No article? Why?


The back of my VIP card reads: Present this card before payment


Why is there no any article before 'payment'? Shouldn't we add 'the' before 'payment'?


I understand in this case, maybe there is no article because 'payment' is uncountable, but are there any other reasons? (i.e. what if the word is countable, like 'before lunch / bath'?)



Answer



This is known as telegraphic style. See this answer to a previous question.


To be sure, the other answers to this question are not wrong. However, the main reason for the lack of an article is that this is an example of telegraphic style, which omits the less important words, and is often found in signs and newspaper headlines. Your VIP card is a sort of a sign, so use of telegraphic style is not unusual.


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