• "I will take him as ward, if you wish"

Why the writer didn't use an article before ward?


ward is a role, broadly conceived. Guardian: ward, mentor : protege, leader: follower, etc. Articles are not used when the noun refers to the role.

He was the 40th president of the country. specific instance

He was elected president. elected to the role/position

He was appointed guardian to the child.

He took the child on as ward.

Note the use of the preposition as. It signals a role.

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  • Thank you for your answer. I got confused because when I looked at the oxford dictionary, I didn't see if this word is countable or uncountable. Besides, there are other contexts where this word, ward, is used as countable, so they have put article, a, before. – Bavyan Yaldo Jul 2 '17 at 13:36
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    Whether the noun is countable or non-count is not the only factor. These nouns are countable (wards, presidents). But when referring to the role no article is used. The preposition as is usually a good clue that the role is being referred to. – Tᴚoɯɐuo Jul 2 '17 at 13:41
  • So, if you put a before the word. Would something change? Such as: he worked as a teacher or as teacher? – Bavyan Yaldo Jul 2 '17 at 14:26
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    @BavyanYaldo, that's an interesting example. With an article, like "a", it isn't really a role, it's a specific position. With just "as", it would be in the generic role of a teacher (which would have nothing to do with qualifications for teaching). So maybe a sentence like, "A group of parents set up a home school, with Johnny's mother as teacher." However, "He worked as teacher" would imply to most readers that you are talking about a specific occupation or position, so it would sound wrong. – fixer1234 Jul 2 '17 at 18:04
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    @BanyanYaldo: He worked as a teacher means his occupation was teacher. It was a job he held. But this would be different: Ms Jones, have you come before the school board today as teacher or basketball coach? There, the questioner wants to know what role or capacity the person is acting in. – Tᴚoɯɐuo Jul 2 '17 at 18:10

A circumstance when "ward" does take an article is

He became a ward of the state.
He went into foster care.

"Ward" is one of those legal terms which can get used, in what I term, a "flat" way, without articles.

"Ward", "guardian" "power of attorney" are examples.

As guardian your written permission is necessary...
He has power of attorney over all matters...

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