[wanabidii] Re: English Grammar

On Sunday, 9 June 2013 03:36:16 UTC+3, Maurice Oduor wrote:

Lately, I've been noticing some common mistakes in Kenyan newspapers and I simply can not resist sharing them here with you. These are things that used to cause me a lot headaches all through Primary and Secondary schools.

What's the difference between these 2 sentences?  Please explain.

I asked a Chief to arrest the people who were encroaching on my land.

I asked the Chief to arrest the people who were encroaching on my land.

For most people, especially with university education, this should not be a problem. But some of our print journalists have been using a and the interchangeably, I guess, without thinking about then keenly.

Courage
 

Courage,
I only contribute on non political matters. "the chief" refers to a known chief while " a chief " means any chief.
Thank you sir.
Odipo

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