Articles doubt: He has been admitted to the hospital which/that was opened...

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

Hi,

One of my relatives has been admitted to the hospital which/that was opened yesterday.

Is it a correct sentence?

Thanks

2

David, using the is the grammatically correct answer. However, many people in the UK omit the article and just say “in hospital”.

3

Thanks OxfordBlues

4

Hi David,

You ask if it is correct to say …

“One of my relatives has been admitted to the hospital which/that was opened yesterday.”

I assume that the importance of the statement lies in the fact that the hospital was opened only the previous day and already your relative has been admitted.

It is therefore perfectly good English to say …

“One of my relatives has been admitted to the hospital that was opened yesterday.”

You cannot omit the word ‘the’ in this sentence because ‘the’ is a definite article relating to a particular hospital… the one that opened the previous day.

You can say " One of my relatives is in hospital " but the meaning is different.

You can’t say " One of my relatives has been admitted in hospital that was opened yesterday ". That is incorrect.

5

Thanks Hollandhaggis

6

Hi,

The wedding was followed by a dinner.

Is it correct to use the article ‘a’ before meals? why?

Thanks

7

I wonder too, because we learnt that only with a descriptive adjective we can use ‘a’ with meals.

8

Think about the names definite and indefinite articles. If you are talking about a specific dinner, luncheon, breakfast, etc then you would use the dinner (definite). If you are not talking about a specific meal as an event or activity, use a dinner.

For instance:

The wedding was followed by a dinner. (It is definitely known which wedding is being talked about but all that is known is that afterward food was served. The dinner could be used if the speakers know there was a wedding and a dinner (say, as an answer to When was the dinner held?).

The conference ended with an awards luncheon. At the luncheon, I received a plaque.

In the first sentence the awards luncheon could have also been used, but it is not necessary. However in the second sentence it is.

There are no special rules for meals, they are treated in exactly the same way as all other nouns. The usage of the vs a/an comes down to a need for referring to specific things versus those things in general.

9

Thanks very much OxfordBlues.