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Tommy
Does "They have a pen" in English means there is only one pen for them?
Or does it means one pen for each of them?
2010년 9월 3일 오전 5:10
답변 · 5
1
Yes. They are in possession of exactly one pen. But there might be another pen in existence. If there is no other pen nearby, you say "They have the pen." For multiple pens in their possession you could say "They each have a pen."
2010년 9월 3일
(removed my comment)
2010년 9월 4일
A simple sentence has a lot meaning,,~ how funny English is ~
2010년 9월 4일
"A pen" is singular, so there is one pen to share between them.
"They have (some) pens" means there are several pens, but it's not clear if there are enough pens, or too many.
Christopher's example of "they each have a pen" means every person has their own pen. :)
2010년 9월 4일
I think all of them have a one pen only !!
2010년 9월 3일
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Tommy
언어 구사 능력
중국어(북경어), 영어, 한국어
학습 언어
영어, 한국어
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