Aamir Tariq
Senior Member
- Joined
- Mar 28, 2016
- Member Type
- Interested in Language
- Native Language
- Urdu
- Home Country
- Pakistan
- Current Location
- Pakistan
Do we need to put the definite article "the" when we talk about cash payments?
Did you pay him the money?
Did you pay him money?
Now, there are two things going on in my mind.
First, both the questions may be grammatically correct but have different meanings.
If I ask somebody
Did you pay him the money?
I am probably asking him about the money I gave him to pay to a certain person. Or may be he borrowed that money from someone in front of me to be able to make his payment to a certain person.
And if I ask somebody
Did you pay him money?
I don't know the source of money (where that money came from), he just owed some money to someone and he was supposed to pay it to him.
Secondly, I might be wrong in my assumption. And one of the sentences might be grammatically correct.
You are the native speakers so your expert advice is the most valuable for me.
Regards
Aamir the Global Citizen
Did you pay him the money?
Did you pay him money?
Now, there are two things going on in my mind.
First, both the questions may be grammatically correct but have different meanings.
If I ask somebody
Did you pay him the money?
I am probably asking him about the money I gave him to pay to a certain person. Or may be he borrowed that money from someone in front of me to be able to make his payment to a certain person.
And if I ask somebody
Did you pay him money?
I don't know the source of money (where that money came from), he just owed some money to someone and he was supposed to pay it to him.
Secondly, I might be wrong in my assumption. And one of the sentences might be grammatically correct.
You are the native speakers so your expert advice is the most valuable for me.
Regards
Aamir the Global Citizen