Let’s have a look at how articles work!

There are two types of articles.

• A / An – the indefinite article (it means one of something).

• The – The definite article (it refers to something specific or already identified).

We’ll start with the indefinite article “a” or “an“. We use it when we mention someone or something for the first time.

“Yesterday a man came to my office.”

If the word following the indefinite article starts with a vowel sound, use “an” instead of “a“:

“Yesterday an Italian man came to my office.”

When we have introduced the person or thing, we then change to the definite article (the) for subsequent mentions:

“Yesterday a man came to my office.

The man wanted some information.”

So the rule is:

• Use “a” or “an” the first time you mention something or someone. Use “the” afterwards when it’s clear what you’re talking about.

We also:

• Use the definite article if there is only one of something or it is clear from context which you are referring to.

If I’m talking about “the Moon” we can assume that we are talking about Earth’s moon. If I ask someone to close the window, it should be obvious from context which window we are talking about.

“I gave him the documents that he had asked for, he got into the car and drove away.”

We know which documents we’re talking about because they’re defined in the sentence (the documents that he had asked for), we can assume that “the car” is his car or whatever car he was driving at that time.

Try it for yourself.

Complete these easy questions to check that you understand.

Fill the gaps with “a” / “an”, “the” or nothing (leave it empty if you think that no article should be used).

If you need a hint just press the “Hint” button.

When you have answered the question press “Check” to see if you got it right.

Try another one!

Complete the gaps with either “a” / “an” or “the”. If you need a hint just press the “Hint” button. When you have answered the question press “Check” to see if you got it right.

Be careful, pay attention to the word after the gap!

Here’s one more about this use of articles before we move on to the next rule, just to make sure that you’ve dominated this aspect of the topic.

Fill the gaps with “a” / “an”, “the” or nothing (leave it empty if you think that no article should be used).

If you need a hint just press the “Hint” button.

When you have answered the question press “Check” to see if you got it right.

While we are talking about the indefinite article “a” or “an” we should have a look at some of it’s other uses in English.

• Use “a” / “an” to describe somebody’s job or profession.

Such as;

“James is a waiter, his sister is an architect.”

We also;

• Use “a” / “an” in expressions of frequency.

Such as;

“He goes swimming twice a week”

“She visits them twice a year.”

“He checks three times an hour.”

Here’s yet another use of “a” or “an”;

• Use “a” or “an” in exclamations.

Such as;

“What a beautiful day!”

“What an awful noise!”

“What an interesting book!”

Check that you can use the indefinite article correctly by completing the following sentences.

Okay. The next thing you need to know about articles in English is that we:

• Omit the article when we are talking in general.

• Use the definite article when we are talking about a specific example or group of something.

Let’s see this in use:

“Men are, on average, taller than women.

Unsurprisingly, the men in my office are taller than the women.”

When we are talking about men and women in general we don’t use an article. When we are talking about specific men and women (the ones who work in this particular office), we use the definite article.

Easy right? Let’s try a few example questions.

Add “the” if you think a definite article is needed, or leave the gap empty if you think that no article should be used.

Try another one!

One last question about generalising and specifying with and without articles.

Okay! Let’s look at another rule.

• Don’t use articles to describe institutions.

So we could say;

“She goes to church every Sunday.”

“His uncle is in prison.”

“She’s been in hospital for a week.”

Simple enough right? Well, we;

• DO use articles to describe buildings.

What are institutions? Prisons, hospitals, schools, universities, churches are all institutions. Whether we are talking about the physical building or the institution dictates whether we use the article.

so we can say;

“I live next to the church at the end of the street.”

“The prison is fitted with the highest security equipment.”

“I drive past the hospital every day”

Remember, we use articles when the emphasis is the building, we omit the articles if the institution is the emphasis. Got it? Let’s see.

Complete the sentence with the correct articles. Leave the gap empty if no article is used, otherwise use the definite article “the”.

Press “check” to see the answer.

Try another.

….And one more before we add another rule.

Let’s throw another rule into the mix!

• The names of mountains and lakes don’t have articles.

But!

• Groups of mountains or lakes DO have articles.

so we could say:

“Everest is in the Himalayas.”

Easy! Try this question, just to check that you’ve got it.

Here’s yet another rule! (There are still a few more!)

Do NOT use articles for names of:

• Streets or roads
• Parks
• Bridges
• Restaurants or Shops

Of course, there’s an exception! We Do use the definite article when the road is a:

• Motorway
• Numbered road

So we could say

“He drove over Battersea Bridge, along Oxford Street, parked outside Harrods to do some shopping.

When he was finished he took the M25 orbital motorway to connect to the M1 to drive north.”

So, generally we don’t use articles for the names of parks, restaurants, shops, roads and streets or bridges apart from numbered roads and motorways. Got it? Let’s see:

Almost there! Honestly! Not many more rules left I promise.

Okay, we DO use the definite article for;

• Rivers
• Seas
• Canals
• Groups of islands
• Deserts

So, you can

“Swim in the Mediterranean, you can cross the Atlantic, cruise down the Panama Canal and visit the Maldives.”

We also:

• Use the definitive article for the names of places like galleries, museums, theatres and cinemas or hotels.

So we could say:

“In London, galleries like The Tate, museums like The Victoria and Albert Museum are free to enter. Conversely, Hotels like the Ritz Carlton and restaurants like The Ivy are very expensive.”

I know. It’s getting complicated, check that you’re keeping up by answering this question.

Penultimate rule! You’re almost there!

We usually

• Use articles with typical places in a town or city

even if there are various examples and it isn’t clear which we are referring to.

So we could say;

“We had a great weekend, we went to the beach and the park on Saturday and on Sunday went to the cinema.”

Try it for yourself;

Finally! We:

Don’t use the definitive article for specific words like

• Home
• Work
• Bed
• Next week
• Last week

While we’re on the subject, we don’t use articles for

A Few Other uses of “The”.

While we’re looking at when to use the direct article “the” let0s have a quick look at some of its other uses;

• Superlatives need the definite article “the“.

When we are using a superlative, it always needs the definitive article “the”, so we talk about;

“The most expensive home ever built!”

“The largest shopping centre in the world!”

“The biggest scandal in history!”

Notice in that last example “in the world”? There’s another use of the definitive article.

We can also use comparatives in a similar way;

“It’s one of the better restaurants in the area.”

and we use “the” in comparative phrases like;

“The more I work, the more tax I pay.”

 

“The better you know him the more you dislike him.”

Similarly we

• Use “the” with ordinal numbers (The 1st, the 2nd, the 3rd etc..).

Such as;

“The first competitor to finish won a medal.”

 

“This was the seventh time the family had been to Florida.”

We also

• Use “the” in spoken forms of dates.

Such as;

Jack: “He will arrive on the 22nd of June.”

Although in written form that would be “He will arrive on 22nd of June” or “He will arrive June 22nd.”

We don’t just use “the” with dates, but also

• Use “the” with seasons and parts of the day.

“We spend the summer on the coast, the winter in the mountains and the spring and the autumn in the city.”

 

“In the morning we studied, in the afternoon we relaxed and in the evening we went out.”

But, (there’s always an exception isn’t there?) we don’t say “at the night” (Although we could say “in the night”)

• Use “the”+ adjective to refer to a group or nationality.

“The French are famous for their cuisine.”

 

“The injured were taken to hospital.”

 

“The young are encouraged to study.”

• Use “the” + noun to talk about something symbolically or to use one example to represent all of that type.

“The mobile phone has revolutionised human life.”

 

“The cow is a common farm animal.”

Ready to put all that into practice?

Great, That’s the lot. (And it was quite a lot!)

So here’s a little tester to se what you remember.