Articles before ''office''

[Rachel Adams]

[FONT=Georgia, Times New Roman, Times, serif]Hello

Will the meaning of the phrases change, if I remove the definite article and add an indefinite article instead? (In an office and at an office)[/FONT]

• "in the office" = "present in the office"
• "at the office" = "in the office for the purpose of carrying out his duties"

 

[emsr2d2]

As a rule, changing the definite article to the indefinite article (and vice versa) will always change the meaning.

 

[Rachel Adams]

As a rule, changing the definite article to the indefinite article (and vice versa) will always change the meaning.

Could you please look at the examples and tell me if this is the only difference?

In the office/at the office/bank- a specific location

In an office/at an office/bank-first mention of the place.

 

[GoesStation]

Could you please look at the examples and tell me if this is the only difference?

In the office/at the office/bank- a specific location

In an office/at an office/bank-first mention of the place.

Please put them in sentences so we can assess the effect of the changes.

 

[Rachel Adams]

Please put them in sentences so we can assess the effect of the changes.

I tried, but I am not sure my examples convey the same idea as the explanations in my original question. According to that rule, If I want to say that I work there I should say I work ''at the office''. If something is in the office, we use in the office. Eg; we have many computers in the office. I hope I am right.

He is in/at the office/bank every morning. (?)
I work in/at an office/bank. (?)
I go to the office/bank every day. (?)
I went to the bank to withdraw some money.(?)
''Where are you going?'' ''I am going to the office/bank''.(I work there)

 

[jutfrank]

Your question is confusing prepositions (at or in) and articles (a or the). There are actually two separate rules to consider here. I'm going to try to simplify both rules for you.

To talk generally about place, use at:

I work at an office.
I left my bag at the office.

To talk about being inside four walls of a room, use in:

I work in a tiny office.
I slept in the office last night.

To talk about offices generally, use a/an.
To talk about specific offices, such as the one where you work, use the.

 

[Rachel Adams]

Your question is confusing prepositions (at or in) and articles (a or the). There are actually two separate rules to consider here. I'm going to try to simplify both rules for you.

To talk generally about place, use at:

I work at an office.
I left my bag at the office.

To talk about being inside four walls of a room, use in:

I work in a tiny office.
I slept in the office last night.

To talk about offices generally, use a/an.
To talk about specific offices, such as the one where you work, use the.

But if you left something at the office you left it inside four walls of a room. However, you used ''at'' and not ''in'' in your example.

 

[emsr2d2]

"at the office" is the equivalent of saying "at work". If you got home and realised you had left your umbrella anywhere inside the office building where you work, you would say "I've left my umbrella at the office/at work". You don't have to have left it literally inside the four walls of your office.

 

[jutfrank]

But if you left something at the office you left it inside four walls of a room. However, you used ''at'' and not ''in'' in your example.

The point is that if you say at the office, you do not feel that it is necessary to mention the four walls. You just want to say where your bag is. The fact that the office has four walls is not important.

 

[Rachel Adams]

Your question is confusing prepositions (at or in) and articles (a or the). There are actually two separate rules to consider here. I'm going to try to simplify both rules for you.

To talk generally about place, use at:

I work at an office/bank.
I left my bag at the office/bank.

To talk about being inside four walls of a room, use in:

I work in a tiny office/bank.
I slept in the office/bank last night.

To talk about offices generally, use a/an.
To talk about specific offices, such as the one where you work, use the.

I reread my post and your answer. I didn't ask if it was possible to use ''bank'' instead of ''office'' with the same prepositions in your examples, so I added ''bank'' to your sentences. Can it be used in the same way and will the sentences have the same meaning?

 

[Tarheel]

I work at a bank. OK
I left my bag at the bank. OK