T08:07:58","modified_gmt":"2022-01-25T08:07:58","slug":"how-to-use-a-and-the-to-talk-about-things-in-general","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/engoo.com\/blog\/language-tips\/how-to-use-a-and-the-to-talk-about-things-in-general\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Use \"A\" and \"The\" to Talk About Things in General"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_80 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 eztoc-toggle-hide-by-default' ><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-2' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/engoo.com\/blog\/language-tips\/how-to-use-a-and-the-to-talk-about-things-in-general\/#1_Plural\" >1. Plural<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/engoo.com\/blog\/language-tips\/how-to-use-a-and-the-to-talk-about-things-in-general\/#2_%E2%80%9CThe%E2%80%9D\" >2. &#8220;The&#8221;<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/engoo.com\/blog\/language-tips\/how-to-use-a-and-the-to-talk-about-things-in-general\/#3_%E2%80%9CAAn%E2%80%9D\" >3. &#8220;A\/An&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/engoo.com\/blog\/language-tips\/how-to-use-a-and-the-to-talk-about-things-in-general\/#Want_to_Improve_Your_English_Grammar\" >Want to Improve Your English Grammar?<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n\n<p>Which of the following is correct?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Dogs<\/strong>&nbsp;are man\u2019s best friend.<\/li><li><strong>The dog<\/strong>&nbsp;is man\u2019s best friend.<\/li><\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>Everyone would agree that the first sentence is correct. But did you know that the second sentence is as well?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In fact, the poem that made this phrase famous goes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p><strong>The dog<\/strong> is man's best friend.<br>He has a tail on one end.<br>Up in front he has teeth.<br>And four legs underneath.<\/p><cite>- Ogden Nash, \"An Introduction to Dogs\" (1941)<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p>You might be thinking, \"but doesn\u2019t 'the dog' refer to one particular dog?\" However in this sentence,  \"the dog\" refers to dogs in general. In today's post, we will look at all the different ways you can make  <mdspan datatext=\"el1639641207414\" class=\"mdspan-comment\">\"<a href=\"https:\/\/engoo.com\/app\/words\/word\/generic\/5gqVf_KyQ7mFkakoW0bbmQ\">generic<\/a> references\"<\/mdspan> to things in English.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1_Plural\"><\/span>1. Plural<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>In <span class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">English conversation<\/span> and writing, the plural is the most common form of generic reference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>I like <strong>dogs<\/strong> more than <strong>cats<\/strong>.<\/li><li><strong>Pandas<\/strong> are an endangered species.<\/li><li><strong>Teachers<\/strong> should care about their students.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>And as you can see, no article is used with the plural.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"2_%E2%80%9CThe%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>2. &#8220;The&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>You'll sometimes also hear <span class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">native English speakers<\/span> use the definite article \"the\" to refer to something general. This is called the \"definite generic reference\" or the \"definite generic.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>The dog<\/strong> is man's best friend. <em>[= Dogs are our best friends.]<\/em><\/li><li><strong>The panda<\/strong> is an endangered species. <em>[= Pandas are an endangered species.]<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>In these sentences, we're not using \"the\" to talk about a specific dog or panda. We're using it to talk about a <mdspan datatext=\"el1639641416323\" class=\"mdspan-comment\">specific category or type of nouns that are known as \"dog\" and \"panda.\"<\/mdspan><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You will often hear the definite generic used in educational materials, such as textbooks and documentaries, especially if they are about a scientific topic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>The maple tree<\/strong>&nbsp;is originally from Asia.<\/li><li><strong>The coronavirus<\/strong> is a type of virus which has spikes on its surface.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><span class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">English speakers<\/span> also use the definite generic when referring to machines and musical instruments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>My son is learning to play <strong>the piano.<\/strong><\/li><li><strong>The computer<\/strong> was a great invention.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>You'll sometimes see the definite generic used when referring to nationalities and ethnicities: e.g. \u201cthe French\u201d and \u201cthe Japanese.\u201d However, this sounds a little old-fashioned, so just use the plural: i.e. \"French people\" or \"Japanese people.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"3_%E2%80%9CAAn%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>3. <mdspan datatext=\"el1640071428694\" class=\"mdspan-comment\">&#8220;A\/An&#8221;<\/mdspan><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The last way to talk about something in general is to use the indefinite article \"a\/an.\" This is called \"indefinite generic reference\" or the \"indefinite generic.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>A pigeon<\/strong> can fly long distances without getting lost. <em>[= Pigeons can fly ... ]<\/em><\/li><li><strong>A child<\/strong> needs their parents. <em>[= Children need their parents.]<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>You'll often hear \"a\/an\" used when someone shares their opinion about how certain people should behave.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>A teacher<\/strong> should care about their students. <em>[= A good teacher ... ]<\/em><\/li><li><strong>A leader<\/strong> must lead with actions not words. <em>[= A true leader<\/em> ... ]<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>When <span class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">English speakers<\/span> use the indefinite generic, they're actually picturing one typical member of the group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\" id=\"block-7bd19a6e-c8a6-490e-ad91-bb04ad18077d\"><li><strong>A pigeon<\/strong> can fly long distances without getting lost. <em>[= \"A typical pigeon can ... \"]<\/em><\/li><li><strong>A teacher<\/strong> should care about their students. <em>[= \"Someone who is a teacher should ...\"]<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>So when you're picturing a group as a whole, don't use \"a\/an.\"<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li><strong>Pandas<\/strong> are endangered. <em>[In your mind, you are thinking about pandas as a whole \u2013 not a typical panda \u2013 so \"a panda\" would not make sense.]<\/em><\/li><li>I like <strong>dogs<\/strong>. <em>[You are picturing dogs in general, so \"a dog\" would not make sense.]<\/em><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Want_to_Improve_Your_English_Grammar\"><\/span>Want to <span class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">Improve Your English Grammar<\/span>?<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p>We hope this post answers some of your questions about <span class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">English grammar<\/span>! If you want to improve your grammar even more check out our free <a href=\"https:\/\/engoo.com\/app\/materials\/grammar\/6r1fXsYHEeimuzOlcF_9gA\">Grammar lessons<\/a>. We also have thousands of <span class=\"has-inline-color has-black-color\">online English tutors<\/span> who can check your writing and give you feedback on your speaking. Learn more about our service <a href=\"http:\/\/engoo.com\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Which of the following is correct? Dogs&nbsp;are man\u2019s best friend.The dog&nbsp;is man\u2019s best friend. Everyone would agree that the first sentence is correct. But did you know that the second sentence is as well? In...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":160,"featured_media":2045,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"unified_meta_tagline_field":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1835","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-language-tips"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>How to Use &quot;A&quot; and &quot;The&quot; to Talk About Things in General<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"&quot;A&quot; and &quot;the&quot; have many uses in English grammar. 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