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nawee
Joined: 29 Apr 2006
Posts: 400
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 Posted: Mon Jan 22, 2007 11:43 pm Post subject: "the" needed? |
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Hello,
Which is correct?
a. Family is the smallest social unit.
b. The family is the smallest social unit.
I would write a. but I think b. is not wrong either. Are both sentences grammatically acceptable? If so, is there any difference in nuance between the two?
Thank you,
Nawee |
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Mary W. Ng
Joined: 26 Jun 2006
Posts: 261
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| Posted: Tue Jan 23, 2007 12:43 pm Post subject: Re: "the" needed? |
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b is correct. Here the generic "the" is used wih a singular noun to indicate a class of objects. The sentence means the same as "Families are the smallest social units". 
_________________
Mary W. Ng
Helping students learn grammar
http:www.aimpublishing.com |
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