×
INTELLIGENT WORK FORUMS
FOR ENGINEERING PROFESSIONALS

Log In

Come Join Us!

Are you an
Engineering professional?
Join Eng-Tips Forums!
  • Talk With Other Members
  • Be Notified Of Responses
    To Your Posts
  • Keyword Search
  • One-Click Access To Your
    Favorite Forums
  • Automated Signatures
    On Your Posts
  • Best Of All, It's Free!
  • Students Click Here

*Eng-Tips's functionality depends on members receiving e-mail. By joining you are opting in to receive e-mail.

Posting Guidelines

Promoting, selling, recruiting, coursework and thesis posting is forbidden.

Students Click Here

Jobs

Articule

Articule

(OP)
I worked for a structural and civil engineering consulting firm in the position of (an) Assistant Engineer for 5 years

Question: Do I have need "an" before the Assistant Engineer?

Thanks

RE: Articule

In that context, no. ("Assistant Engineer" is the title of the position)

If you change the context slightly, say to "For five years, I worked as (an) Assistant Engineer for a structural....", then the "an" changes the sense.  You would normally put it in, unless you meant to imply that were the firm's only Assistant Engineer.

A.

RE: Articule

or ...

"For five years, I held the position of 'Assistant Engineer' with a structural and civil engineering firm".

An 'an' would not be needed (IMO) in that structure, whether it was the lone position, or one of many.


Helpful SW websites  FAQ559-520
How to get answers to your SW questions  FAQ559-1091

RE: Articule

I think I'd leave out the quotes in CorBlimeyLimey's example.

Hg

Eng-Tips policies:  FAQ731-376

RE: Articule

Agreed ... I have a bad habit of overusing quotes.

Well, I've gotta have one bad habit, eh?


Helpful SW websites  FAQ559-520
How to get answers to your SW questions  FAQ559-1091

RE: Articule

(OP)
Thanks...

Can I have one more question?

To prepare myself for career development in (the) bridge engineering, I have been reading a wide range of bridge design reference books, ranging from (the) segmental bridge to cable stayed bridge.

Could you please advise me whether these two articles "the" are needed?

Thanks......................

RE: Articule

How about;

"To prepare for career development in bridge engineering, I have been reading (studying) reference books ranging from  segmental, to cable-stayed, bridge design."


Helpful SW websites  FAQ559-520
How to get answers to your SW questions  FAQ559-1091

RE: Articule

(OP)
Thank you very much indeed.

Could you explain why the article is not necessary????

Steve

RE: Articule

CorBlimeyLimey - Why do you a comma between 'segmental' and 'to', and why is there a comma between 'cable-stayed', and 'bridge'?

steveyeung - Articles should only be used with countable nouns.  Engineering is not a countable noun, (How many engineerings do you have?); therefore, you should not use an article.

If you do have a countable noun, then the choice between the definite article 'the' and the indefinite article 'a' is based on whether you mean a specific instance of the noun or a general use of the noun.

The bridge - a specific bridge
A bridge - any bridge

Good Luck
--------------
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

RE: Articule

(OP)
CajunCenturion

Thank you for your explanation. However, I have another question: I want to stress that my focus is on bridge engineering field only but not geotechnical, building..... Do I have to use articule "the"???

RE: Articule

Article usage has nothing to do with emphasis placement.  Article usage is determined by the nature of the noun.  If the noun is countable, then you must use an article, unless the noun is both plural and not specific in context.  If the noun is not-countable, then you don't use an article unless it's both plural and specific in context, in which case, you may  use the the definite article 'the'.

Your noun, engineering, is neither countable nor plural, so it would be wrong to use an article with it.

Good Luck
--------------
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

RE: Articule

CajunCenturion ... Habit! I punctuate according to the way I speak the sentence. I place a comma where I pause when speaking the sentence. If it sounds correct, it usually is!

Is it not correct to  separate a list with commas?
e.g. "from segmental, to cable-stayed, to xxx, to xxx"

I'm sure you can tell from my previous posts, that English grammar was not my best subject in school. When people talk about split infinitives, articles, dangling participles, etc, my eyes tend to glaze over & drool begins to form.


Helpful SW websites  FAQ559-520
How to get answers to your SW questions  FAQ559-1091

RE: Articule

Yes, it is proper to separate items in a list, provided there are at least three items in the list.  In your original sentence, there is only one range (from segmental to cable-stayed).

If you want to have a list of ranges, then I suppose you could have "from A to B, from A to C, and from A to D".

If you want to have a list of destinations from a common source, then it might be "from A to B, to C, and to D".  In this case, each list item is a "to destination", and it's not necessary to put a comma before the first item in the list, nor is there any need for a comma after the last item in the list.

Good Luck
--------------
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

RE: Articule

The ',' before the 'and' in a list is called the Oxford comma, in some circles.

I was told not to use it at school, but it represents how I talk in some circumstances, so I use it to add emphasis to certain parts of the list

Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

RE: Articule

I the Oxford comma.  I think there's a thread about it elsewhere in this forum.

I think in the "from A to B to C to D" construction, where one really means "things like A, B, C, and D", rather than a set of vectors, I have not typically seen commas.  Then again, in my mind the canonical version of that construction has only two items in it--"From A to B" means "A, B, and everything in between".  Adding more items makes it a list of examples rather than an expression of a range, and the "to" seems no longer appropriate.  But that's a personal preference and I will not win this one.

Hg

Eng-Tips policies:  FAQ731-376

RE: Articule

I too am a fan of the Oxford (or series) comma and always use it, but that is a separate issue.

I don't like the "from A to B, to C, and to D" construct either because I think it leads to confusion.  With the commas, an item list is created, and I would interpret it as three separate destinations, meaning from A to B, from A to C, and from A to D.

Without the commas, I would interpret "from A to B to C and to D" as a continuation, meaning from A to B, from B to C, and from C to D.  In either case, I think it could easily be misinterpreted, so I would reword it.

Good Luck
--------------
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

Red Flag This Post

Please let us know here why this post is inappropriate. Reasons such as off-topic, duplicates, flames, illegal, vulgar, or students posting their homework.

Red Flag Submitted

Thank you for helping keep Eng-Tips Forums free from inappropriate posts.
The Eng-Tips staff will check this out and take appropriate action.

Reply To This Thread

Posting in the Eng-Tips forums is a member-only feature.

Click Here to join Eng-Tips and talk with other members!


Resources