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Soheil1 Posted 13 years ago
Grammar

Why 'a'?

Hi.
Why is the underline 'a' used?
" Grandmaster: A title awarded by FIDE to players who meet an established set of performance standards, including a high ELO ration.[...]. A separate Woman Grandmaster title is awarded to distinguished women chess players."
  

Top answer

I see four indefinite articles and no underlining. They all modify singular countable nouns (though 'ration' should be 'rating', I suppose), just as they should.

— Mister Micawber

  • I see four indefinite articles and no underlining.
  • They all modify singular countable nouns (though 'ration' should be 'rating', I suppose), just as they should.
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12 Answers
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I see four indefinite articles and no underlining. They all modify singular countable nouns (though 'ration' should be 'rating', I suppose), just as they should.
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Emotion: surprise
OK.
" Grandmaster: A title awarded by FIDE to players who meet an established set of performance standards, including a
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I have already explained all instances in my previous post.
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What happens if I replace the underlined 'A' with 'The'?
The separate WGM title[...].
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soheil1What happens if I replace the underlined 'A' with 'The'? The separate WGM title[...].
It would seem a little 'off' to me, because the reader doesn't know that title exists.
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So, is the use of 'a' just because the reader doesn't know about it?
Do they use 'a' whenever the user is unaware of it?
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soheil1So, is the use of 'a' just because the reader doesn't know about it?
Or there could be more than one such title.
soheil1Do they use 'a' whenever the user is unaware of it?
Usually, that is the way we introduce a new noun, yes.
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Mister Micawber soheil1So, is the use of 'a' just because the reader doesn't know about it?Or there could be more than one such title.
No there is just one.
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Mister Micawber soheil1What happens if I replace the underlined 'A' with 'The'? The separate WGM title[...].It would seem a little 'off' to me, because the reader doesn't know that title exists.
but you can say

the book "play Winning Chess" while it is not mentioned before, can't you?
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