Dear Gurus,

In my daughter's English text book, we can find the following questions and answers:

1. What kind of life does Jill want? - She wants an ordinary life.

2. What kind of a life will they have together? - We'll have an ordinary life together.

As I know, 'What kind of water...' doesn't need 'a' (because 'water' here is an uncountable noun), but 'What kind of a book...' needs 'a' ('cause 'book' is a countable noun).

So, the question is: why in those (1) and (2) examples from the textbook, (1) is 'kind of life' but (2) is kind of a life?
I think, both (1) and (2) are OK because 'life' can be, in different contexts, understood as a countable and an uncountable noun). Am I right? And if so, why in the textbook they use both variants in exactly same context?

Thank you!

Question

Dear Gurus,

In my daughter's English text book, we can find the following questions and answers:

1. What kind of life does Jill want? - She wants an ordinary life.

2. What kind of a life will they have together? - We'll have an ordinary life together.

As I know, 'What kind of water...' doesn't need 'a' (because 'water' here is an uncountable noun), but 'What kind of a book...' needs 'a' ('cause 'book' is a countable noun).

So, the question is: why in those (1) and (2) examples from the textbook, (1) is 'kind of life' but (2) is kind of a life?
I think, both (1) and (2) are OK because 'life' can be, in different contexts, understood as a countable and an uncountable noun). Am I right? And if so, why in the textbook they use both variants in exactly same context?

Thank you!

Answer

You are correct that "life" can be both a countable and an uncountable noun, depending on the context in which it is used. In the examples you provided, "kind of life" and "kind of a life" are both grammatically correct and convey slightly different meanings.

In the first example, "kind of life" is used to refer to the general quality or type of life that Jill desires. This is an example of "life" being used as an uncountable noun, where it refers to the concept of life in general rather than a specific instance of it.

In the second example, "kind of a life" is used to refer to a specific instance or version of life that the speakers will have together. This is an example of "life" being used as a countable noun, where it refers to a particular version or example of life.

It's possible that the textbook uses both variants to illustrate the different ways in which "life" can be used, and to highlight the nuances in meaning that can arise from its usage. Additionally, the choice of which variant to use might depend on the particular context and the speaker's intended meaning.