[Oden]

Hello Sue,

- She has two brothers. One is in England, and the other in Ireland.
- She has two brothers. One is in England, and another in Ireland.

Are both correct? I would prefer the first.

[Tanialoves]

The other is used to refer to the second of two things/people:
- I have two customers: one is Italian, the other is German.

Another is used to refer to a person/thing when there are more than two choices:
- I didn't like the handbag and I asked the shop assistant to show me another one (there are more than two bags in a shop).
- I still don't understand the rule. Could you give me another example?

So, the first sentence is correct.

[susan53]

I'd disagree slightly with Tania's examples. "The other" isn't necessarily only used with two things/people. There can be any number of them but "the other" specifies the last remaining one to be discussed :

I have three brothers : One lives in Italy, one in Germany and the other in the States.
With this example I could also say ... another in Germany and another in the States. With more than two I have the choice of whether to present them all as indefinite or the last as definite.

In Tania's examples of the handbag and example , the indefinite form is used because I am not asking for a specific handbag/example but any handbag/example the person wants to give me.

So basically, the choice between another /the other is exactly the same as the choice between the indefinite and definite articles with any other noun phrase. If I'm talking about something specific, then "the" :
I don't like these pens. Give me the red pen / the other pen.
I don't understand this rule. Give me a clearer example /an easier example / another example.

The fact that the indefinite article "an" is written together with "other" to form one word, doesn't change the fact that really it's just an "ordinary" indefinite article + noun phrase construction - though the noun is often elided (omitted) because it's understood in the context, as in :

I have three brothers : one lives in Italy, another (brother) lives in Germany, and the other (brother) lives in the States.

[Tanialoves]

Sue, thanks for corrections and clarifications :-)

[Oden]

Thank you, Sue.

[Oden]

Hi Sue,

Student Fees Protests In London, Birmingham, Glasgow, Manchester And Cambridge: Disorder Breaks Out | Politics | Sky News

Two men were arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of violent disorder, one in Leicester and another in London.

Is another correct? Isn't "the other" correct?

[susan53]

No, it's fine. As I've said before - grammar gives us ways to express meaning, and it's up to the speaker/writer to decide which meaning s/he wants to express. Here the writer has chosen to express both as "indefinite" - they've not yet been named, so s/he's not yet seeing them as "specific". Of course, as s/he has specified "two men", s/he could see the other as having been specified and choose to say "the other". In fact, if you read what i wrote above, that's what I was assuming would happen. But in fact, it's always a choice, and this writer chooses to see them as still indefinite.

[susan53]

No, it's fine. As I've said before - grammar gives us ways to express meaning, and it's up to the speaker/writer to decide which meaning s/he wants to express. Here the writer has chosen to express both as "indefinite" - they've not yet been named, so s/he's not yet seeing them as "specific". Of course, as s/he has specified "two men", s/he could see the second as having been specified and choose to say "the other". In fact, if you read what I wrote above, that's what I was assuming would happen. But in fact, it's always a choice, and this writer chooses to see them as still indefinite.