Gudrun Posted 10 years ago
Grammar
The/a dazzling sun
Dear English speakers,
1. The dazzling sun shone in the sky.
2. A dazzling sun shone in the sky.
No sun was mentioned before. Obviously, there is only one sun. Which article to choose? It was explained to me that it depends on how I want to play the adjective "dazzling".
1. If I perceive the sun as to be always dazzling, or if the context makes it appropriate (for example, it's a summer day or I am in a hot place where the sun is known to be always dazzling), "the" is a better idea.
2. If I want to emphasize the fact that the sun is not always dazzling (for example, I am in a place where it's often weak), "a" is perfect. It's a literary flourish. "A kind of dazzling sun" is what I am saying.
Bottom line: either can be used.
Does that make sense to you?
1. The dazzling sun shone in the sky.
2. A dazzling sun shone in the sky.
No sun was mentioned before. Obviously, there is only one sun. Which article to choose? It was explained to me that it depends on how I want to play the adjective "dazzling".
1. If I perceive the sun as to be always dazzling, or if the context makes it appropriate (for example, it's a summer day or I am in a hot place where the sun is known to be always dazzling), "the" is a better idea.
2. If I want to emphasize the fact that the sun is not always dazzling (for example, I am in a place where it's often weak), "a" is perfect. It's a literary flourish. "A kind of dazzling sun" is what I am saying.
Bottom line: either can be used.
Does that make sense to you?
Top answer
Yes, it makes sense.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
0
0
0
GudrunDoes that make sense to you?Yes. It's the old Greek philosophers' "essence" and "accident" (the / a(n), respectively). Curiously, in Spanish the essential adjectives are placed before the noun and the accidental ones after it.
You might want to take a look at another discussion of this phenomenon at
CJ
00