# Articles and illnesses: cold, a cold or the cold? flu, a flu, or the flu? ... measles, mumps, ...



## sus4

Hi,

According to my dictionary, "catch cold" is prefered to "catch *a* cold" in AE; and "have *a* cold" is correct, while "have cold" is not. 

Is this true? Does anyone know why? "Catch a cold" is uncommon, but "catch *a* common cold" is correct. The use of the indefinite article confuses me at times.

<<Mod Note:  This thread is the result of merging several threads on the same topic.  Panj>>


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## panjandrum

Check out these threads:
Headache and the BE standard 

my tooth aches or hurts 

They won't resolve your confusion, but will reassure you that you are not alone in being confused


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## sus4

Hi panjandrum:

Thank you for the links; I just finished reading the threads.  It seems like I need to memorize both the most common usage of the indefinite article and exceptions each time I come across a word like "cold."


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## GenJen54

I realize a survey of one does not provide a concrete answer, but I've always said "catch a cold," despite what the dictionary says.

The only time I have ever heard "catch cold" (no article) is when my grandparents would use it. For example, my grandmother used to tell me:

_Don't go out with wet hair.  You'll catch cold. _

I can only assume that with successive generations, the article found its way back in.


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## Joelline

I agree with Genjen54.  I, too, always say "catch a cold'; however, I do hear both usages.


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## KittyCatty

In my opinion, "catch a cold" is actually a lot more common than "catch a common cold" - they're the same thing, so it's easier to leave out the adjective.


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## mjscott

Agree with KittyCatty and Joelline. I hear "catch a cold" a lot more often than "catch cold." I have never heard "catch a common cold."


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## panjandrum

It would be way beneath the dignity of anyone to be suffering from a _common_ cold.
Occasionally, the forms say "cold".
Usually they say acute rhinitis.
They NEVER say common cold!


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## CAMullen

I would imagine that the term "common cold" is similar to what the advertisements in the U.S. are currently calling "frequent heartburn" - as though the pain you are feeling at the moment near your solar plexus hurts more because it is "frequent."


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## maxiogee

My mother (born in Co. Tyrone in 1917) never cautioned us about catching a cold, or catching cold, we were told we'd "catch your death", or "catch your death of cold" whenever we dared to venture out without the parentally approved numbers of layers of garments on us.
Needless to say, while we did catch colds, none of us caught our death. _Parental overstatement_ again!


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## roniy

1)- " I have a flue"
   - "I caught a flue"

2) - " I am cooled"
   - " I have a cold"
   - " I caught a cold"

Thanks.


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## Moogey

roniy said:
			
		

> 1)- " I have the flue"
> - "I caught the flue"
> 
> 2) - " I am cooled"
> - " I have a cold"
> - " I caught a cold"
> 
> Thanks.


Hi!

Well actually, they're different. I'm don't have medical qualifications and I'd love to explain the difference to you, but I can't, so instead I will refer you to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Influenza (for the Flu) and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_cold (for the Cold)

Sorry I couldn't have explained it myself, but I'd hate to incorrectly characterize them. Anybody here have medical education? 

-M


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## JamesM

No, sorry... no medical education.  I just wanted to underline Moogey's spelling correction of "flu", not "flue."  There is such a thing as a flue in English.  It's the air channel in a chimney.  

As a bit of trivia, I can remember that "flu" used to be written quite often with an apostrophe in front of it, like this - 'flu.  I think this was to indicate it was a nickname for the full word "influenza".  That seems to have died out over my lifetime.


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## Tresley

I would say:

"I've got the flu" / "I've had the flu" and "I've got a cold" / "I've had a cold".

The difference between the two.........

Well, I have only ever had the flu once in my life, but I have had many, many colds.

When I had the flu I felt really, really dreadful.  I had no energy for days.  I couldn't get out of bed.  In short......I thought that I was about to die!!

With a cold, you can generally carry on doing things, but have to blow your nose from time to time!


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## Kräuter_Fee

The flu and a cold aren't the same thing.

The flu is a virus, if you get the influenza virus you got the flu.

You can get a cold because you caught cold weather or because of temperature differences.

The flu is much worse than a cold, if you get the flu you usually get a temperature, your back, your head and everything else hurts, sometimes you throw up, you can't eat and so on. A cold is simply sneezing and coughing.


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## panjandrum

Influenza is caused by a virus - one of many viruses.

A cold is also a virus infection - one of many viruses. 

They are different viruses, of course.


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## JamesM

I thought the question was about which was the most common way of saying you had a cold or the flu, not which illness was more common... but then, I've been known to miss the point entirely.


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## Kevman

1) I have the flu.
I get the flu.

2) I have a cold.
I catch a cold.
I catch cold.

For some reason I never seem to say that I 'catch' the flu, or that I 'get' a cold. I don't know why.


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## foxfirebrand

Nobody has answered this question!

In my experience people say "I had the flu" or "I had a 24-hour flu bug" or "I think i'm getting the flu"-- whenever they have a cold or other ailment that is really miserable.

In other words, people misuse the words, and they do it a _lot._ You don't get much sympathy for catching a cold, no matter how severe a cold it is. Say "the flu" and people are more likely to commiserate.

Almost forgot to answer!  Say _"I have a cold"_ when you have a cold, and _"I have the flu"_ when you have the flu.
.


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## Victoria32

foxfirebrand said:
			
		

> Nobody has answered this question!
> 
> In my experience people say "I had the flu" or "I had a 24-hour flu bug" or "I think i'm getting the flu"-- whenever they have a cold or other ailment that is really miserable.
> 
> In other words, people misuse the words, and they do it a _lot._ You don't get much sympathy for catching a cold, no matter how severe a cold it is. Say "the flu" and people are more likely to commiserate.
> 
> Almost forgot to answer! Say _"I have a cold"_ when you have a cold, and _"I have the flu"_ when you have the flu.
> .


 
This annoys me! Last year my son got the real 'flu, and he seriously suffered! People shouldn't take it lightly..


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## DavyBCN

Kevman said:
			
		

> 1) I have the flu.
> I get the flu.
> 
> 2) I have a cold.
> I catch a cold.
> I catch cold.
> 
> For some reason I never seem to say that I 'catch' the flu, or that I 'get' a cold. I don't know why.


 
I have flu is far more common in BE than I have *the* flu.


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## foxfirebrand

Victoria32 said:
			
		

> This annoys me! Last year my son got the real 'flu, and he seriously suffered! People shouldn't take it lightly..


Me too!  I've had the flu once in my life, in 1968.  I never say I have the flu when I have a cold.  Inflation isn't always a monetary problem, and it has to be fought on all fronts.

Not that a terrible cold is to be taken so lightly!  If we do, people are going to be tempted to say they have the flu!

I noted the post about BE usage-- in AE I think it's safe to say we always use the definite article.

We had a long and interesting thread on the indefinite article (or lack thereoo) with _toothache_ some time back.  Worth a read, I think.
.


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## desponia

What is the difference between flu and the flu, measles and the mesles, mumps and the mumps? Which ones we use when we talk about being ill with them?


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## Lemminkäinen

I'm not sure, but I can't really think of any phrases where you use the indefinite form (I'm sure it's possible in some way that escapes me at the moment though), but it seems to me the definite form is the most usual in phrases like:

*I've got the measles*

*He caught the flu

He has the mumps*


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## Ibi

Isn't it depending on what the illness is? 
I learned "He got A flu", "He has A flu" and not THE flu.


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## Giordano Bruno

Both "mumps" and "measles" referred originally to the symptoms, and so perhaps, originally required the definite article.  "Influenza" comes from Italian, I think, and refers to the influence of a comet and thus would have required a definite article.  Now that we think of them as specific diseases, the definite article is not necessary.  This is just a guess on my part.


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## Porteño

I've heard people say 'measles' and 'flu' with the definite article, but never 'mumps', but there seems to be no logical explanation therefor. Nowadays I think few people would use an article. As regards your thread Ibi, I've never heard the indefinite article used, at least by a native BE speaker.


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## elroy

In American English, you say "measles" and "mumps" (no article) but "*the* flu."


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## Hockey13

elroy said:


> In American English, you say "measles" and "mumps" (no article) but "*the* flu."


 
Agreed.


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## Tresley

In the UK I would say that we always say "He/she has got *the* flu".

Measles, mumps or whatever.....it's a different story.

Personally, I would not insert the definite article (THE). Simply say:

"He/she has got measles, mumps, chickenpox, rubella etc"

For a cold, it is always:

"He/she has got/caught *a* cold"

Hope this helps


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## Porteño

I think to say we always use '*the* flu' is a little presumptuous. I'm a native speaker and *never* use the article, or hardly ever. I certainly agree that 'cold' requires the indefinite article.


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## I_Love_Lamp

elroy said:


> In American English, you say &quot;measles&quot; and &quot;mumps&quot; (no article) but &quot;*the* flu.&quot;



Really?  I would definitely say "I've got the mumps/measles/flu" regardless of situation.


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## Tresley

Porteño said:


> I think to say we always use '*the* flu' is a little presumptuous. I'm a native speaker and *never* use the article, or hardly ever. I certainly agree that 'cold' requires the indefinite article.


 
So why are there currently adverts on British telly that say:

"So you don't get THE flu this winter, get a jab!" (NHS advert).

What part of the UK do you come from?


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## gaer

I_Love_Lamp said:


> Really? I would definitely say "I've got the mumps/measles/flu" regardless of situation.


I would too. This is all I ever heard. Could it be regional?

I would use "a flu" in this situation:

"There is a flu going around this year that seems especially nasty."

Results 1 - 10 of about 1,800 for "I have the mumps". 
Results 1 - 10 of about 1,090 for "I have mumps".


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## I_Love_Lamp

gaer said:


> I would too. This is all I ever heard. Could it be regional?
> 
> I would use &quot;a flu&quot; in this situation:
> 
> &quot;There is a flu going around this year that seems especially nasty.&quot;
> 
> Results 1 - 10 of about 1,800 for &quot;I have the mumps&quot;.
> Results 1 - 10 of about 1,090 for &quot;I have mumps&quot;.



 Perhaps it is regional, I'm originally from the US Northeast.  But I lived in Arizona for 4 years and I think it was still said the same.   Guess we're just weird


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## Porteño

Tresley, I did not say it was wrong to use '*the*', just presumptuous to say 'we *always* use it'. It's no surprise and there's absolutely nothing amiss with the NHS advert. For your information I'm from the SE.


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## Lucretia

My grammar books maintain that diseases have no articles except the flu.


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## elroy

I_Love_Lamp said:


> Perhaps it is regional, I'm originally from the US Northeast. But I lived in Arizona for 4 years and I think it was still said the same. Guess we're just weird


 No, I don't think you are.  Now that I think about it, "the mumps" and "the measles" don't sound so strange.  I guess both versions are acceptable.  I can't say I've ever used these words in speech since I've never had either of the diseases in question, and neither has anyone I know.  But I would say "I have chickenpox" (without an article). 

What I do know is that it's always "*the* flu" (in American English).


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## panjandrum

Lucretia said:


> My grammar books maintain that diseases have no articles except the flu.


That may be the way the trend is going, but it has not completely eradicated *the mumps*, *the measles* or *the chicken-pox*, and has absolutely no chance at all against *the common cold*.

Oh, yes, flu or the flu - both are commonly used here.


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## gaer

Lucretia said:


> My grammar books maintain that diseases have no articles except the flu.


At the time I was born, many of us in the US had the measles, the chickenpox and the mumps. We always used the article for these diseases.

There are many grammars for the English language. They do not always agree.


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## foxfirebrand

50+ years ago I had measles (both kinds), mumps and chickenpox.  Fortunately I never got smallpox.

That's the usage, as far as I'm concerned, and I agree with people who can't use _flu_ without the definite article, or _cold_ without the indefinite.

But it's one of those things that mutate and morph around in your mind the more you think about it, isn't it?  "The mumps" is starting to sound okay, but "measles" is still standing alone, even in expressions like "red measles" or 'German measles," which for aught I know aren't being used any more.  

"The chickenpox."  Nope, doesn't sound right to me.



			
				lucretia said:
			
		

> My grammar books maintain that diseases have no articles except the flu.


The plague.
The bends.
The clap-- or is that too slangy?

Speaking of STDs, I had to laugh at a scene in _The Andy Griffith Show._  Barney's girlfriend had fixed Andy up with a blind date, and she wasn't much into fun, entertainment, recreation-- or much of anything.  The other three people in the double date were coming up with suggestion after suggestion, and she wasn't about to have _any_ of them.  Also, she had a completely expressionless and deadpan delivery.  She was costumed primly and made up drably, with her hair pulled back extra tight in a "librarian" bun.

So Andy finally suggested a picnic.  In the most matter-of-fact tone, with no inflection whatsoever, she delivered her fall-off-the-chair line:  "Oh no, I _never_ go out in the sun.  It gives me the herpes."

So I guess the comment about regionalisms was very apt, and of course the sitcom I mentioned was also made over 40 years ago.
.
.


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## aviator_2

thank you for this links


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## gaer

foxfirebrand said:


> "The chickenpox." Nope, doesn't sound right to me.


Results 1 - 10 of about 126 for "I had the chicken pox when". 
Results 1 - 10 of about 360 for "I had chicken pox when".

Results 1 - 10 of about 64 for "I had the measles when".
Results 1 - 10 of about 40 for "I had measles when".

Results 1 - 10 of about 46 for "I had the mumps when".
Results 1 - 10 of about 105 for "I had mumps when". 

I had to be a bit "creative" to find a phrase that would exclude things such as "the measles vacine".


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## Porteño

*The *chickenpox is a new one for me. Altrhough I no longer use the article personally, I do recall that a long time ago people said *the* measles and *the* mumps but chickenpox, German measles, scarlet fever, tuberculosis, etc. never had an article attached. *The* pox (without the chicken) was used when it referred to STDs. (venereal diseases in my book - I'm old-fashioned sometimes and like to call a spade a spade.

I've just had a run through Yahoo:

flu         61,100,000
the flu   59,300,000

I've got flu        3,630,000
I've got the flu  3,680,000


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## gaer

Porteño said:


> *The* pox (without the chicken) was used when it referred to STDs. (venereal diseases in my book - I'm old-fashioned sometimes and like to call a spade a spade.


This is probably why "chicken pox" is usually written as two words. (This does not explain "smallpox" or why "smallpox" is used without an article.)
Results 1 - 10 of about 127,000 for chickenpox
Results 1 - 10 of about 1,810,000 for "chicken pox"


> I've just had a run through Yahoo:
> 
> flu 61,100,000
> the flu 59,300,000


Yahoo:
1 - 10 of about 603 for "I've got flu" - 0.36 sec. 
1 - 10 of about 11,500 for "I've got the flu" - 0.32 sec. 

Google:
Results 1 - 10 of about 2,940 for "I've got flu".
Results 1 - 10 of about 15,400 for "I've got the flu". 

I think you forgot to use quotes!

Searching for "hits" only indicates usage. It's only one factor. We all know that something that is wrong may be more common than what is right.

I am sure that I always heard "the measles" and "the mumps", but I'm only reporting what was used by my family at the time I was growing up in New York (state).

I still think we dealing with something that is, at the very least, regional.


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## Porteño

I suppose for the same reason as chickenpox. Regional and possibly personal also.


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## gaer

Porteño said:


> I suppose for the same reason as chickenpox. Regional and possibly personal also.


Even "chickenpox", the word itself, is an AE/BE problem. BE shows it as one word. AE shows it as two. I JUST found that out.

It seems that we are dealing with many factors.

It would be wonderful if we could search for usage in medical texts or ask for only "formal usage". So far the whole question of article vs. no article remains unanswered for the words "mumps", "measles" and "chickenpox/chicken pox".

The words specifically mentioned in the title of this thread are easier to analyze (analyse).


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## Porteño

These medical references might be of help:

Chickenpox - http://www.nhsdirect.nhs.uk/articles/article.aspx?articleID=97

Mumps - http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mumps/DS00125

Measles - http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/measles/DS00331

The flu - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000080.htm


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## bay jacob

HI. We say " a cold", " a headache", " a sore throat". why do we use "the" in the measles; and why don't we use any article for "flu" ?


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## french4beth

bay jacob said:


> HI. We say " a cold", " a headache", " a sore throat". why do we use "the" in the measles; and why don't we use any article for "flu" ?


Not sure why we use "the", but "measles" is plural. Also, the flu has multiple symptoms, so maybe that's why we use "the".


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## bay jacob

you say the flu has multiple symptoms ,but " a cold" also has multiple symptoms like weakness, stuffy nose, sore throat...


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## ilbisaac

"Despite years of medical advancements, researchers have yet to discover a cure for the common cold."

This sentence that I have just written is the only sort of statement I've heard that refers to the "common cold."


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## Q-cumber

*Jenikd43*

Can I say (informally) "I've cathced the flu"?


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## panjandrum

Q-cumber said:


> *Jenikd43*
> 
> Can I say (informally) "I've cathced  caught the flu"?


This question and its reply have been transported from the sick or ill thread to the catching flu, etc, thread - here.


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## mplsray

Q-cumber said:


> *Jenikd43*
> 
> Can I say (informally) "I've cathced the flu"?


 
A more likely use of the present perfect would be _I've come down with the flu._ If you use _catch,_ you'd be more likely to use the simple past: _I caught the flu._


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## Encolpius

Hello, do you know how to learn when to use zero, definite and indefinite article with reference to illnesses? Of course there are some sentences in grammar books, but since there are many illnesses I find it hard to decide when to use this and that article. Thanks. 

He had a cold. 
He had (the) measles. 
He had appendicitis.


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## ewie

Hello Encolpius.  I'd be surprised if there was an actual hard-and-fast _rule_ about this.
I'll just say this: it seems to me that the _commoner_ a disease or ailment, the more likely it is that you'll hear it with an article _(a cold, the measles, _etc._)_ ... and vice versa _(appendicitis, necrotic ulcerative gingivitis_, etc._).
_And that it's probably safer to leave articles out than it is to include them.

(Unless of course you're talking about a specific instance of an ailment, as in: _The gastroenteritis I had last year was nothing compared to this_.)


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## suzi br

I'm sure there isn't a "rule".  

I also notice that it might vary according to the context as well: 

She has bowel cancer. 

The cancer is growing.


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## Thomas Tompion

I think there's a tendency for people to use the definite article to create a comic effect - certain comic writers do use it.  Thurber's great-uncle Zenas caught the Chestnut blight in '66 and numerous horses in literature have gone down with the bots.  When Columbus brought back syphilis from the new world, it was known over Europe as the Great Spanish Pox and I can't think of anyone saying that they'd gone down just with pox.

So I'd say it depends a bit on the disease - I've never heard anyone say 'the cancer', for instance - and the tone in which you are talking about it.


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## suzi br

Thomas Tompion said:


> - I've never heard anyone say 'the cancer',


 

Well, I have!


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## pickarooney

I've often heard cancer referred to as '_the_ big C'. 

_What did your uncle die of?
The big C
Ohh, Cancer?
Nah, 'e drowned_


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## Thomas Tompion

suzi br said:


> Well, I have!


I should have been more specific, Suzi. I've heard people say things like: _he's genetically susceptible to the cancer which killed his father_. I take it you are saying that people say, for instance, _he's got the cancer_, or _he's got the lung cancer_, tout court. I see that Google supports you, by the way: there are many more hits for _he's got the cancer_ than for_ he's got cancer_.


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## bizengl

To use a good dictionary may help.

A cold  = countable noun  eg. an apple, a car etc.
measles, appendicitis= singular/uncountable noun though the words end with -es or -s  eg. cheese, butter etc.


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## suzi br

Actually I'm as surprised as you that people say he's got the cancer! The example I gave above was the sort of context I was thinking of.


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## Cagey

Here is another thread on the subject: cold, a cold or the cold? flu, a flu, or the flu?
It moves on to include discussions of other diseases: chickenpox, mumps, measles.

I believe there is at least one more, but I haven't been able to find it. I'll be back if I do.

Added:
On whether or not to use an article with various aches and pains, including headaches and stomach aches: Toothache - my tooth aches or hurts.

'fever' is countable?​


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## Encolpius

I know it is impossible to give an easy answer but the comments of natives are really big help, as e.g. ewie wrote it was safer not to use an article. Thanks.


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## ewie

As far as I can think just at the moment, _cold_ is the only one where you pretty much have to use an article, Encolpius.

(I say 'pretty much' because it's not always obligatory, e.g. _How are you feeling today? ~ Oh, rough, I'm still full of cold_ or _... full of *a* cold_.)


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## martaghavi

Hey guys, 
I have a grammatical question, can someone please tell me what's wrong with this sentence? 
"she has a flu"
it is grammatically incorrect and I think that the problem is with the article. am I correct??? ! but how can I correct it ?
Thank you


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## Hermione Golightly

You are correct. The sentence is wrong because the article should not be in it.
Take the article out.


HG


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## Cagey

The mistakes I am certain of are the lack of capital and punctuation.

She has a flu*.* 

Someone who speaks British English may have a different opinion, but in American English we use an article with _flu_.  Which article we use depends on what we want to say.  If we are thinking that there are several different kinds of flu, and she has one of them, we say it as you did:

She has a flu*. 

*If we are thinking of _flu_ as a certain kind of illness, we say:

She has the flu*.

*Added: As I was writing this, Hermione answered the question as to whether BE is different form AE in this. *
*


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## martaghavi

Cagey said:


> The mistakes I am certain of are the lack of capital and punctuation.
> 
> She has a flu*.*
> 
> Someone who speaks British English may have a different opinion, but in American English we use an article with _flu_.  Which article we use depends on what we want to say.  If we are thinking that there are several different kinds of flu, and she has one of them, we say it as you did:
> 
> She has a flu*.
> 
> *If we are thinking of _flu_ as a certain kind of illness, we say:
> 
> She has the flu*.
> 
> *Added: As I was writing this, Hermione answered the question as to whether BE is different form AE in this. *
> *


 
Thank you for you answers  but Cagey can you please tell me what is BE and AE ? I didn't understand the meaning of your added sentence. and at the end, you mean that the article shouldn't be taken out?


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## Cagey

I apologize for using the abbreviations.  Most abbreviations aren't allowed on the forum, but these are, and you will see them from time to time.

AE means American English.

BE means British English.  

You have different answers depending on whether you are learning British English or American English.  I speak American English, and in American English, an article is correct.  

Hermione speaks British English, and she said that you should not have  an article. It seems likely that you are being taught the rules of British English.  If so you should take the article out.  

Apart from the capital and punctuation, neither Hermione nor I saw any other possible errors in your sentence.


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## martaghavi

Thank you very  much


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## Porteño

I beg to differ with Hermione and it is probably because she hails from the north, although she says she lives in London (old habits never die) To the best of my knowledge, in the SE the definite article has always been used:

I've got *the* flu.


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## Cagey

Porteño said:


> I beg to differ with Hermione and it is probably because she hails from the north, although she says she lives in London (old habits never die) To the best of my knowledge, in the SE the definite article has always been used:
> 
> I've got *the* flu.


Oh dear, I am getting confused.  See these posts:      First       #*31*;   and then          #*36*.   Probably I'm reading them backwards or getting my wires crossed in some other way. 

I pity an English-learner who has to come up with one right answer.


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## Thomas Tompion

I suspect we just have to say that there are regional differences, but that in BE in general both of these are acceptable:

_I've got the flu_
_I've got flu._

My own view - I say both; not very often, thank goodness! - is that you are more likely to say _the flu_ when there is an epidemic and _flu_ when you seem to be an isolated case. I put this forward not as a rule, but as a slight tendency. I could say the one to one person and the other to another depending on how chirpy I was feeling; _the flu_ can be slightly jocular, as though you think recovery may be possible if not imminent.


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## panjandrum

From the other end of the BE world, I agree with Thomas T on both points. 
I hadn't thought of the choice depending partly on whether there is a lot of flu about, but I am sure that has a strong influence.


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## taked4700

Hi,

Let me ask about the difference between "catch a cold." and "catch cold."

What difference do you see between these two phrases?

I think that "have a cold" is idiomatic, but not "have cold".  I wonder why you don't say "I have cold."  Is this because 'catch' can mean to be in a certain situation?  Being in a situation could be considered as an abstract thing and doesn't necessarily  take articles.

In other words, you need to have something being concrete to possess it.  If you say 'have cold', you would feel you have something so ambiguous and think it would be a good idea to add a to make it felt more concrete.

Do you think this reasoning makes sense?

Thanks in advance.


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## owlman5

It makes some sense to me, Taked, but your best bet is to consider these statements as idioms.  "I have a cold" is an idiom meaning that I'm sick with a respiratory virus or something similar.

In the U.S. it's more common to say "She caught a cold", but other speakers use "she caught cold" idiomatically.


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## taked4700

Thank you, Owlman5.

As you pointed out, it would be more logical to think that languages consist of two layers.  One basic layer carries idioms used in a daily life and governs the daily expressions because everyone has the common experiences and this invites the need of the common way to express them as much as simply.  The other layer has logical terms which govern how to communicate with each other about complex and rarely-experienced things.  In this upper layer, you need to be logical, so how to use articles and prepositions is grammatically stated beforehand and everyone must obey these old and everlasting intuitions, which seem to be something that non-English native speakers are unable to acquire.

This forum is a great help for non-natives to learn English.  We can approach or challenge what intuition you have!

Thanks again,
taked4700.


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## eloquent

<< Eloquent's new thread merged with the existing one here>>

I have A cold.
but
I have THE flu.
Are the articles correct? Thank you.


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## heypresto

Yes, we tend to say 'a cold' and 'the flu'. But we could say 'I've got the cold that my wife had last week', for instance, if we perceived it to be the same cold, and that we caught it from her.


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## eloquent

...  but I can never say A flu, right?


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## heypresto

eloquent said:


> ...  but I can never say A flu, right?



That's right.

We talk, however, about 'a bout of flu', and 'an attack of flu', but neither means quite the same as 'the flu'.


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## George1992

Hello,

Do you say "I have *a *flu/cold" or "I have flu/cold" when you are ill. Is the article needed?

As for the tense, which would be better to use? "I have a flu/cold" or "I am having a flu/cold".


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## PaulQ

<Deletion>

"I have a flu/*a* cold" 
or 
"I am having a flu/*a* cold"


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## JamesM

Or (as you can see above) in American English "I have *the* flu/*a* cold".


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## Roymalika

PaulQ said:


> <Deletion>
> 
> "I have a flu/*a* cold"
> or
> "I am having a flu/*a* cold"


Hi, I am sorry, this is confusing. Do you mean "I have flu" and "I have a cold" are correct while "I am having flu" and "I am having a cold" are incorrect?


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## PaulQ

Roymalika said:


> Hi, I am sorry, this is confusing. Do you mean "I have flu" and "I have a cold" are correct while "I am having flu" and "I am having a cold" are incorrect?


Yes, that is *exactly *what I mean. You cannot use "I *am having* X" to express ownership or possession of something. Although in Punjabi (and other subcontinental languages), the continuous form of the verb *to have* may be permitted, it is not in English because it is a stative verb.


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## Thomas Tompion

bay jacob said:


> HI. We say " a cold", " a headache", " a sore throat". why do we use "the" in the measles; and why don't we use any article for "flu" ?


These questions are based on false premises: we can drop the article for measles and we can add it for 'flu, as has been mentioned several times in this, now, long thread.


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## Roymalika

PaulQ said:


> Yes, that is *exactly *what I mean. You cannot use "I *am having* X" to express ownership or possession of something. Although in Punjabi (and other subcontinental languages), the continuous form of the verb *to have* may be permitted, it is not in English because it is a stative verb.


Yesterday, it rained very heavily. It is the start of winter. I got flu and a cold. I went to a doctor. He gave me some medicine. I took the medicine. Now, I am alright. 


I want to ask can you please explain why I cannot use article with 'flu' and why only indefinite article with 'cold'?


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## heypresto

Because we say 'flu' or '*the *flu', and '*a* cold'. You'll just have to accept it. Have you read _any _of the above posts?



(If you did get the flu yesterday, you certainly wouldn't be all right today.)


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## Thomas Tompion

Roymalika said:


> I want to ask can you please explain why I cannot use article with 'flu' and why only indefinite article with 'cold'?[...]


Just to add to Heypresto's excellent answer.

You can, under some circumstances, use the definite article with 'cold'.  

You could say 'I've caught the cold which seems to be going around'.  

In general colds aren't usually treated as individuals, so the indefinite article is very often appropriate.


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## Packard

There are three types of the flu.  There is A, B, and C.  

Both A and B can be severe.  Type C is less severe.  

I guess you could be talking about "the flu" in general and have "a" flu by selecting A, B, or C.  But I never hear this in the USA.  It is always "the flu".

Before we had the term "flu" (influenza) we had "the grippe".  I have been told that they are the same; it is a simple name change.  I had the grippe in 1958 or 1959 (there abouts).  After that I only got "the flu".


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## kentix

You can also say "came down with".

My use in AE:
I caught a cold.
I came down with a cold on my trip.
I have a cold.
I've had a cold but I am almost over it.
My cold is almost gone.

I caught the flu.
I came down with the flu (last week).
I have the flu.
I've had the flu but I am almost over it.

It's _my_ cold but _not_ my flu.


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## Thomas Tompion

Thank you, Kentix.

I think in BE we more often talk of going down with a disease than coming down with it.

Thus I'd say 'I went down with the flu' rather than 'I came down with the flu.

The ngrams are interesting and alter when you insert the definite article before flu.


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## PaulQ

Roymalika said:


> I want to ask can you please explain why I cannot use *the indefinite *article with 'flu' and why only indefinite article with 'cold'?


The OED explains:  The word (influenza) apparently came to English in connection with* a particular outbreak* of influenza which spread from Italy.

Thus "*'flu*", historically retains the definite article as a vestige of its original specific origin.

Cold does not do this as it has no such history.

I am not sure how this information will help your English.


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## Roymalika

PaulQ said:


> The OED explains:  The word (influenza) apparently came to English in connection with* a particular outbreak* of influenza which spread from Italy.
> 
> Thus "*'flu*", historically retains the definite article as a vestige of its original specific origin.
> 
> Cold does not do this as it has no such history.
> 
> I am not sure how this information will help your English.


So "I got flu and a cold" is idiomatic?


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## PaulQ

Roymalika said:


> So "I got flu and a cold" is idiomatic?


If you read this thread, you will see that your question has been answered many times. 


Thomas Tompion said:


> _I've got the flu
> I've got flu._





PaulQ said:


> "I have a flu/*a* cold"





Thomas Tompion said:


> we can drop the article for measles and we can add it for 'flu,





heypresto said:


> Because we say 'flu' or '*the *flu',


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## kentix

Well, we generally don't say flu without "the" in the U.S.

COCA database results:
have flu - 6
have the flu - 73

4 of the 6 in the first case come from variations of "(if you) have flu symptoms".

Which leads to something I noticed looking at the examples. We can say "I have a bad cold" but not "I have a bad flu". I think we would have to say "I have a bad case of the flu" (and couldn't say "I have a bad case of a/the cold").


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## Packard

kentix said:


> Well, we generally don't say flu without "the" in the U.S.
> 
> COCA database results:
> have flu - 6
> have the flu - 73
> 
> 4 of the 6 in the first case come from variations of "(if you) have flu symptoms".
> 
> Which leads to something I noticed looking at the examples. We can say "I have a bad cold" but not "I have a bad flu". I think we would have to say "I have a bad case of the flu" (and couldn't say "I have a bad case of a/the cold").



Similarly, when the term was in use, we got "the grippe".  "Grippe" is from the French.  Perhaps they use the same definite article for that too.

grippe | Origin and meaning of grippe by Online Etymology Dictionary

*grippe (n.)*
_"epidemic influenza," 1776, probably from French grippe "influenza," originally "seizure," verbal noun from gripper "to grasp, hook," from Frankish or another Germanic source, from Proto-Germanic *gripanan (see grip (v.), gripe (v.)). Supposedly in reference to constriction of the throat felt by sufferers; the word spread through European languages after the influenza epidemic during the Russian occupation of Prussia in the Seven Years' War (c. 1760), and Russian chirpu, said to be imitative of the sound of the cough, is sometimes said to be the origin or inspiration for the word._

flu | Origin and meaning of flu by Online Etymology Dictionary

*flu (n.)*
_1839, flue, shortening of influenza. Spelling flu attested from 1893. *The abstraction of the middle syllable is an uncommon method of shortening words in English*; Weekley compares tec for detective, scrip for subscription._


influenza | Search Online Etymology Dictionary

_influenza (n.)_
_1743, borrowed (during an outbreak of the disease in Europe), from Italian influenza "influenza, epidemic," originally "visitation, influence (of the stars)," from Medieval Latin influentia in the astrological sense (see influence)._


> _AN Article from Rome informs us that a Sort of Plague has broke out there, which destroys Abundance of their People, and they call it the Influenza. ["The Gentleman's Magazine," April 1743]_


_Used in Italian for diseases at least since 1504 (as in influenza di febbre scarlattina "scarlet fever") on notion of astral, occult, or atmospheric influence. The 1743 outbreak began in Italy. Often applied since mid-19c. to severe colds.
Related entries & more_


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## Nicolò salemi

[This question has been added to an extensive previous thread on the use of use of articles with illnesses.  Please read from the beginning to see the complete discussion.  DonnyB - moderator]
do i always have to write the article "a/an" before "flu, cold, temperature etc."?


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## lingobingo

No. They can all also be used uncountably. Whether or not you need an article or determiner depends on the exact context.


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## kentix

And usage also varies between BE and AE.


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## Nicolò salemi

kentix said:


> And usage also varies between BE and AE.


what do these abbreviations mean? )


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## serbianfan

BE = British English, AE = American English.

I would usually say: "Mary's got a cold", "Mary's got a temperature", but "Mary's got the flu".


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## lingobingo

As a fellow Brit, I would say that someone’s got flu, rather than the flu. But the point is that the words are used uncountably in other constructions.

Flu is responsible for many thousands of deaths in the UK each year. 
Cold or flu? Which is it?
Temperature can be a major indicator of disease.


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## Thomas Tompion

serbianfan said:


> BE = British English, AE = American English.
> 
> I would usually say: "Mary's got a cold", "Mary's got a temperature", but "Mary's got the flu".


I agree about colds and temperatures, but I say both _*Mary's got flu*_ (informal, natural) and _*Mary's got the flu*_ (slightly mock pompous, not suitable if she's seriously unwell).


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## heypresto

'Man flu' is _always _uncountable. 

And _always _worse than real flu.


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## Thomas Tompion

heypresto said:


> 'Man flu' is _always _uncountable.
> 
> And _always _worse than real flu.


What is 'man flu' HP?

I agree that we don't say_* I've got a flu  *_, but would you never say _*I've got the flu*_, which is something I might say.


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## Tegs

Thomas Tompion said:


> I agree about colds and temperatures, but I say both _*Mary's got flu*_ (informal, natural) and _*Mary's got the flu*_ (slightly mock pompous, not suitable if she's seriously unwell).


I wouldn't get the mocking tone just from your adding "the" - you'd need to use a mocking tone of voice for me to grasp that you're being sarcastic.
I'd say "Mary's got the flu" to mean that she genuinely has the flu. I'm used to using the article with flu.


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## heypresto

Thomas Tompion said:


> What is 'man flu' HP?



It's a heavy cold. 

Chambers Dictionary says : *man flu* noun (facetious) A heavy cold (from the idea that men tend to exaggerate the seriousness of the condition)

Wikipedia: Man flu - Wikipedia

Here's an old thread about it: when men have a cold [man-flu]


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## kentix

In AE it's simple. We always say "the flu". That's 100% standard. Even in this sentence it would be entirely natural.

The flu is responsible for many thousands of deaths in the US each year.​
To eliminate "the" you'd need to use the formal name.

Influenza is responsible for many thousands of deaths in the US each year.​
Here in the U.S. you would say someone "died from the flu", and you can't get more serious than that.

L.A. Times:
The flu has killed far more people than coronavirus. So why all the frenzy about COVID-19?

This is an article from a year ago, early in the pandemic.

- The flu has killed far more people than coronavirus. So why all the frenzy about COVID-19?​
- An estimated 32 million Americans have come down with influenza since this year’s flu* season began in late September​
* this is being used as an adjective so it doesn't need "the"


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## Thomas Tompion

Tegs said:


> [...]
> you'd need to use a mocking tone of voice for me to grasp that you're being sarcastic.


It's not so much sarcasm, Tegs, it's very mild and slightly playful dramatisation, just as I talk of people having _*the black vomit*_ or _*the gripes*_ for mild problems.

The problems would have to be mild, however.  I couldn't say _*She's got the heart failure*_.


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