ARTICLESBy Haslinda MidySK St Mary Papar

What are ‘Articles’?There are two types of Articles in the English Language.

ArticlesDefinite

‘the’

Indefinite ‘a’ / ‘an’

What are they?

they come at the beginning

of a noun

they show if the information

is new or known already

they are used in singular

noun

What do they look like?

Indefinite ‘a’ and ‘an’Examples:

A tableA deskA sharpenerA bagA dusterAn appleAn eraserAn inkAn octopusAn umbrella

Definite ‘the’Examples:

The hospitalThe zooThe police stationThe supermarketThe schoolThe libraryThe airportThe museumThe pupils

Where do they come in sentences?

• At the beginning of a noun

• In front of a consonant sound

• For singular countable noun

1.A cat likes to drink milk.

2.John is a doctor.

3.The elephant has a long trunk.

4.She is such a beautiful girl.

Indefinite ‘a’

Where do they come in sentences?

• At the beginning of a noun

• In front of a vowel or vowel sound

• For singular countable noun

1.An elephant is a big animal.

2.John left an hour ago.

3.The car has an unusual sound.

4.She ate an apple this morning.

Indefinite ‘an’

A/an is used with singular nouns to introduce something new that the listener or reader does not know about.

I saw an accident. I have a new bag.I have an older sister.

A/an is used in expressions of time and quantity.

Forty times an hour Thirty pence a kilo.

Where do they come in sentences?

• To refer to something that is known

• To refer to ‘one of a kind’

• To specific uncountable noun

1.That is the teacher who teaches me English.

2.The water flows swiftly.

3.The moon is shining bright.

4.She is the tallest girl in the class.

Definite ‘the’

• Before plural nouns (‘a’, ‘an’)

• Before the name of institution

• Before the name of a game

• Before the name of a meal when using ‘have’

1.Dogs are faithful animals.

2.They play football everyday.

3.We have our breakfast at seven.

4.She works at Queen Hospital.

No Articles

• Before name of a town, state or country (except the name include ‘Republic’ or ‘United’

• Before diseases

1.He is going to Australia next year.

2.He is from the United State of America.

3.She was ill last week because she has chicken pox.

No Articles

Indefinite VS Definite

Fill in the blanks1. Who is oldest boy in this class? (To show superlatives)

2. Mr. Webb is going to United States soon. (The word ‘United States’)

3. This morning I saw accident. (Refer to something for the 1st time)

4. Please lend me dollar. (Refer to something for the 1st time)

5. He is in hospital now. (Refer to something for the 1st time)

6. Where is book I lent you yesterday? (Refer to something for the 1st time)

7. visitors would like to speak to headmaster of this school. (Refer to particular person)

8. doctor advised me to eat a lot of fresh fruits. (Refer to particular person)

9. teachers told us to bring pencil each. (A means one)

Fill in the blanks10. We are going to make trip to Penang Hill during holidays.

(Refer to particular thing)

11. He lives in big city in Japan. (Name of country)

12. First she cleaned furniture then she washed dishes. (Refer to particular thing)

13. Yesterday accident happened in city. (Refer to A means one)

14. It was during second term holidays that I saw Prime Minister of India.

15. It is serious matter and we hope police will look into it soon. (Particular person)

16. Tell him news when you see him at railway station tomorrow. (Particular thing)

Fill in the blanks17. Ali wants to learn how to play badminton, so he has bought

badminton racket. (Name of games)

18. This is cheapest yet best typewriter in that shop. (Superlatives)

19. Sir, please give us example so that we can understand topic better. (Particular matter)

20. They went for swim in Muda River. (Name of river)

Answers1. the2. -3. an4. a5. the6. the7. the / the8. the / -9. the / a10.a / the11.a / -12. the / the13.an / the14. the / the15.a / the16. the / the17. -18. the / the19.an20.a / -