Take up a sport

[Anna232]

Should I use the indefinite article before "sport" if I am talking about a particular kind of sport?
For example, "He takes up a contact sport 3 times a week."
Should I use "does" instead of "takes up?"

 

[teechar]

Should I use the indefinite article before "sport"

No. You should use the definite article.

if I am talking about a particular kind of sport?

But you haven't done that! A particular kind would be "karate", for example. In that case, you should not use any article.

For example, "He takes up a contact sport 3 times a week."
Should I use "does" instead of "takes up?"

"Takes up" means starts doing, so it's wrong here. Use "does" or "practices". Note also that numbers twelve and under are normally written out as words in such sentences.

 

[Anna232]

No. You should use the definite article.

So she does "He does the contact sport three times a week.
But why is the definite article used in that case?

But you haven't done that! A particular kind would be "karate", for example. In that case, you should not use any article.

"Takes up" means starts doing, so it's wrong here. Use "does" or "practices".

Note also that numbers twelve and under are normally written out as words in such sentences.

 

[teechar]

So she does "He does the contact sport three times a week.
But why is the definite article used in that case?

No. What I meant was, for example:
"He regularly practises two kinds of sports - a contact sport and a water sport. He does the contact sport three times a week and the water sport daily".

 

[Anna232]

No. What I meant was, for example:
"He regularly practises two kinds of sports - a contact sport and a water sport. He does the contact sport three times a week and the water sport daily".

But if I have to mention only contact sport. How should it be used? Without an article at all?
Is "He does contact sport three times a week" correct?

 

[Tarheel]

Americans play sports. We don't "do" them.

 

[Anna232]

Americans play sports. We don't "do" them.

Yes but if I don't mention two different kinds of sport should I still use "a" before it or "the'? I mean "He does (a/the) contact sport three times a week."

 

[tllkt]

Not a teacher.

Americans play sports. We don't "do" them.

Considering martial arts make up a large part of contact sports, would you still say people "play" boxing, karate or MMA?

 

[Tarheel]

Yes but if I don't mention two different kinds of sportS should I still use "a" before it or "the'? I mean "He does (a/the) contact sport three times a week."

I would think you would know which one it is. I suggest: "He practices karate a couple of times a week." Or something like that.

 

[Tarheel]

Not a teacher.

Considering martial arts make up a large part of contact sports, would you still say people "play" boxing, karate or MMA?

No.

 

[emsr2d2]

Learning whether to use "play" or "do" (or neither!) with particular sports comes from reading good quality English regularly. You can pretty much use "practise" with any sport, although that's not used as often in BrE as it appears to be in AmE.
Here are a few examples:

I play football twice a week.
He plays tennis for the local club.
We do karate every Wednesday.
They do archery in the park at the end of the road.
I swim for the local team in the league.
He races horses for a living.

 

[tllkt]

@emsr2d2 Could you please answer Anna232's question in post #5?

Is "He does contact sport three times a week" correct?

I very much agree with Tarheel's post #9, but still want to know the direct answer to that question. If someone wanted to say "He does contact sport three times a week.", unnatural as it may be, in a context that didn't bring up any other sports prior — for example, when describing someone's routine — would the zero article be correct?

 

[teechar]

If someone wanted to say "He does contact sport three times a week.", unnatural as it may be, in a context that didn't bring up any other sports prior — for example, when describing someone's routine — would the zero article be correct?

Yes but if I don't mention two different kinds of sport should I still use "a" before it or "the'? I mean "He does (a/the) contact sport three times a week."

Use "a" in that case.

 

[Anna232]

Use "a" in that case.

Because it is about an unknown contact sport and we don't exactly know which is being mentioned. Right?

 

[jutfrank]

We don't generally think of 'contact sport' (uncountable and therefore no article) as a kind of sport that you can do regularly. Therefore, it would be odd to talk about it doing it three times a week. The phrase is rather used to make a broad classification, where any particular sport is a single instance of such a general class.

To make then the thought more coherent, I'd suggest:

He does some form of contact sport three times a week.

 

[teechar]

Is it because it is about an unknown contact sport and we don't exactly know which is being mentioned . Right?

Kind of. Simply put, the word "sport" is a countable singular noun in that sentence, and so it needs an article. Since we are not talking about a specific sport, we use "a".