ArticlesRobert & Atik

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Articles

•The (definite article)•a/an (indefinite article)

The – definite article

•Use▫When something is unique

We damage the earth by polluting excessively.

▫Superlatives Luciano Pavarotti was the greatest opera

singer ever.▫The context makes it ‘known’

Has my mother arrived yet? / Yes, she’s in the living room.

•Use (continued)▫A defining phrase makes it ‘known’

Queen is the British band that became world famous in the late 1970’s.

▫A prepositional phrase makes it ‘known’ Meet me in the café next to the

underground station near my house.

•But here is the exception!▫We often use television, cinema etc. without

an article to refer to the art or entertainment. She works in television. I’m studying film in my final year.

▫If we refer to a specific item we use the article Don’t put flowers on the television. Have you seen the new film by Ridley Scott?

•THE is used for plural and singular nouns which the speaker specifies.▫The elephant(s)▫The house(s)

•A/AN is used for singular nouns which the speaker doesn’t specify.▫An elephant▫A house

A/an indefinite article• Use:

▫Singular countable nouns A garage, an opinion

▫When naming something That’s a scarab beetle.

▫When topic is not known to listener A new teacher has come to this school.

▫One example of class or species An African elephant has larger ears than an

Indian elephant.

A/an indefinite article▫NO article when referring to whole class

Ruthless poachers hunt elephants for the valuable ivory of their tusks.

A/an indefinite article• Jobs1, nationalities, beliefs:

▫I am an engineer. – You’re an Austrian. – Cat Stevens is a Muslim.

• Numbers:▫A hundred. – A thousand. – A dozen.

• Prices, speeds:▫Two dollar a kilo. – 20km an hour.

• Fixed speech:▫A lot of

A/an indefinite article•Jobs1:

▫No art. when noun before name: Muslim Cat Stevens makes Islamic music.

A/an indefinite article•NO INDEF. ARTS.

▫Referring to group/class in general: South African apes like to eat bananas.

▫Nouns as (when thinking of purpose): Church, hospital, school2

Fewer people attend Church regularly now than before.

▫Building itself2:

Is there a school in this village or do the children have to go to the town?

A/an indefinite article

•When which one?▫Depending on following sound:

▫A When followed by consonant sound: A house – a cigarette – a Euro

▫An When followed by vowel sound: An apple – an egg – an hour