http://www.englishforums.com/English/GeneralEnglishGrammarQuestions/Forum12.htmAsk your questions on grammar and get your sentence checked. We answer lots of different types of general English grammar questions here.enCSMOD (Build: 3191.21962)http://www.englishforums.com/English/Article/gcgzb/post.htm#512772Mon, 12 May 2008 12:24:01 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:512772Ant_2220http://www.englishforums.com/English/Article/gcgzb/post.htm#512772http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-512772.xml«A man in a yellow tropical shirt I saw yesterday is standing in front of me now.»<br /> Sure, it is incorrect. Try something like: &quot;One of the men...&quot;<br /><br /> «The long discussion I had yesterday with you was boring.»<br /> OK if there was only one long discussion with &quot;him&quot;.<br /><br /> «Could I use the definite article even if there were more than one long discussion held between me and him or her yesterday as long as I have that long discussion in my mind when I write the sentence?»<br /> I am not sure, I&#39;d use &quot;that&quot; insted of &quot;the&quot;:<br /><br /> — That long discussion that I had with you yesterday...<br /> — Which one?<div style="clear:both;"></div>http://www.englishforums.com/English/Article/gcgvc/post.htm#512756Mon, 12 May 2008 11:59:16 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:512756Marius Hancu1http://www.englishforums.com/English/Article/gcgvc/post.htm#512756http://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-512756.xml&gt; <i>A man in a yellow tropical shirt I saw yesterday is standing in front of me now. </i></p><p>No.</p><p><i><b>One of </b>the <b>men</b></i><i> in a yellow tropical shirt I saw yesterday is standing in front of me now.</i></p><p><i>&gt;A long discussion&nbsp; I&nbsp;had yesterday with you was boring</i>.&nbsp;&nbsp; </p><p>No. Perhaps:</p><p><i><b>One of </b>the </i><i><i>lo</i>ng discussion<b>s&nbsp;</b> I&nbsp;had yesterday with you (specifically, the 5th) was boring</i>. <br /><div style="clear:both;"></div>http://www.englishforums.com/English/Article/gcgbc/post.htmMon, 12 May 2008 09:09:34 GMT946f00bb-57d3-4b7b-a9a2-059b5341af52:512705Anonymous2http://www.englishforums.com/English/Article/gcgbc/post.htmhttp://www.englishforums.com/English/comments12-512705.xml<p>Hi,</p> <p>I sorted of learned from somewhere online that you would use the definite article before a noun in situations like this if you have encountered only one person in a yellow tropical shirt&nbsp;all day yesterday.</p> <p><em>The&nbsp;man&nbsp;in a yellow tropical shirt I saw yesterday is standing in front of me now.&nbsp;</em></p> <p>But unlikely as it seems,&nbsp;if I saw more than one person&nbsp;wearing a yellow tropical shirt yesterday, could I use this?</p> <p><em>A man in a yellow tropical shirt I saw yesterday is standing in front of me now.&nbsp;</em></p> <p>How about this?</p> <p><em>The long discussion I had yesterday with you was boring.</em></p> <p>Does that assume&nbsp;I have in my mind&nbsp;one such long discussion? Could I use the definite article&nbsp;even if there were more than one long discussion held between me and him or her yesterday as long as I have that long discussion in my mind when I write the sentence?</p> <p>If there were more than one long discussion between&nbsp;me and him/her, only&nbsp;possible article I can use is an indefinite article like here?</p> <p><em>A long discussion&nbsp; I&nbsp;had yesterday with you was boring</em>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><div style="clear:both;"></div>