A sign

Question

Hello friends!!One more from Old Vic.When you cross the bridge, you should see a sign that says "Welcome". Stop there.I know that "a" is correct here, but what about "the"? There is only one sign and "that" is like mentioning it before, if you know what I mean. What would be the difference between using "a" or "the" here? Is this a matter of choice?Vic

Teechr · Accepted Answer

"The" would imply that you've already talked about/mentioned the sign.

Victork · Answer

teechr"The" would imply that you've already talked about/mentioned the sign.

Thank you, teechr!! But doesn't "the noun THAT" equal to having been mentioned before?

Maybe I am not clear. "The meal that I ate last saturday was bad."
The "that" makes it clear which meal ate last Saturday. Even if I didn't mention it. So "the meal" makes sense. So I wonder why it's not the same with the sign. Do you understand my point?

Teechr · Answer

victorkThank you, teechr!! But doesn't "the pronoun "that" ~~THAT" equal to having been~~ refer to something mentioned before?

Not here. In this context it's being used as a relative pronoun; it's just introducing extra information.

victorkMaybe I am not clear. "The meal that I ate last Saturday was bad."The "that" makes it clear which meal ate last Saturday. Even if I didn't mention it. So "the meal" makes sense.

That's okay too. Here, "that" is introducing a defining relative clause. The meal (whether previously mentioned or not) is a specific meal (the one you had on Saturday); hence the use of "the."

victorkSo I wonder why it's not the same with the sign.

It's because you're mentioning the sign for the first time.

Victork · Answer

Thank you, teechr! You're a good teacher! I think I've got it now in my lousy head!

Vic

A sign

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