E.g.He had a (bad, splitting) headache. Hehad a toothache. Hehad a sore throat. Hehad heart trouble.

I have a boil on my hand.
She had a bruise on her leg.

The Noun sea

§ 49. The noun sea is regularly found with the definite article.
This may be accounted for by different reasons. In some cases it
may be understood as a generic singular.

e.g. The sea covers nearly three fourths of the world's surface.
He always spends his holiday by the sea.

In other cases it is used with the individualizing definite article,
e.g. A cold wind was blowing from the sea.
Let's go for a swim in the sea.

Certain Countable Nouns in Their Phraseological Use

§ 50. There are a number of countable nouns in English, which
are often used without any article, as they undergo a change of
meaning and become uncountable.

§51. The nouns school, college, hospital, prison, jail, camp,
church, court, bed, table and occasionally market are used without
any article when, as part of set phrases, they lose their concrete
meaning and express the purpose which the objects denoted by these
nouns serve. Thus hospital comes to denote treatment, prison —
punishment, school — studies, bed — sleep, etc. Compare the fol-
lowing examples:

e.g. After lunch Dr Reily went off to the hospital.

"How long were you in hospital with that wound?" she asked.
They had a hospital in the town during the war.

Madame Duclerk sat at the table darning socks.

I asked her to tell me who all the people at table were.

In the cafe we had a table to ourselves, but those around us

were soon filled.

The road to the prison was blocked by policemen.
He would be sent to prison if he were caught.
Perhaps he was in a German prison.

I softly drew the chair to the bed and sat down.

He went to bed early, but lay awake for a long time.

I found a bed made up for me, and placed the candles on the

old-fashioned chest of drawers.

It should be noted that the use of a descriptive or limiting at-
tribute destroys the idiomatic meaning of the phrases in question.
See the examples above and also compare the following sentences:

e.g. He was sent to school.

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