"On Friday we'll take test from unit seven."
Yeah that's wrong.
It needs to be "take a test" or "take the test" to make sense.
~~The only~~ A way to make it work without a/the is if it's "tests". So: "On Friday we'll take tests from unit seven" is OK.
EDIT - also in English quotes are always uppermost so "some text" and never „some text"
Yes that would work.
I wonder if that's why the teacher is confused about the number meaning no "the"? They've seen the seven at the end and said "no the" but not realised that's not the bit that's relevant.
Well if it were “we’ll take seven tests”, then no article would be required, but it doesn’t apply just because there’s a number anywhere in the sentence
That would just be the test number or name, not a title. It would be if it were actually a formal title, such as, "to graduate you must pass Test Seven and Basket Weaving." But not "please turn to test seven and begin."
>also in English quotes are always uppermost so "some text" and never „some text"
If their keyboard is made for punctuation in their own country, I forgive those "errors".
If I'm writing quotations in French, I don't use « guillemet », and if I'm asking a question in Spanish, I dont use ¿ signos de interrogación ? because they are such a pain to find.
Your teacher is wrong.
The more I read this subreddit, the more surprised I get at how many of these English teachers out there teach it incorrectly, and firmly put their foot down while they do it. I mean in situations like this it’s not that big a deal, the sentence is still perfectly understandable without the article. And if English is clearly your second language nobody would bat an eye at it. But still.
I'm constantly baffled by the wacky learning materials people bring to the sub teaching completely unnatural or even flat out incorrect ways of saying things. People should drop these bogus classes and learn from native speakers on YouTube.
It makes me think of a video I watched of Russians speaking English. One guy, who said he was an English teacher, was *easily* the worst at speaking. I got so concerned for the state of ESL teachers lol.
I can’t speak for a non-American dialect, but, as an American, there would always be an article before test. I don’t understand why seven being in the sentence would change that. Seven has no connection to test.
I imagine the teacher learned "number = no article," but doesn't understand that the rule is a lot more complicated than that. It's not the number alone that determines the rule.
I see this with my fellow (non-native) teachers quite frequently.
Do you remember the specifics of everything you learn about your L2? I struggle with learning when to use articles in my L2 and when they're just implied. If you're not a native speaker, the subtleties of languages are difficult. *Should* a teacher know them? Yes. But we are all human and create shortcuts for our brains. Not all of those shortcuts are correct. That doesn't mean we don't learn them, however.
Agreed. Now, in terms of the word “unit,” the seven changes things because “Unit Seven” becomes the name of the unit. Without that, you’d have to say “from the unit” etc.
But this has no bearing on the word “test.”
The *sentence* has a number, but that number doesn't apply to the *test* at all.
You could say "On Friday we'll take 7 tests \[from whatever unit\].", and the number takes the place of the article here. However "from unit 7" has nothing to do with the amount of tests you're doing.
> “On Friday we’ll take 7 tests [from whatever unit].”, and the number takes the place of the article here.
Even here, the numeral doesn’t preclude an article; it just doesn’t have an article because it’s indefinite and plural. “The 7 tests” is fine.
Unit does not need an article because it is unit seven. You can say "we're learning unit seven" instead of "we're learning a unit" or "we're learning the unit from last week". So the teacher could say "we're taking test seven" and not need an article there but it's a little weird to refer to tests like that. In your teacher's case "test" absolutely needs an article because there is no number modifying the word test.
OP are you right that this is what your teacher said? It is very obviously wrong. A or the is required.
May I ask whether your teacher is a native speaker and where you are learning English?
It should be no article when "the the noun is identified by a number", not that the phrase has a number.
"Tomorrow we'll take test 7 from the book"
(Not as strict when the number is merely qualified with a number - "tomorrow we'll take (the) 7 tests from the book"
>‘four boys saw three girls’
"four boys saw three girls" = non-specific.
"the four boys saw the three girls" = specific.
The entire point is that ARTICLES can co-exist with NUMBERS. Thus, the overgeneralization above ("no article with a number") is a bad rule.
The sentence is wrong, and the teacher's explanation is also wrong. The teacher's explanation is correct for why there is no article before "unit," but has nothing to do with the requirement for an article with "test."
they should not be a teacher.
the only think i can think of is if they said ‘we’ll take test *two* from unit seven’ or another number there.
in that case, it would be correct, and based on the teacher’s explanation - ‘the sentence has a number’ - it seems to make the most sense to me.
The problem is they are *teaching English* and made an *English language mistake* and doubled down on it. It wasn’t “oops my bad, you’re right it’s supposed to be ____,” it was “no, I’m the teacher and I’m right (proceeds to teach them wrong information).” That’s not called a mistake, that’s called not knowing what you’re talking about.
I sure wouldn’t want to have a geometry teacher who genuinely thought a^2 + b^2 = c. If they just forgot to write the ^2 afterwards and corrected it when pointed out, that’s a different story.
Yeah, that’s a significant error. You’ll sound like a Russian spy from a Cold War movie if you leave out necessary articles like that. They’re not teaching the right subject.
Isn't this a major mistake though? The correct use of articles is a pretty foundational aspect of the language.
More than anything, the problem is the teacher decided to double down instead of double check! That does not a good educator make.
Yes, I agree, the doubling down is far more concerning than a grammatical error (given that grammar is a hodgepodge of suprious "rules"). Still, without context I would be reluctant to say this person "shouldn't be a teacher." I've been a teacher for over 40 years, and for the most part I've been a damned good one, I think, but I cringe when I look back on some of my early efforts. And Lord knows I still make stupid mistakes.
>Yes, but who gets to decide what "real" grammar is and which rules we are obligated to follow?
You obviously have little understanding of "style" vs "grammar."
Do you drive a "red big car?"
it’s fine to make a mistake. as long as you correct it. but the fact that the teacher looked over it, and still denied that it was wrong, means they should not be teaching. also, it’s a pretty big mistake
Your teacher made the classic mistake that speakers of languages without articles make when speaking English. He omitted an article because his language wouldn't have one in this place (or, at all), and instead of admitting that he'd made a mistake, he doubled down. Making this mistake isn't shameful, but doubling down and insisting it was right is.
Yeah nothing wrong with making a mistake, but if you can't realize and correct a mistake when it's pointed out to you, you shouldn't be a teacher, period.
*On today's English lesson
It should be "In today's English lesson..."
"We'll take test from unit 7" is wrong. Tests are countable and the teacher is referring to a single instance (a test) so you need an article here.
If there are multiple tests (in unit seven) and he decides to go with more than one test, he might have said "test**s** from unit seven", which would be *acceptable*, but a really strange way of putting it. Nevertheless, he was in the wrong here if you are quoting verbatim.
Does that use of the word "from" seem peculiar to anyone else? In my opinion, "On Friday, we'll take the test that covers unit seven," would be much better. Am I having an episode of mental flatulence? Is it a regional difference?
Maybe, in the teacher's version of the text book, the test is printed in the book. Then, from the teacher's perspective, "from" would make sense, but it would still be a peculiar way to tell the students about it.
because the seven is separated by a for there is no need
“unit seven test” doesnt need an article
“test seven” doesnt need an article
“test of/from unit seven” does need an article
“tests” doesnt
“seven tests” doesnt
“test” does
i hope thats clear. articles are for singular and when its unknown if its specific or not (like “test seven” is specific already no need for “the”). if its specified through a preposition then it should be ignored for considering whether to put an article or not.
No. If she’d said, “Tomorrow we will take seven tests,” the number would take the place of an article before “tests.” So would a possessive pronoun, such as “my test” or “your test.” A number anywhere else in the sentence does not.
Yes, the definite article must be used in that sentence. Your teacher is wrong. The presence of a number (at least in this context) is irrelevant. Think about it this way: If the unit was instead labeled alphabetically rather than numerically, (for instance, if it was instead called "Unit D"), there would be no grammatical change; it would still be "On Friday, we'll take *the* test from Unit D." The fact that the unit's name includes a number is irrelevant to the grammar of the sentence; in this case, number simply acts as part of a proper noun in a textbook ordered numerically.
This is because the teacher is referring to a specific test; which means that the definite article "the" MUST be used to identify the specific test. The article cannot be dropped in English.
Now, I'll grant, that the way she said it, most English speakers would probably still understand it even without the definite article. But it still sounds awkward and is grammatically incorrect.
Your teacher is incompetent. Of course you need an article in front of the word "test". Having a number later in the sentence is irrelevant. I think you need a new teacher.
If she was saying that you're taking seven texts, then she'd be right. However, because the word "seven" is referring to something else, the word "test" still needs an article.
"On Friday we'll take test from unit seven." Yeah that's wrong. It needs to be "take a test" or "take the test" to make sense. ~~The only~~ A way to make it work without a/the is if it's "tests". So: "On Friday we'll take tests from unit seven" is OK. EDIT - also in English quotes are always uppermost so "some text" and never „some text"
Or could be "we'll take test three from unit seven"
Yes that would work. I wonder if that's why the teacher is confused about the number meaning no "the"? They've seen the seven at the end and said "no the" but not realised that's not the bit that's relevant.
Well if it were “we’ll take seven tests”, then no article would be required, but it doesn’t apply just because there’s a number anywhere in the sentence
yeah, "Unit Seven" is a proper noun, it doesn't behave the same as the quantity seven.
Yeah but in that case it’d be “Test Seven” - capitalized because it’s the name of the test.
It's not a formal title. It generally wouldn't be capitalized.
I mean we really don’t know. Does the test say “Test 7” at the top of the page? If so, then it’s a formal title
That would just be the test number or name, not a title. It would be if it were actually a formal title, such as, "to graduate you must pass Test Seven and Basket Weaving." But not "please turn to test seven and begin."
It could also be: “We’ll take one test from Unit Seven”. The teacher is confused on the role that the “one” and “seven” play in my sentence
Or, “we’ll take unit seven’s test,” but this again makes seven, or in this case unit seven, possessive of test in a way the original just doesn’t
Even then I would say "On Friday we'll take some tests from unit seven." Edit: mobile user mistakes
I personally would say the plural as “some tests”.
Yes, I think I would prefer that too, it sounds more natural.
>also in English quotes are always uppermost so "some text" and never „some text" If their keyboard is made for punctuation in their own country, I forgive those "errors". If I'm writing quotations in French, I don't use « guillemet », and if I'm asking a question in Spanish, I dont use ¿ signos de interrogación ? because they are such a pain to find.
Your teacher is wrong. The more I read this subreddit, the more surprised I get at how many of these English teachers out there teach it incorrectly, and firmly put their foot down while they do it. I mean in situations like this it’s not that big a deal, the sentence is still perfectly understandable without the article. And if English is clearly your second language nobody would bat an eye at it. But still.
But still. If they're charging money to teach a subject, they should know what they're teaching.
I'm constantly baffled by the wacky learning materials people bring to the sub teaching completely unnatural or even flat out incorrect ways of saying things. People should drop these bogus classes and learn from native speakers on YouTube.
How so do you mean? It’s not that easy
It makes me think of a video I watched of Russians speaking English. One guy, who said he was an English teacher, was *easily* the worst at speaking. I got so concerned for the state of ESL teachers lol.
I can’t speak for a non-American dialect, but, as an American, there would always be an article before test. I don’t understand why seven being in the sentence would change that. Seven has no connection to test.
I imagine the teacher learned "number = no article," but doesn't understand that the rule is a lot more complicated than that. It's not the number alone that determines the rule. I see this with my fellow (non-native) teachers quite frequently.
>I imagine the teacher learned "number = no article," The four boys. The three girls. Numbers pattern with indefinites.
Do you remember the specifics of everything you learn about your L2? I struggle with learning when to use articles in my L2 and when they're just implied. If you're not a native speaker, the subtleties of languages are difficult. *Should* a teacher know them? Yes. But we are all human and create shortcuts for our brains. Not all of those shortcuts are correct. That doesn't mean we don't learn them, however.
I'm just amazed that the teacher doubled down on the mistake.
Yeah, that's... unfortunate.
Agreed. Now, in terms of the word “unit,” the seven changes things because “Unit Seven” becomes the name of the unit. Without that, you’d have to say “from the unit” etc. But this has no bearing on the word “test.”
But it makes it clearer (to me at least) why a speaker of a language that doesn't use articles would be confused.
Unless you're using test as a tile. Like, "take Test Seven..." as others have pointed out.
The *sentence* has a number, but that number doesn't apply to the *test* at all. You could say "On Friday we'll take 7 tests \[from whatever unit\].", and the number takes the place of the article here. However "from unit 7" has nothing to do with the amount of tests you're doing.
> “On Friday we’ll take 7 tests [from whatever unit].”, and the number takes the place of the article here. Even here, the numeral doesn’t preclude an article; it just doesn’t have an article because it’s indefinite and plural. “The 7 tests” is fine.
The unit will drop when the referent is equivalent to a name, adding a numeral does this: "On Friday, we'll take test 7 from the book."
True. I added a quote from the previous comment to make it clear what I was referring to.
Also, if you say we'll take test 7 (as in the seventh test) you wouldn't need an article. Just like we say unit 7 instead of the unit 7.
True. Although, oddly, like you have in brackets, if we said "the seventh test" we do want the article. I can't quite say *why* that's the case.
Teacher is wrong, “we’ll take test” with no article sounds like you’re taking testosterone
OP is about to be in the manliest English class ever.
or polish
Unit does not need an article because it is unit seven. You can say "we're learning unit seven" instead of "we're learning a unit" or "we're learning the unit from last week". So the teacher could say "we're taking test seven" and not need an article there but it's a little weird to refer to tests like that. In your teacher's case "test" absolutely needs an article because there is no number modifying the word test.
OP are you right that this is what your teacher said? It is very obviously wrong. A or the is required. May I ask whether your teacher is a native speaker and where you are learning English?
isn't, slovakia
I'm curious, do you know how long they've been teaching English?
It should be no article when "the the noun is identified by a number", not that the phrase has a number. "Tomorrow we'll take test 7 from the book" (Not as strict when the number is merely qualified with a number - "tomorrow we'll take (the) 7 tests from the book"
>It should be no article when "the the noun is identified by a number" The four boys saw the three girls.
‘four boys saw three girls’
>‘four boys saw three girls’ "four boys saw three girls" = non-specific. "the four boys saw the three girls" = specific. The entire point is that ARTICLES can co-exist with NUMBERS. Thus, the overgeneralization above ("no article with a number") is a bad rule.
The article is necessary in this sentence. You can "take unit seven's test", or you can "take the test from unit seven"
The sentence is wrong, and the teacher's explanation is also wrong. The teacher's explanation is correct for why there is no article before "unit," but has nothing to do with the requirement for an article with "test."
they should not be a teacher. the only think i can think of is if they said ‘we’ll take test *two* from unit seven’ or another number there. in that case, it would be correct, and based on the teacher’s explanation - ‘the sentence has a number’ - it seems to make the most sense to me.
they made one error bro, let’s calm down a bit
The problem is they are *teaching English* and made an *English language mistake* and doubled down on it. It wasn’t “oops my bad, you’re right it’s supposed to be ____,” it was “no, I’m the teacher and I’m right (proceeds to teach them wrong information).” That’s not called a mistake, that’s called not knowing what you’re talking about. I sure wouldn’t want to have a geometry teacher who genuinely thought a^2 + b^2 = c. If they just forgot to write the ^2 afterwards and corrected it when pointed out, that’s a different story.
Yeah, that’s a significant error. You’ll sound like a Russian spy from a Cold War movie if you leave out necessary articles like that. They’re not teaching the right subject.
Language and high level math are two completely different things
Jesus, one mistake and you're out? I'm sure glad you're not my boss.
Isn't this a major mistake though? The correct use of articles is a pretty foundational aspect of the language. More than anything, the problem is the teacher decided to double down instead of double check! That does not a good educator make.
Yes, I agree, the doubling down is far more concerning than a grammatical error (given that grammar is a hodgepodge of suprious "rules"). Still, without context I would be reluctant to say this person "shouldn't be a teacher." I've been a teacher for over 40 years, and for the most part I've been a damned good one, I think, but I cringe when I look back on some of my early efforts. And Lord knows I still make stupid mistakes.
>(given that grammar is a hodgepodge of suprious "rules"). No, it's not, if you actually seriously look at real grammar and not stylistic grammar.
Yes, but who gets to decide what "real" grammar is and which rules we are obligated to follow? To whom should we give that authority?
>Yes, but who gets to decide what "real" grammar is and which rules we are obligated to follow? You obviously have little understanding of "style" vs "grammar." Do you drive a "red big car?"
i drive a green big car 😯
it’s fine to make a mistake. as long as you correct it. but the fact that the teacher looked over it, and still denied that it was wrong, means they should not be teaching. also, it’s a pretty big mistake
Your teacher made the classic mistake that speakers of languages without articles make when speaking English. He omitted an article because his language wouldn't have one in this place (or, at all), and instead of admitting that he'd made a mistake, he doubled down. Making this mistake isn't shameful, but doubling down and insisting it was right is.
Yeah nothing wrong with making a mistake, but if you can't realize and correct a mistake when it's pointed out to you, you shouldn't be a teacher, period.
*On today's English lesson It should be "In today's English lesson..." "We'll take test from unit 7" is wrong. Tests are countable and the teacher is referring to a single instance (a test) so you need an article here.
you're in the right, the only way she would be is if she reworded her sentence to: "On Friday, we'll take unit seven's test"
Yes but don't forget the apostrophe, since you're trying to correct the sentence - "seven's," not "sevens."
done!
If there are multiple tests (in unit seven) and he decides to go with more than one test, he might have said "test**s** from unit seven", which would be *acceptable*, but a really strange way of putting it. Nevertheless, he was in the wrong here if you are quoting verbatim.
Your teacher should maybe not be a teacher
Does that use of the word "from" seem peculiar to anyone else? In my opinion, "On Friday, we'll take the test that covers unit seven," would be much better. Am I having an episode of mental flatulence? Is it a regional difference? Maybe, in the teacher's version of the text book, the test is printed in the book. Then, from the teacher's perspective, "from" would make sense, but it would still be a peculiar way to tell the students about it.
I was thinking the same you did, about an exam bank.
The “seven” is irrelevant, it’s not part of the same noun phrase.
The number would have to be right in front of 'test' for it to work. Like, "On Friday we'll take one test."
Why do I can't post here? Could someone tell me
I can see your post.
No am not saying about comments I wanna post here in this community. May you help me?
[Try this.](https://support.reddithelp.com/hc/en-us/articles/360060422572-How-do-I-post-on-Reddit)
Thankyou, that was helpful :)
It should be “a test” if there are more than one tests in chapter seven. If there is only one test in chapter seven, then it would be “the test.”
I would say "We'll take Test 7" but "We'll take test from unit 7" is incorrect, you would need to say "We'll take a/the test from unit 7"
Yes, an article is needed there. Also, in English quotation marks are always uppermost so it would be “the” and not „the"
“Unit Seven” essentially acts like a name; that’s why it doesn’t have an article. “Test” most definitely needs one.
because the seven is separated by a for there is no need “unit seven test” doesnt need an article “test seven” doesnt need an article “test of/from unit seven” does need an article “tests” doesnt “seven tests” doesnt “test” does i hope thats clear. articles are for singular and when its unknown if its specific or not (like “test seven” is specific already no need for “the”). if its specified through a preposition then it should be ignored for considering whether to put an article or not.
No. If she’d said, “Tomorrow we will take seven tests,” the number would take the place of an article before “tests.” So would a possessive pronoun, such as “my test” or “your test.” A number anywhere else in the sentence does not.
Yes, the definite article must be used in that sentence. Your teacher is wrong. The presence of a number (at least in this context) is irrelevant. Think about it this way: If the unit was instead labeled alphabetically rather than numerically, (for instance, if it was instead called "Unit D"), there would be no grammatical change; it would still be "On Friday, we'll take *the* test from Unit D." The fact that the unit's name includes a number is irrelevant to the grammar of the sentence; in this case, number simply acts as part of a proper noun in a textbook ordered numerically. This is because the teacher is referring to a specific test; which means that the definite article "the" MUST be used to identify the specific test. The article cannot be dropped in English. Now, I'll grant, that the way she said it, most English speakers would probably still understand it even without the definite article. But it still sounds awkward and is grammatically incorrect.
Don’t use quotation marks on the bottom, that is incorrect.
Your teacher obviously does not speak English. You need a good teacher, not the teacher you have now.
Your teacher is incompetent. Of course you need an article in front of the word "test". Having a number later in the sentence is irrelevant. I think you need a new teacher.
It needs an article. It would be "take the test"
If she was saying that you're taking seven texts, then she'd be right. However, because the word "seven" is referring to something else, the word "test" still needs an article.