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the quantifier " some "

mony_shy

New Member
Arabic
Is this sentence gramatically correct ? why?

Some lord admires Macbeth.
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some lord admires Macbeth

the sentence above is said to be grammatically correct why?

Because the subject is one unidentified lord.

"some woman told me..." (just a woman in the street, nobody you knew.)

Saludos.
Maybe use "A lord admires Macbeth."
Hi everybody,
is there any difference between

Some lord admires Macbeth and A lord admires Macbeth ?

Thanks in advance,
cicciosa
Hi everybody,
is there any difference between

Some lord admires Macbeth and A lord admires Macbeth ?

Thanks in advance,
cicciosa
The difference is that "Some lord" could be any lord and "A lord" is a specific lord.
Hi everybody,
is there any difference between

Some lord admires Macbeth and A lord admires Macbeth ?

Thanks in advance,
cicciosa
Yes. Some is an indefinite article whereas a is a definite article.
Yes. Some is an indefinite article whereas a is a definite article.
Sorry, but that's a mistake. A is an indefinite article and some is either an adjective or an adverb, depending on how it is used.
Yes. Some is an indefinite article whereas a is a definite article.
Erm... Some and a are both quantifiers. A is an indefinite article, as Nunty says.

"Some lord admires Macbeth" is a fairly odd statement, mony_shy. I assume you found it in this linguistics text, where it is used to illustrate the fact that "some" can be both singular and plural.

Cicciosa, It's easier to think about the difference between "some" and the indefinite article in a more 'ordinary' sentence, such as Ushuaia's.

"A woman told me X" - an unspecified woman.
"Some woman told me X" - a random unspecified woman whose identity was completely unknown to me.
"When we can't say exactly which person or thing we are talking about because we don't know, can't remember, or want to emphasise that it is not important, we can use some instead of a/an with a singular noun.(...)

* He was interrupted twice by some troublemaker in the audience."

Martin Hewings, "Advance Grammar in Use", Cambridge University Press, 2nd edition, Unit 48, page 96, point C
Erm... Some and a are both quantifiers. A is an indefinite article, as Nunty says.

"Some lord admires Macbeth" is a fairly odd statement, mony_shy. I assume you found it in this linguistics text, where it is used to illustrate the fact that "some" can be both singular and plural.

Cicciosa, It's easier to think about the difference between "some" and the indefinite article in a more 'ordinary' sentence, such as Ushuaia's.

"A woman told me X" - an unspecified woman.
"Some woman told me X" - a random unspecified woman whose identity was completely unknown to me.
Could it be understood as something like this?:
a woman told me="one" woman whose identity I or you or both do not know
while some woman told me might make the identity less obscure or mysterious (I really don't know how to describe the difference better), but still not specific?
This may sound silly, but could it be that with a the identity of the person is unknown and unimportant while with some the identity is unknown but it might be important? I don't know why, but I'm really afraid that these two do not mean exactly the same thing, but I've been struggling to understand the difference. If there is an explanation or examples that would help, I would really appreciate it, and a few examples would be incredibly useful. Thank you very much for trying 👁 Smile :)
I think it’s worth pointing out that the use of “some” to refer to an individual is regarded by many as being coarse. It’s said often enough, but you are unlikely to come across it in any but the most informal writing.

By using ‘some’—as in “some guy said to me...” or “some idiot driver who...”— you are treating that person with disdain by not even according him or her the indefinite but acceptable title ‘a’.

That ‘some’ is used derogatorily is indicated by the fact that the noun or proper noun which follows it is almost never the best one that could be used. For example you might hear “Some guy came up to me and...”, but you wouldn’t hear “Some gentleman...” Similarly, you might hear “Some woman...” but not “Some lady...”

However, if you change the sentence slightly, you can alter the tone of things:
“She’s some lady!” —Now that’s approbation!

But it’s also a different kettle of fish!
Good points johndot.

Surely "some" redeems itself when used with a plural noun, in which case it ceases to be coarse or derogatory: "Some people believe it is coarse to use "some" to refer to an individual", for example.
I think it’s worth pointing out that the use of “some” to refer to an individual is regarded by many as being coarse. It’s said often enough, but you are unlikely to come across it in any but the most informal writing.

As johndot says, 'some' when using ‘some’ to refer to one person is colloquial, and would only really be acceptable in speech, despite the subtle differences between ‘some’ and ‘a’. However, when used to describe a noun in the plural (e.g. some people thought…) is a different case!
Good points johndot.

Surely "some" redeems itself when used with a plural noun, in which case it ceases to be coarse or derogatory: "Some people believe it is coarse to use "some" to refer to an individual", for example.

Yes indeed, with a plural noun ‘some’ is an adjective meaning a certain amount or number, whereas with a singular noun it acts as a qualifier or classifier and can have a decidedly negative or positive nuance depending on context or tone of voice.
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