Which is the correct one?

Question

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Estoy comprando las botas, el abrigo y las jeans. Estoy comprando unas botas, un abrigo, y unas jeans. Please tell me which of them does more sense.

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'makes' more sense :) - Kiwi-Girl, Jan 12, 2012

Answer 1

To me the 'unas' and 'un' makes more sense. When you use 'las' or 'el' etc they are definite articles so it means that you are talking about some specific boots, a specific coat etc - but it's unlikely that you know which ones you're going to buy at this stage so you just want to say 'some' boots, unas, not 'the' boots, las.

Thanks for the answer!! - relucientia, Jan 12, 2012

Answer 2

You enter the clothes store and the clerk ask you if you need any help. You tell her that you are going to buy some boots, coats, and pairs of jeans. Here we are not referring to any specific pairs of boots, coats or jeans so the indefinite article could be used.

You and your friend throw your combined purchases upon the check-out counter and you tell the cashier that you are paying for the jeans, boots, and coats while your friend is paying for the rest of the accessories, then you are referring to specific coats, jeans, and boots, so here you would use el/la/los/las definite articles.

Bottom line: both sentences make sense depending on the context.

Is it the same as the difference between "a", "an" and "the" in short? - relucientia, Jan 12, 2012