Unique Items

• There are several things which are said to be unique in that only one example of them (or one set of them) exists. Here are some words which belong to this group:

the devil the north pole the solar system the universe

the earth the planets the south pole the weather

the equator the pope the stars the world

the moon the sky the sun

• In some ways unique nouns are like proper nouns which also typically refer to only one item or set of items. And there is a tendency to use a capital letter with some of them (especially ‘devil’, ‘earth’, ‘equator’, ‘north pole’, ‘south pole’ and ‘pope’), as with proper nouns.

  • ...a human being possessed by the Devil.

  • ...on the surface of the Earth.

• However, it is not true to say that all these nouns only occur with the definite article. You can use most of them (but not ‘earth’ or ‘weather’) with the indefinite article or as plurals. If you talk of ‘a sun’ or ‘a moon’, you may be talking about another sun or moon elsewhere in the universe, or you may be trying to give a particular impression of ours:

  • ...under a still-warm October sun.

  • The moons, too, rapidly grew larger.

• ‘Earth’ is very often used with a zero article, especially after ‘on’.

  • ...the smallest nation on earth.

Exercise 1. In the following sentences insert articles where necessary and comment on their functions.

1. He must have looked up at __ unfamiliar sky through frightening leaves and shivered as he found what a grotesque thing a rose is and how raw the sunlight was upon the scarcely created grass. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

2. __ universe is duly in order, everything in its place. (W. Whitman)

3. The clouds left us at Exeter, they rolled away behind us, leaving __ great blue sky above our heads and __ white road in front of us. (D. du Maurier)

4. I was glad to see __ sun, for in superstitious fashion I looked upon rain as __ omen of ill-will, and __ leaden skies of London had made me silent. (D. du Maurier)

5. __ earth and its resources belong of right to its people. (G. Pinchot)

6. The houses were white shells in a rounded grotto, pricked here and there by __ great orange sun. (D. du Maurier)

7. Out in their car under __ harvest moon he talked brokenly. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

8. The only fence against __ world is a thorough knowledge of it. (J. Locke)

9. Above my head __ pale sun tried to penetrate __ heavy sky. (D. du Maurier)

10. The theory seems to be that as long as a man is a failure he is one of God’s children, but that as soon as he succeeds he is taken over by __ Devil. (H.L. Mencken)

11. It was too early for __ moon. __ sky I could see through the open doors was inky black with only a few stars. I was in a hell of panic as I forced myself out from under the car. (J.H. Chase)

12. And if there’s __ heaven above, he’ll be there, and will lie up against me so I can sleep. (D.H. Lawrence)

13. __ Montana sunset lay between two mountains like a gigantic bruise from which dark arteries spread themselves over __ poisoned sky. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

14. They lingered for a moment just below the stoop, watching __ moon that seemed full of snow float out of the distance where the lake lay. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

15. Every solar system has __ sun.

16. __ early moon had drenched the arches with __ pale blue, and weaving over __ night, in and out of the gossamer rifts of moon, swept a song, a song with more than a hint of sadness, infinitely transient infinitely regretful. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

17. Under his feet __ thick, iron-stunned skylight turned yellow. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

18. He was a Georgian, with the peculiarly regular, even stenciled ideas of Southerners who are educated in __ North. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

19. __ white sun, chivied of outline by __ white sky, boomed over __ windless day. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

20. The wet salt breeze filled his hair with moisture, the rim of __ moon seared __ sky and made the curtained dim and ghostly. He fell asleep. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

21. Afterward he walked through the dull ache of __ setting sun when even the clouds seemed bleeding and at twilight he came to a graveyard. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

22. The moon floated in __ cloudless sky, shedding its light on the sampans and the small roaring boats that still moved on the river. (J.H. Chase)

23. I’ve had enough experience to know that there is __ God and that there is __ Devil. But the way to tame __ Devil is not to go down there to church and listen to what a sinful mean fool he is. No, love __ Devil like you do Jesus…

24. At the station he saw __ star he knew, and __ cold moon bright over Chesapeake Bay; he heard the rasping wheels of buckboards turning, the lovely fatuous voices, the sound of sluggish primeval rivers flowing softly under soft Indian names. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

25. She swam at the villa, under __ warm Mediterranean sun, and at night lay in her bed listening to the mournful sound of the singing rocks, as the wind gently blew through them. (S. Sheldon)

26. With the storm came __ dark, frightening sky and savage filaments of lightning and world-splitting thunder, while ragged, destroying clouds fled along past the hotel. (F. Sc. Fitzgerald)

27. We don’t know how old __ universe is.

28. __ equator runs round the middle of __ earth.

29. The swaying he had noticed in her walk was in her playing too, and the Nocturne she had chosen, and the soft darkness of her eyes, the light on her hair, as of moonlight from __ golden moon.

30. Wherever man and woman are present, __ devil is the third. (H. Fielding)