Re: CHAT: Definite/Indefinite Article Distinction

----- Original Message -----
From: "bnathyuw" <bnathyuw@...>
To: <CONLANG@...>
Sent: Sunday, September 08, 2002 2:48 PM
Subject: Re: CHAT: Definite/Indefinite Article Distinction


> --- Jan van Steenbergen <ijzeren_jan@...>
> wrote: >  --- Andreas Johansson wrote:
> >
> > > My French isn't rusty for the simple reason that I
> > don't know it, but the sg
> > > indefinite article _un_/_une_, derived from
> > _unus_, hasn't prevented French
> > > from acquiring a pl indefinite article _des_.
> >
> > If you count "des" really as an article, you ought
> > to include "du", "de la"
> > etc. as well. But in fact, this is just the
> > combination of a preposition with
> > the definite article.
> >
>
> i' ve seen french described as having THREE articles :
>
> indefinite: un/une/des
> partitive: du/de la/des
> definite: le/la/les
>
> where the first two have convergent forms in the
> plural ( with some exceptions of usage )
>
> but this might have been the grammarian's pet theory .
> . . !

In that case, english has 3 articles 'a/an', 'the' and 'some'.

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