A / An – The
ARTICLES A/AN
The indefinite article a/an is used before singular countable nouns or adjectives followed by singular nouns.
| a + consonant soundsa ruler, a European country, a university, a one-way ticket, a hospital, a blue jumper | an + vowel soundsan apple, an egg, an umbrella, an orange, an hour, an exciting holiday |
NOTE · Uncountable or plural countable nouns take some / any etc.
I’ve bought some magazines. We haven’t got any more ice-cream. · A/an is not used before uncountable nouns, except in certain expressions. It is a pity / shame! What a relief! · A/an – one: She has got a car. (We do not specify what kind of car.) They have got one car. (= only one, not more)Use
| The indefinite article is used: | Examples |
| 1. before a noun which is mentioned for the first time and represents no particular person or thing. | She lives in a flat. They own a house in the village. |
| 2. before a noun which represents a group of people, animals or things. We can also use the or the plural form. | A dolphin is a mammal. (Which dolphin? Dolphins in general.) A / The dolphin is a mammal. Also: Dolphins are mammals. |
| 3. when talking about someone’s character, job or nationality. | He is a pessimist. Her husband is an accountant. Howard is an Englishman. But: Claire is French. |
| 4. in certain numerical expressions: a couple / dozen a thousand / million a half / a quarter a great deal of (UC) a lot of a great many (C) | We need a hundred copies. A great many teenagers listen to music while doing their homework. A couple of friends came by the house yesterday. |
| 5. to talk about: price per weight or item distance per amount of fuel or speed frequency per time certain illnesses | This brandy costs £25 a bottle. My car does 50 miles a gallon / 130 kilometres an hour. They go to the cinema twice a month. He has a fever / a cold / a toothache. |
THE
The definite article the is used before countable and uncountable nouns of all genders both in the singular and the plura
| The definite article is used: | The definite article is NOT used: | |
| 1. before countable and uncountable nouns which are specific or have been mentioned before. I’ll see the doctor tomorrow. The postman brought three letters and a parcel; the parcel was for Mary. | 1. before countable and uncountable nouns which refer to something general or have not been mentioned before. Shoes are expensive. Milk is good for you. But: These are the shoes which I bought last week. (= the particular shoes which I bought last week) Could you pass me the milk, please? (= the particular milk on the table) | |
| 2. before unique nouns. the Earth, the sky, the Pyramids | 2. before names of people, streets, cities, islands (individual),countries, continents, mountains (singular), religious holidays, days of the week, months: Maggie Smith, Oxford Street, Berlin, Ibiza, Italy, Asia, Mount Everest, Christmas, Friday, August But: the High Street, the Hague, the Vatican The is optional before the names of seasons, when the meaning is general. Where do you usually go in (the) summer? The is used when we talk about a specific season. Do you remember the winter of 1987? | |
| 3. before names of seas, oceans, rivers, channels/canals, coasts, deserts, countries or regions (plural), groups of islands, mountain ranges: The Mediterranean, the Pasific, the Mississippi, the English Channel, the Panama Canal, the Blue Coast, the Kalahari Desert, the Netherlands, the Highlands, the Bahamas, the Andes | ||
| 4. with buildings: cinemas, theatres, museums, galleries, pubs, restaurants, hotels, institutions: the Odeon Cinema, the Royal Theatre, the British Museum, the National Gallery, the Black Buoy, the Pasta House, the Hilton, the British Council | ||
| 3. before names of squares, parks, lakes, stations Euston Square, Holland Park, Lake Michigan, Liverpool Street Station | ||
| 5. with newspapers, ships, services, organisations: the Guardian, the Queen Mary, the police, the United Nations | 4. with pubs, restaurants, hotels, shops, banks etc. whose names include the name of their founder or another proper name (e.g a place) Jimmy’s Bar, Luigi’s Restaurant, Emily’s Hotel, Harrods, Lloyds Bank, Gatwick Airport | |
| 6. with names of families and nationalities (when we refer to the whole family or nation): the Simpsons, the Dutch, the Japanese · The is optional with nationalities ending in –s (the) Greeks, (the) Australians etc. | ||
| 5. before names of magazines, sports, games, colours, school subjects and languages: Newsweek (but: The Economist), tennis, chess, white, geography, Greek · German is a difficult language. But: The German language is difficult to learn. | ||
| 7. before musical instruments, dances, inventions, and the word radio. Pedro plays the guitar and Rosa dances the flamenco. When was the telephone invented? We heard the news on the radio. But: I saw that film on TV last week. We usually say television without “the”. We often watch television. But: Turn on the television (set). | ||
| 6. before names of airlines or companies: Air France, BMW etc. | ||
| 7. with meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack): What did you have for breakfast? But: When we talk about a specific meal, we use the: I didn’t enjoy the dinner on the plane. 8. before the words bed, court, church, home, hospital, prison, school, university, work, when they are used for the purpose for which they exist: Thomas went to university to study engineering. But: Patrick went to the university to visit his professor. Mr Woods has gone into hospital. (for medical treatment) But: Sarah met Simon outside the hospital. Bill is going to prison. (because he commited a crime) But: Bill is going to the prison. (to visit somebody) I think I’ll go to bed early tonight. (to sleep) But: There are some shoes under the bed. Work (place of work) never takes “the”. She’s at work. | ||
| 8. with the superlative degree of adjectives and adverbs. He is the best student in his class. · Most when it is a determiner does not take the: Most students passed the exam. | ||
| 9. the words station, shop, cinema, theatre, pub, library, city, village etc. She went to the station to meet Jim. I love going to the cinema. | ||
| 10. morning, afternoon, evening, night. I’ll be at home in the evening. But: at night, at noon, at midnight, at 4 o’clock etc. | ||
| 11. with adjectives referring to classes of people: the old, the blind, the poor, the educated etc. We have to look after the old. (= old people in general) The deaf are not able to find work. The rich travel a lot while the poor stay at home. | ||
| 9. before the words home, father, mother, mum, dad (when we refer to our own home/parents). Father / Daddy taught me how to drive. Mother is at home. | ||
| 12. with only, same and ordinal numbers + nouns This is the only pen I’ve got. Dogs are not all the same. Who was the first astronaut to walk on the Moon? | ||
| 10. before means of transport. I travel by car / by bus / by train / by air. Also: on foot, on horseback But: He was in the car / on the bus when I saw him. | ||
| 13. before noun + of + noun: the Gulf of Mexico, the Statue of Liberty | ||
| 11. with north, south, east, west, when they are used as adverbs. They are heading west. | ||
| 14. with titles (not accompanied by proper names): the King, the Queen, the Prince of Wales But: Queen Beatrix of Holland, Princess Margaret | ||
| 12. with some diseases (cancer, malaria etc.) You should be vaccinated against malaria if you want to travel to the tropics. But we say: flu/the flu, measles/the measles, mumps/the mumps | ||
| 15. with historical events or references: the Greek Revolution, the American Civil War But: World War II. 16. with the North, the South, the East, the West: Last year we visited the South of France. |
Fill in “the” where necessary.
Dear Sue,
Well I’ve been here in (-) New York for two months now. I’m having the time of my life. I’m staying with my father’s friends, the Bronsons. I’m not missing (-) home at all. The/(-) Americans are very different from the English. I noticed this the moment I arrived at (-) Kennedy Airport, where (-) most people were very friendly. I’ve done a lot of sightseeing since I arrived. I think I have seen all the famous sights. The ones I liked best were the Statue of Liberty and (-) Times Square. We’re going to (-) Washington (-) next week. I’m looking forward to visiting the President’s home, the White House. Mr Bronson won’t be able to come with us as planned though, because he has the/(-) flu. He was going to drive us there but now we’re going by (-) bus instead. Well, I’ll have to sign off now as we’re going to the cinema tonight and then we’re going for (-) dinner at (-) Delaney’s restaurant. Give my love to Mother (-) and (-) Father and the family. I’ll be (-) home for (-) Christmas.
Write soon.
Love,
Jessica
Fill in: “a”, “an” or “the” where necessary.
Last week I had an accident in (-) Italy. I was skiing in the Alps. One day I was going too fast down a mountain, when I crashed into a tree. I broke both my legs and cut my arm. There was so much (-) blood, I had to be rushed to (-) hospital in an ambulance. When I got there, the doctor told me that I would have to stay there for at least two weeks. I was very depressed. All I wanted to do was go (-) home.
Fill in: “a”, “an” or “the” where necessary.
1. He visited the Pyramids while he was in (-) Egypt. 2. (-) Morpeth is a town in the north of (-) England. 3. She lives in a castle near the River Rhine. 4. I went shopping at (-) Marcy’s and bought an expensive overcoat. 5. They are going for a walk near (-) London Zoo in (-) Regent’s Park. 6. Annie’s parents went to the school to speak to the teachers last week. 7. What time does Annie normally go to (-) school? 8. My mother has gone into (-) hospital for an operation. 9. The ABC cinema is opposite the hospital. 10. Tom was sent to (-) prison. 11. Tom’s mother went to the prison to see him last week. 12. I went to (-) bed at 10 o’clock last night. 13. I was lying on the bed reading a book. 14. There is a cinema in (-) Bridge Street called the Odeon. 15. Anna comes from the Netherlands but she lives in the USA now. 16. (-) Malta is in the Mediterranean. 17. When we went to (-) Paris we saw the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. 18. (-) Victoria Coach Station is near the Apollo theatre. 19. The Grand Canyon is in (-) Arizona. 20. The government plan to help the poor and the unemployed. 21. Sue and Frank have got two children; a girl and a boy. The girl is a student and the boy is an engineer. 22. Who invented the telescope? 23. Who was the woman who you were talking to just now? 24. My sister works in a large hospital in (-) London. She’s a doctor.Directions: Fill in the blank with the appropriate article, a, an, or the, or leave the space blank if no article is needed.
1. I want ____ apple from that basket. 2. ____ church on the corner is progressive. 3. Miss Lin speaks ____ Chinese. 4. I borrowed ____ pencil from your pile of pencils and pens. 5. One of the students said, “____ professor is late today.” 6 Eli likes to play ____ volleyball. 7. I bought ____ umbrella to go out in the rain. 8. My daughter is learning to play ____ violin at her school. 9. Please give me ____ cake that is on the counter. 10. I lived on ____ Main Street when I first came to town. 11. Albany is the capital of ____ New York State. 12. My husband’s family speaks ____ Polish. 13. ____ apple a day keeps the doctor away. 14. ____ ink in my pen is red. 15. Our neighbors have ____ cat and ____ dog.ANSWER
1. I want an apple from that basket. 2. The church on the corner is progressive. 3. Miss Lin speaks Chinese. (no article needed) 4. I borrowed a pencil from your pile of pencils and pens. 5. One of the students said, “The professor is late today.” 6. Eli likes to play volleyball. (no article needed) 7. I bought an umbrella to go out in the rain. 8. My daughter is learning to play the violin at her school. 9. Please give me the cake that is on the counter. 10. I lived on Main Street when I first came to town. (no article needed) 11. Albany is the capital of New York State. (no article needed) 12. My husband’s family speaks Polish. (no article needed) 13. An apple a day keeps the doctor away. 14. The ink in my pen is red. 15. Our neighbors have a cat and a dog