Institutions in society

There are certain establishments of human society which are referred to without an article when we think of them as institutions in general rather than as specific buildings or individual places.

He was finally admitted to hospital with an ulcerated leg.

...after our first victory in court.

Here is a list of words that can be used like this: church, court, jail, school, college, hospital, prison, university.

Normally, when you are using these words to talk about buildings they are count nouns and article usage with them is straightforward. But when you want to suggest that they are being used for their intended purpose there is no article; that is, worshipping in church, studying in school/college/university, receiving medical care in hospital, being a prisoner in prison or jail, legal action in court. Often there is a different way of expressing the idea: 'She's at university' is similar to saying 'She's a student'.

Here are some more examples.

...once he is taken home from hospital.

In the morning all the peasants went to church.

He left school at seventeen.

...to decide whether to go to court or not.

His parents couldn't afford to send him to university.

After 11 days in prison they were released.

There are some differences between British and American usage here. Firstly, Americans say 'the hospital' instead of 'hospital' for institutional reference. Secondly, the word 'university' is not used in this way; the American equivalent of 'at university' is 'in college'. 'Bed' behaves in a similar way; without an article it means the place where we sleep or rest, not a particular object.

She went to bed and slept lightly.