Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[Junkomama]

The buds are swelling bigger and bigger! I think the flowers at least 10 centimeters in diameter will bloom.

Would you tell me whether "the" before "flowers" is needed and the reason?

Thank you in advance!
Junkomama

[Suzanne]

Yes, "the" needs to be in front of flowers. It is a definite article, and identifies "flowers." It's used for making general statements about a noun, in this case, flowers.

The sentence will read better like this:

The buds are swelling bigger and bigger! I think the flowers will be at least 10 centimeters in diameter when they bloom.

I hope this helps!

[Junkomama]

Thanks a lot for your answer and showing me a better sentence, Suzanne-san!!

Can I say that the phrase "at least 10 centimeters in diameter" identifies "flowers" in my sentence and "the flowers" in your sentence are the particular flowers easily understood in the context?

With regards,
Junkomama

[2006]

[Junkomama]

Thank you so much for your comments, 2006-san!!
The usage of articles is very difficult for me though I have learned the basic rules.
I'd appreciate other opinions, too.

With regards,
Junkomama

[Suzanne]

Wow, such great discussion! This is the wonderful thing about English--it can be spoken many ways, and still be correct.

I maintain that "the" is correct, and is how a native speaker would construct the sentence.
The buds swelling bigger and bigger is a terrific "visual" and expressive way to tell the reader that the buds are really growing. It's quite descriptive and poetic! And "the" flowers implies the flowers that will result from the buds...the flowers DO already exist!

I can easily imagine these sentences as part of a conversation, perhaps as two people walk in their garden and talk about what's happening with with springtime blooms. So....they make perfect sense.