SOME/ANY

SOME is used in a positive statement in order to show either:

1. The plural of something (for countable nouns) – I need some fresh towels.

or

2. A small quantity of something (for non-countable nouns) – Cathy has some toothpaste today.

ANY is used in a negative statement to show that something is nonexistent:

1. I don’t have any. (fresh towels)        In other words, I have zero fresh towels.

2. Yesterday she didn’t have any. (toothpaste)        Yesterday, she had zero toothpaste.

Notice how ANY is not followed by a noun, for the simple reason that the noun was already mentioned before and there is no need to repeat it.

A(AN)/ONE

A(AN) are used in a positive statement  to show that the speaker is referring to just one item:

1. He will buy an umbrella.

2. My friend is getting a teapot.

Remember that we use an when the next word starts with a vowal and a when the next word starts with a consonant for singular nouns.

ONE is used in a negative statement to show that the speaker is referring to just one item:

1. He doesn’t have one. (an umbrella)

2. She didn’t own one. (a teapot)

ONE replaces the noun here since it was already mentioned before.

English QUIZ

Fill in the blanks with the appropriate word SOME/ANY/A/AN/ONE:

1. I need to buy some plates. I don’t have _________.
2. Can I borrow a cup? I don’t have ____________.
3. You need some shampoo. You don’t have _________.
4. They can take an egg. They don’t have __________.
5. We need _________ sugar. We don’t have any.
6. Her mom would like to borrow ___ platter. She doesn’t have one.
7. Please give your brother ___ apple. He doesn’t have one.

ANSWERS

1. 1. any, 2. one, 3. any, 4. one, 5. some, 6. a, 7. an

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The reality is that native English speakers don’t use one much, even when they refer to a number. When there is just one thing to count they basically ignore the numbers and simply use the indefinite article a or an, for example:

“I’ll have a pint of Guiness, a gin and tonic and two Cokes, please.” (notice that for Cokes the number was used – two – since the person wanted more than one)

“He was away for a week.”
“She’ll be back in a minute.”
“We’re closing the office for a day.”

If you want to make yourself clear, and emphasize a single item, use the numeral one, as in:

“He was away for one week and the whole system collapsed without him.”
“She estimated around one thousand people turned up to the event, up 25% from last year.”

But the rest of the time, to sound really authentic in English, you can drop one in favor of a or an.

Some definitions and rules

A and an are called indefinite articles because they do not say anything specific about the words that follow. For example, think about the sentences, “I need a horse.” or “I’m eating an apple.” You’ll take any horse—just a horse will do. You are eating any apple. But if you say, “I need the horse,” or “I’m eating the apple” then you want a specific horse and you are eating a specific apple. That’s why the is called a definite article—you want something definite.

The rule is that you use a before words that start with a consonant sound and an before words that start with a vowel sound. For example:

“I have a bag.” (bag starts with consonant – b)

“I eat an egg every day.” (egg starts with vowel – e)

The letter “h” makes a vowel sound in some words such as an hour (“hour” starts with an “o” sound), and a consonant sound in other words, such as a historic monument (“historic” starts with a “h” sound).

One is called a numeral and it is used to count and to refer to a single item. For example:

“This is how you count to ten: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten.”

“I will buy just one bread for us.”

Quiz

Choose the correct option for each sentence below:

Answers

1. a, 2. one, 3. an, 4. a, 5. a, 6. you only have one interesting book about food (all the others are boring), 7. a, 8. a, 9. one, 10. a

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