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Do I need any determiners in the sentence below in general statement?

  • Strong winds destroy homes.

Is it ok to say in English in specific situation?

  • The strong wind destroyed the homes in North Carolina.

I mean mostly the determiners in this sentence.

These are specific questions I am asking about. I couldn't find wider explanation of zero determiner and when it applies vs. prulars and singulars.

Arcadio
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    I would say "Strong winds destroyed homes in NC" or "The strong winds (if they have been mentioned before) destroyed homes in NC." but not "the homes" – Centaurus Aug 27 '15 at 19:38
  • But if these are "the homes" which are placed in NC? These are the homes which i.e. i have spoken before. Still not ok? – Arcadio Aug 27 '15 at 19:48
  • If you specify, you can use the definite article. "...the homes of two senators in NC" – Centaurus Aug 27 '15 at 19:50
  • I wouldn't say it is duplicate. There are some general statements that this question you pointed is not including. For exemple when we do not use determiner at all... – Arcadio Aug 27 '15 at 20:02
  • It does include "no determiner" and there are good answers, including one by RegDwight, in addition to a link with a good thorough explanation. – Centaurus Aug 27 '15 at 20:50
  • I mean no determiner at all. Me is determiner also. He says in his comment that we should use either a or the. In links given I didn't find my particular answer. So I cannot a agree with you. But thank you. – Arcadio Aug 27 '15 at 21:29

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English determiners can be tricky. For instance it's not OK to say "in specific situation." You need "in the following specific situation" or "in a specific situation." But to answer your question, it's fine to speak about a general meteorological truth without a determiner:

Strong winds destroy homes.

Or even

Strong wind destroys homes.

If you're speaking about a particular storm known to your readers, add the specific determiner "the":

The strong winds destroyed the homes in North Carolina.

If this is a storm your readers haven't encountered, use the general determiner "a" or "an" (depending on the initial vowel sound of the word following):

A strong wind destroyed the homes in North Carolina.
An unexpectedly strong wind destroyed the homes in North Carolina.

Note that "a" will restrict you to the singular "wind," and if you want the plural, you'll have to use another determiner:

Some strong winds destroyed the homes in North Carolina.

Note also that the same explanation applies to "homes." Using "the" implies that we all know which particular homes were destroyed. Without "the," they are homes unmentioned previously.

deadrat
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  • Re your last paragraph, using "the" implies that we all know which particular homes were destroyed is potentially misleading. If in fact the rest of the context doesn't contain any such implication (quite possible here, where we've no idea what that additional context might be), using "the" strongly implies *all homes in North Carolina*. – FumbleFingers Aug 27 '15 at 20:31
  • Yes I ment all the homes there. Thanks for additional explanation. – Arcadio Aug 27 '15 at 20:42