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Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority)



 
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Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority) #1 (permalink) Sat May 31, 2008 18:58 pm   Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority)
 

Hi,
Please have a look at this question:

As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority
a. no word - the - no word
b. the - a - no word
c. the - the - the
d. no word - a - the
==>> The answer in the book is a, but I suppose a and b make more sense. What do you think?

Many thanks
Nessie
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Nessie
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Joined: 16 Feb 2008
Posts: 1102

articles #2 (permalink) Sat May 31, 2008 20:20 pm   articles
 

With no context given, both (a) and (b) could be right.

It would also be possible to say, "As captain of a ship, I have complete authority."
Jamie (K)
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Joined: 24 Feb 2006
Posts: 6552
Location: Detroit, Michigan, USA

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Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority) #3 (permalink) Sun Jun 01, 2008 10:20 am   Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority)
 

Thanks Jamie. So in a nutshell, these are correct, right?

- As the captain of the ship, I have the complete authority
- As the captain of the ship, I have complete authority
- As the captain of a ship, I have the complete authority
- As the captain of a ship, I have complete authority
- As captain of the ship, I have the complete authority
- As captain of the ship, I have complete authority
- As captain of a ship, I have the complete authority
- As captain of a ship, I have complete authority

:):)

So... is there any slight difference among them?
Many thanks
Nessie
_________________
:(... something we never have again, I know... I guess I really really know.. :(

Sorry seems to be the hardest word...
Nessie
I'm a Communicator ;-)


Joined: 16 Feb 2008
Posts: 1102

Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority) #4 (permalink) Sun Jun 01, 2008 11:48 am   Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority)
 

I don't like the sentences that say "the complete authority", even though I don't think "the complete authority" is technically wrong.

The only difference in meaning among the sentences involves the difference between "a ship" and "the ship".
Jamie (K)
I'm a Communicator ;-)


Joined: 24 Feb 2006
Posts: 6552
Location: Detroit, Michigan, USA

Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority) #5 (permalink) Sun Jun 01, 2008 12:36 pm   Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority)
 

I agree that context would make a difference. Without context, I would default to:

1. As captain of this ship, I have complete authority.

MrP
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Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority) #6 (permalink) Mon Jun 02, 2008 10:47 am   Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority)
 

Jamie (K) wrote:
The only difference in meaning among the sentences involves the difference between "a ship" and "the ship".


So the only difference among them involves ths difference between "a ship" and "the ship"?
And that means "a captain", "the captain", "captain" as well as "complete authority", "the complete authority" are completely the same?
_________________
:(... something we never have again, I know... I guess I really really know.. :(

Sorry seems to be the hardest word...
Nessie
I'm a Communicator ;-)


Joined: 16 Feb 2008
Posts: 1102

Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority) #7 (permalink) Mon Jun 02, 2008 12:28 pm   Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority)
 

Nessie, they're so similar that it's next to impossible to explain what the difference might be.
Jamie (K)
I'm a Communicator ;-)


Joined: 24 Feb 2006
Posts: 6552
Location: Detroit, Michigan, USA

Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority) #8 (permalink) Tue Jun 03, 2008 5:54 am   Usage of articles (As ... captain of ... ship, I have ... complete authority)
 

Thanks Jamie. Now thinking over the test question again, perhaps I know what's in your mind ;);)
_________________
:(... something we never have again, I know... I guess I really really know.. :(

Sorry seems to be the hardest word...
Nessie
I'm a Communicator ;-)


Joined: 16 Feb 2008
Posts: 1102

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