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Newguest Posted 19 years ago
Grammar

article "the"

Hello

1. Mr X was the first president of independent Poland. Can I put "the" before "independent" i.e. "...of the independent Poland" If not, why?

2. Ms. X was the most significant composer of Polish national opera. Can I write "...of the Polish national opera?" If not, why?

Thank You
  

Top answer

Hi, 1. Mr X was the first president of independent Poland. e.

— Clive

  • Hi, 1.
  • Mr X was the first president of independent Poland.
  • e.
  • of the independent Poland" If not, why?
  • Yes, you can.
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3 Answers
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Hi,

1. Mr X was the first president of independent Poland. Can I put "the" before "independent" i.e. "...of the independent Poland" If not, why? Yes, you can. I would do so in a context where I wanted the reader to bear in mind that there was also, perhaps at another time in history, a Poland that was not independent.

2. Ms. X
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1. I would leave it as is.
He was the first president of Poland. I don't sense independent as restrictive, but as non-restrictive -- president of Poland, which happened to be independent at the time. I can't imagine what the first president of the dependent Poland would have been. How could he have even been a real president? It almost suggests that both Polands could have
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It often happens that even native speakers, who often tend to rely rather on intuition than on rules, differ in their opinions as whether to use an article in a given situation or not.

Thanks for the answers!
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