Snappy
Member
- Joined
- Mar 24, 2009
- Member Type
- Other
- Native Language
- Japanese
- Home Country
- Japan
- Current Location
- Japan
We don't have definite or indefinite articles ("the" or "a" or "an) in our language (Japanese), and I still have difficulty using them.
I believe native speakers of English use them by instinct and they do not have difficulty using them.
Please tell me if my understanding to the following sentences is correct.
1. We celebrate the arrival of autumn.
In the above sentence, "the" before "arrival" cannot be left out, because it means "autumn's arrival."
Similarly, "the" is required when I say, "I'm awaiting the arrival of an important parcel," because I am talking about an important parcel's arrival.
2. We need elimination of the employer-based system.
3. Can we see the elimination of property tax next year?
There is no definite article (i.e., "the") before "elimination" in sentence 2 while there is in sentence 3. In these sentence structure, "the" before the abstract noun "elimination" can be left out depending on the meaning.
In my understanding, sentence 2 is talking about just an idea of eliminating the employer-based system while sentence 3 is talking about a rather concrete idea of eliminating property tax. Unlike sentence 1, "Of phrase" in sentences 2 and 3 does not express possession (i.e., we cannot say, "Can we see property tax's elimination next year?).