Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[Teo]

1. Do you have a child?

2. Do you have any child?

3. Do you have any children?

4. There isn't a hospital in our town.

5. There isn't any hospital in our town.

6. There aren't any hospitals in our town.

Which sentences are incorrect?
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Thank you very much for your reply.

[welkins2139]

# 2 and # 5.
" any "is very often used with uncountable and plurals nouns.

[doliver]

Hi, Teo.

You wrote:

1. Do you have a child?
2. Do you have any child?
3. Do you have any children?
4. There isn't a hospital in our town.
5. There isn't any hospital in our town.
6. There aren't any hospitals in our town.

Which sentences are incorrect?

Comments:

In my opinion, these sentences are most acceptable: 1, 3, 4, 5, 6.

As was pointed out earlier, any is commonly used with uncountable and plural nouns in questions and with uncountable and plural nouns in statements. It's also used in at least one other way, though: to add emphasis, in statements, with singular countable nouns (#5).

A: Do you have any brothers?
B: No.
A: Really? I thought you had a brother!
B: Really! I don't have any brother. You must be thinking of someone else!

Best wishes--

D. O.
_________________
Dennis Oliver
Estrella Mountain Community College
Avondale, AZ U.S.A.
http://www.emc.maricopa.edu

[KazAV]

Any with a singular noun as shown sounds a bit strange to me.

[MrPedantic]

I'm in accord with DO.

#5 may seem strange, without context; but it's perfectly possible:

"Hey! MrQ! Long time no see! How have you been?"
"Oh, so-so. How about you?"
"Not too bad at all. And what are you doing in our neck of the woods, may I ask?"
"Oh, I've just been up to the hospital for a check-up. I've had a lot of trouble with my eyes lately."
"Up to the hospital? There isn't any hospital in our town..."

MrP