[Grammar] 'an' average human or 'the' average human?

[Heidi L]

Dear teachers,

In the following sentences,

- I know the average human needs about eight hours of sleep, and this very large animal (referring to a giraffe) only needs twenty to two hours? That's incredible!

Here, 'the' average human or 'an' average human, which sounds natural to your ears?

I found some interesting sentences at http://www.did-you-knows.com/d...ow-facts/average.php. It seems that 'the' average human/person is more common.

- The average person falls asleep in 7 minutes.
- An average person will spend 25 years asleep.
- The average hen lays 228 eggs a year.
- The average person laughs 10 times a day.
- The average person will consume 100 tons of food and 45,424 liters of water in their lifetime.
- The average person goes to the toilet 6 times a day.

When we're referring to an ordinary person/human, not a specific one, why do we say 'the' instead of 'an' average person?

Thank you!

 

[bhaisahab]

Dear teachers,

In the following sentences,

- I know the average human needs about eight hours of sleep, and this very large animal (referring to a giraffe) only needs twenty to two hours? That's incredible!

Here, 'the' average human or 'an' average human, which sounds natural to your ears?

I found some interesting sentences at http://www.did-you-knows.com/d...ow-facts/average.php. It seems that 'the' average human/person is more common.

- The average person falls asleep in 7 minutes.
- An average person will spend 25 years asleep.
- The average hen lays 228 eggs a year.
- The average person laughs 10 times a day.
- The average person will consume 100 tons of food and 45,424 liters of water in their lifetime.
- The average person goes to the toilet 6 times a day.

When we're referring to an ordinary person/human, not a specific one, why do we say 'the' instead of 'an' average person?

Thank you!

"an" works fine for me.

 

[SoothingDave]

Either is fine.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Dear teachers,

In the following sentences,

- I know the average human needs about eight hours of sleep, and this very large animal (referring to a giraffe) only needs twenty to two hours? That's incredible!

Here, 'the' average human or 'an' average human, which sounds natural to your ears?

I found some interesting sentences at http://www.did-you-knows.com/d...ow-facts/average.php. It seems that 'the' average human/person is more common.

- The average person falls asleep in 7 minutes.
- An average person will spend 25 years asleep.
- The average hen lays 228 eggs a year.
- The average person laughs 10 times a day.
- The average person will consume 100 tons of food and 45,424 liters of water in their lifetime.
- The average person goes to the toilet 6 times a day.

When we're referring to an ordinary person/human, not a specific one, why do we say 'the' instead of 'an' average person?

Thank you!

There is an error in your first sentence. I assume you meant "twenty minutes to two hours".

 

[Heidi L]

There is an error in your first sentence. I assume you meant "twenty minutes to two hours".

Sorry. It should be 'twenty minutes to two hours'.

Thank you!