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ARTICLES

ARTICLE USES EXAMPLE


A/AN – THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE  When a singular uncountable  A man with a dog
noun is introduced for the lives next door to
first time me

 To talk about an unspecified  Take a pen, have a


person, thing or event seat, speak to a
teacher
 To talk about someone’s job  He’s a teacher, she
is a student
 To talk about the function of  It’s a vegetable
an object peeler
 To describe someone/thing  It’s a beautiful
and say what type of thing it place
is
 In number and quantity  A month, a couple
expressions of weeks, in a few
days
 To mean 1  The flat has a
sitting room and
two bedrooms
 To talk about some particular  It’s hard to imagine
‘unique things’ when we are a future without oil
focusing on one type or aspect and gas.
of the noun

THE – THE DEFINITE ARTICLE  With singular, plural and  A man has a dog.
uncountable nous when it is The man’s name is
clear what we are referring to Sam and the dog is
or we are mentioning called Buster
something that we have
already mentioned

 When something is unique –  The sun, the moon,


there is only 1 the earth (but not
other planets!)
 With superlatives  The biggest, the
best, the worst
 The…the comparative  The more you
structures study the better
you will do
 When we talk about  The head of
something that is unique Department
 To give a person’s title or a  The President
unique position (can also be  The Prime minister
used with no article)

 Mountain ranges 
 Rivers, canals and oceans/seas  The river Thames,
The grand canal,
The Mediterranean
 Deserts  The Sahara desert
ARTICLES

 Island groups  The Philippines


 The names of certain countries  The UK, The USA

 Theatres, museums, cinemas,  The Louvre, The


hotels and galleries natural history
museum
 Motorways and numbered  The M25, The A52
roads
NO ARTICLE – THE ZERO  With plural countable and  Women are
ARTICLE
uncountable nouns when we better drivers
are talking in general than men
 Most countries  Italy Spain,
France, England,
Ireland
 Continents  Antarctica,
Europe, South
America
 Regions  Southern Italy,
Northern
England, Molise
 Individual mountains  Mount Everest,
Mount Blanc, Ben
Nevis
 Lakes  Lake Superior,
Lake Garda, Lake
Como
 Roads, streets, bridges, parks,  King’s Road,
shops and restaurants (unless Tower Bridge,
it is part of the name) Tesco, Giovanni’s
restaurant
*INSTITUTIONS* - PRISON,  No article is used when you are  My father is in
SCHOOL, CHURCH AND referring to institution and the hospital
UNIVERSITY usual purpose it is used for
 If you are just thinking of the  They are building a
building use a or the new hospital in my
town

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