我们就“零冠词+单形名词”结构只作了一般的介绍，还有两三个个别问题需要加以说明如下：
1. 有人认为，不可数名词如有限制性定语，就不可用零冠词。这种看法显然不够全面，是将问题简单化了。事实上，“零冠词+带限制性定语的不可数名词”结构并不罕见。但在举例说明之前，需要澄清一下限制性定语与非限制性定语的区别。
限制性定语与非限制性定语相对。前者对其所修饰的名词来说是必不可少的，否则会影响到全句的意思。如 classical music 中的 classical 就是一限制性定语，因为它是必不可少的，去掉就会影响其所在句子的含义。有人认为 classical 不是限制性定语，而是非限制性定语，这是一种误解。非限制性定语与限制性定语相反，它只是对其所修饰的名词的一种纯属附加的不是必不可少的说明，如 dead wall 和 mortal man 中的dead 与 mortal （请注意这两个修饰语皆不重读）。用作非限制性定语的从句的非限制性尤为明显，这里就恕不举例了。
现在我们就“零冠词+带定语的不可数单形名词”结构举例如下：
先看“零冠词+其定语为单词的不可数单形名词”结构的例证：
(1)Through the midday hours he sat with glazed face , the bottle handy, listening to the telescreen.
(2)Ahead was unbroken desert from the sea to the foothills of the distant, rugged purple mountains.
(3)He saw the lift waiting with open door .
(4)Lukitch poured out another glass and stood with bottle tipped . （定语后置）
(5)The skull of Peking man was discovered more than 70 years ago in Zhoukoudian.
(6)He was eating boiled tongue .
(7)Cast iron contains more carbon than malleable iron .
(8)He wears long hair .
(9)There is soft brown sugar on the table.
(10)With commanding voice he said:“Hands off!”
(11)British policy was admirably expounded by the Prime Minister.
(12)At no time have we thought of suspending rescue activity .
(13)The gentleman-farmer was dressed in cheerful style .
(14)It bulged to bursting point .
再看“零冠词+其定语为短语的不可数单形名词”结构的例证：
(15)Of total timber consumed by furniture-making , only 35 per cent is supplied by the State. （定语为一分词短语）
(16)He described cooperation and coordiation between the two countries as sincere and practical. （定语为 between 引导的介词短语）
(17)One of the four freedoms spoken of by President Roosevelt was freedom from fear . （定语为 from 引导的介词短语）
(18)Agreement on reduction of missiles between the superpowers is impossible, as it has been for so many years. （定语为 on 引导的介词短语）
(19)Power to the embassy has been cut and the security forces were playing searchlights across the building at night.（ 定语为 to 引导的介词短语）
(20)Compliance with the laws is expected of all citizens. （定语为 with 引导的介词短语）
有人说名词之后如有 of 短语所修饰，其前则必须用定冠词，不可用零冠词。这是一种绝对化的说法。在英语里，“名词+of 短语”结构之前确实常常用定冠词而不用零冠词，但其前用零冠词的情况也并不罕见。由于这个问题对中国学生来说比较重要，所以我们愿多举一些例子加以说明。当然我们在此仍只限于“零冠词+其定语为of 短语的不可数单形名词”结构。
(21)Please reply by return of post . （return of post 是一成语）
(22)Everyone behaved with complete presence of mind . （presence of mind 是一成语）
(23)Mr. Sparkler, in absence of mind , had smelt so hard at a sprig in his hand as to be on the verge of the offence in question. （absence of mind 是一成语）
(24)The policeman was accused of dereliction of duty . （dereliction of duty 是一成语）
(25)Pride of place is likely to go to local hero Sergel Bubka, who will be trying to improve his world pole vault record yet again. （pride of place 是一成语）
(26)The value of romantic literature ... does not depend on beauty of words or beauty of fact .
(27)We have an accurate estimate of cost of our living .
(28)At dusk of the same day , the father found the tomb had been opened and the corpse was missing.
(29)Focus of the issue currently is on Monterey Park, a city of 50,000 that is 40 per cent Asian, 37 per cent Hispanic, 22 per cent white and one per cent black, near Los Angeles.
(30)He was advocating freedom of speech , freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, freedom of thought .
(31)At moments it seemed to him that he would reel from very joy of the certain fulfillment of a great desire, that was all but immediately within his control.
(32)To promote standard Yi language and enrich life of the ethnic group of Yi nationality living in Liangshan Ranges of Sichuan Province, a local film company experiments with dubbing films in the local dialect.
(33)We live within reach of the shops . （within reach of 是一成语）
(34)The principal cause which makes life unsatisfactory is want of mental cultivation .
在当今英语里，其定语为 of 短语的不可数单形名词如表动作的话，其前用零冠词的情况就更多了，这大概是由于强调动作从而降低 of 短语的重要性的原故。且看：
(35)Construction of a modern theatre began this spring in western suburbs.
(36)We know collapse of the lung does occur not only postoperatively but in other conditions as well.
(37)It is appropriate that some time be devoted to thorough study of the results of the Appolo missions.
(38)Omission of “the” in this case is not obligatory.
(39)The ceremony was announced by loud beating of the gong .
(40)Clearance of this cheque could take a week.
(41)Conversion of your heating system from coal to gas will be costly.
(42)The two countries are fighting for control of the straits .
(43)Waste of food is wicked while people are hungry.
(44)Negotiation of the wet road was not easy.
(45)Mr. Merdle, loss of appetite is a serious thing with you, and you must have it seen to.
(46)There remains in speech, and even more in writing, wide scope for free use of the articles , so long as one does not break the conventions.
(47)China will begin its payment on the loan half a year after completion of the projects .
(48)Supply of stored cabbages is a matter of major importance in all northern cities in winter and spring, the usual slack season for vegetable growing.
(49)Rain yesterday forced abandonment of all play on the second day of the Australian Open Tennis Championships.
(50)The Irish Government opposes payment of ransoms , believing that this will lead to further kidnappings.
(51)Careless treatment of the hooves of a wild donkey resulted in it bleeding to death.
(52)Inquiry of the operator will get you the right telephone number.
(53)The advantage which these rural enterprises enjoy is that they can shift easily to production of goods in short supply on the market.
由于动名词强调动作，因而它也常用于“零冠词+动名词+of短语”结构，如：
(54)Closing of his safe was a duty which he had never relegated to a subordinate.
(55)Opening of the tomb began on April 28 in Fengxiang County, 140 kilometres west of the Shaanxi provincial capital of Xi'an.
(56)Rationing of more than 70 products has been dropped.
(57)“Tingling of the ears is a sign that a person is being talked about,” said the old woman.
“零冠词+其定语为从句的不可数单形名词”结构也屡见不鲜，如：
(58)Milk from which the cream has been taken is called skim milk.
(59)Water that is impure often causes serious illness.
(60)Poetry that relates to the beings of another world ought to be at once mysterious and picturesque.
(61)In dry areas, people plant crops on land that is poor and arid .
2. 关于“零冠词+表地点的单形类名词”可以转化为“零冠词+不可数的单形抽象名词”，常举含有 home, school, college, hospital, stage, port, court 和 jail等例证。实际上，还有不少其他“零冠词+表地点的单形类名词”结构也可以转化为“零冠词+不可数的单形抽象名词”结构，如下面各例中所划出的名词：
(62)What time did you go to bed last night?
(63)They go to church every Sunday.
(64)Mother has gone to market .
(65)Let's go back to camp .
(66)She never dared to go into restaurants too far off campus with him.
(67)As a boy his great ambition was to go to sea .
(68)I'm going to town . （具有目的性）
(69)Our party has not been in office for years.
(70)The old salesman advised me to come back to shop the next day.
(71)Braving the extremely cold water, they jumped into the sea and brought the unconscious woman to shore .
(72)The criminal was sent to prison for 20 years.
(73)We're going to be married in temple .
(74)He rowed steadily up river for purposes of his own.
(75)From the veranda he looked down valley , but there was as yet no light near the camp of Devitt's men.
(76)Varieties according to region have a well-established label both in popular and technical use: dialects.
(77)The spaceship is in orbit round the moon.
(78)A young Polish hijacker exploded a hand grenade at Warsaw Airport when the authorities ignored a 10-minute-ultimatum to provide him with an aircraft to leave country , airport sources said.
(79)The yellow and purple pansies that bordered lush green lawn seemed to lift their faces in welcome.
3. 最后再补充一点，即关于有的语法家所谓的“普遍化（universalization)”问题。什么是“普遍化”呢？简单地说，就是特指的“the 或物主代词+某些名词（包括单复形）”结构变为泛指的“零冠词+某些名词（包括单复形）”结构。但这种泛指的范围是有限的，即所谓“有限泛指（restricted genericness）”。 由于本文只谈单形名词，所以我们在这里只讨论单形名词的“有限泛指”。让我们先举一例如下：
(80)Work was over for the day.
这里的单形名词 work 即是由特指的“the work”结构变来的“零冠词+work”结构。
这种结构在当代英语中十分普通。但在100多年前，人们还多用 the work, 所以我们当今所用的有限泛指的“零冠词+某些名词”结构是一种比较近的现象。为什么会产生这种现象呢？主要原因有二：一是人们为了简洁方便，零冠词大有愈来愈被人广泛运用的趋势，尤其是报章杂志更是经常使用零冠词；二是由于客观上的需要，零冠词表一定程度的泛指，使人有一种熟稔之感，常表多次性或经常性等。现再举一些例证如下：
1.相当于“the+单形名词”
(81)Wine is ridiculously cheap here.
(82)Rumour has it that Jean's getting married again.
(83)According to report he's not coming back.
(84)According to tradition , the castle is haunted.
(85)Legend relates that the first Christian church here was founded by no less a person than St. Joseph of Arimathe.
(86)History repeats itself.
(87)Whatever its consequences, time would close over them.
(88)There may be room for the humorous aspects by and by, but they are inopportune while revolution is in mid-career. （此句在谈论文学）
(89)Unemployment still remains higher among women and juveniles than it was in 1934.
(90)Employment improved during the month.
(91)At the corner of Russel Square, traffic was not dense.
(92)In both August and September rainfall was still below the normal.
这种普遍化的单形名词亦可带有定语，如：
(93)Public interest in it has rather increased than diminished.
(94)General opinion was against him. （带定语的 opinion 常用零冠词，再如： public opinion, world opinion, British opinion, foreign opinion, informed opinion, civilized opinion, accepted opinion, judicial opinion 等）
(95)Tension in the United States over the incident ... is subsiding.
2.相当于“物主代词+单形名词”，多用作主语，如：
(96)Christian would not say another word. Disillusion was complete. （相当于 his disillusion）
(97)His inclination had compromised his dignity when reason slept. （相当于 his reason）
(98)It was as if virtue had gone out of him. （相当于 his virtue）
(99)She must be prepared for a harder task than that of rushing away while resolution was fresh. （相当于 her resolution）
(100)Then thought returned upon the rotten unfairness of it all. （相当于物主代词[由上下文定]+ thought）
(101)Where an evening paper is concerned, publication must of course be always local.（相当于 its publication）
(102)Even before the polling day they worked hand in hand with the municipal police, but now co-operation is complete. （相当于 their co-operation）
(103)Presently speech flowed more freely. （相当于物主代词[由上下文定]+speech）
(104)Conversation was desultory and matter of fact to the point of suspiciousness, until di Ponari emerged again with a girl at his side. （相当于物主代词[由上下文定]+conversation）
(105)On this particular Tuesday, exasperation was intensified. （相当于物主代词[由上下文定]+exasperation）
(106)Now her thought went back to the evening Anne had arrived at Green Gables, and memory recalled a vivid picture of the odd, frightened child in her preposterous yellowish-brown winter dress, the heart-break looking out of her tearful eyes. （相当于 her memory）
有时亦可用作宾语，如：
(107)He left work at 5:30 p.m. （相当于 his work）
(108)The business reorganization has increased output without enlarging the market. （相当于 their output）
(109)Sir Samuel Hoare is not likely to submit, as Sir John Simon did, to divide responsibility with his colleague. （相当于 his responsibility）
亦可用作介词的宾语（大都已成为固定词组），如：
(110)I had known both him and Jane since childhood . （相当于 my childhood）
(111)Children could be trained from infancy to work their own fire brigades. （相当于 their infancy）
(112)They die in youth . （相当于 their youth）
(113)He holds his office for life . （相当于 his whole life）
(114)He began to drink quite early in life . （相当于 his life）
(115)A few years ago a well-known publicist made a brief appearance after death to a friend. （相当于 his death）
(116)“Where is the university?” the foreign visitor to Oxford will ask on arrival . （相当于 his 或 her arrival）
(117)These things, she hoped, would come after marriage . （相当于 her marriage）
(118)A book is still a new book six months after publication . （相当于 its publication）
这种普遍化的单形名词亦可常有定语，如：
(119)Conversation during the drive to the hotel never soared above a certain level. （物主代词由上下文定）
(120)Interest in the air race to Australia has rather tailed off this week. （物主代词由上下文定，也可能相当于 public interest）
(121)Then came contact with Scott, who was looking for ballads, of which Hogg had a store from his mother, Margaret Laidlaw. Acquaintance with Scott brought a more practical literary aspect. （相当于 his acquaintance）
但请注意，这样的单形名词可能有歧义。它既可用作普遍化的名词，亦可用作非普遍化的名词，如：
(122)They were to receive the blessings of civilization.
如作普通化的名词理解， civilization 相当于 our civilization; 如作非普通化的名词理解，the blessings of civilization 则意味着 the blessing incident to the state of being civilized.
最后，必须指出，普遍化的名词有时其前固然亦可加上定冠词或物主代词而意义不变，但大都似乎都已成为习惯说法，不可再加上定冠词或物主代词了。
