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| 3.1.2 Use of the definite article |
As we already said, there is not a big difference in the use of the definite article between English and Italian. The definite article describes one element of homogeneous elements as well defined. The use of either the definite or indefinite changes the meaning of a sentence completely.
a) The woman he loved has gone to Italy.
b) A woman he loved has gone to Italy.
In the case of a) he has a serious problem because he only loves one woman and she has gone to Italy. In the case of b) he has a problem as well, but this problem is not as big as the first one because she was only one of several women he loved. This is the fundamental difference between a definite and an indefinite article and this difference is the same in English and Italian. But there are some differences in the use of the definite article between English and Italian as we will see in the next chapter.
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