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jmcquown[_2_]

On 6/26/2018 4:28 PM, l not -l wrote:
> On 26-Jun-2018, lid (ciavelillse)
> wrote:
>
>> Hi there!
>>
>> I've seen both forms but I cannot distinguish when do we use the
>> article before the object.
>>
>> My parents weren't cooking dinner.
>> My parents weren't cooking the dinner. >
> Maybe it's like hospital. In UK they say, "in hospital", in US we say "in
> the hospital". Maybe it's as simple as nations being separated by a common
> language. 8-)
>
Oh good! A summer school assignment! Here's a clue for the OP. No one
in normal conversation actually breaks down the parts of speech into
articles and objects. No one, other than a teacher, actually cares
about dangling participles.

The real question on this NG is did his/her parents cook dinner and if
so, what? If not, why not?