Believer  +  489013 Fri, 14 Mar 08 11:22 PM Hi, I have difficulty trying to clearly understand the logic (or rules??) behing the use of the indefinite article for a content in quotation marks. Please help. GG wrote: Do you understand the use of the progressive? I went to the store/I was going to the store. I ate breakfast/I was eating breakfast. With the -ing form, you want to talk about something else that happened WHILE that was happening. You don't use it all by itself (in most cases) - you would usually have a "when something else happened" that goes with it. I think you can treat what is in the quotation marks as sort of a noun and using an definite article is fine, but the circumstances around using an indefinite article is what gives me an uneasy feeling. Could you be able to tell me something about this? He responded with a dismissive, "Nah." Believer Joined on Mon, Jan 2 2006 Contributing Member 1,969 Articles, Nouns, Indefinite Articles, Definite Articles, Quotation Marks

	Avangi  +  489017 Fri, 14 Mar 08 11:55 PM You have a bag of assorted fruit.  "I guess I'll have a banana." You have a bag of assorted words and phrases.  "I replied with a "no thanks." Is there a question on the progressive?  Did you want examples of the "when something else happened"? Avangi Joined on Mon, Nov 19 2007 Veteran Member 8,172 ". . . le plaisir delicieux et toujours nouveau d'une occupation inutile." - Henri de Regnier Articles

	CalifJim  +  489033 Sat, 15 Mar 08 01:01 AM Believer “you would usually have a "when something else happened" that goes with it” You would usually have an accompanying clause that indicates when something else happened. You would usually have a when-something-else-happened clause that goes with it. Very informal. It's not restricted to the indefinite article.  CJ  CalifJim Joined on Mon, Aug 2 2004 California Veteran Member 22,389 "There are no facts, only interpretations" - Nietzsche Articles, Clauses, Indefinite Articles, Definite Articles

	Believer  +  489069 Sat, 15 Mar 08 02:09 AM Thank you, Avangi (and CalifJim). That was a fine assortment of answers. My many thanks to you. I think it is CalifJim who said in a past post that you can treat what is in quotation marks as a noun, and based on that, I think I can go on to assume that  the indefinite article 'a' can be placed if a person is thinking of 'an instance' of that noun. Then, what is the singular form of 'thanks' as in my complimentary comment you at the top of this post? a thanks??   a thank-you?? many thanks   many thank-you's?? Believer Articles, Nouns, Indefinite Articles, Definite Articles, Quotation Marks

	Avangi  +  489083 Sat, 15 Mar 08 02:46 AM Singular would be, "Let's have a big thank-you for our terriffic team!" I guess "thanks" is a fixed idiom, as is "thanks a lot" which makes not a whole lot of sense. Avangi Articles, Idioms

	CalifJim  +  489149 Sat, 15 Mar 08 08:09 AM Believer “I think it is CalifJim who said in a past post that you can treat what is in quotation marks as a noun” That doesn't sound like something I would say!  You can place any part of speech in quotes.  CJ  CalifJim Articles, Nouns, Quotation Marks