The articles

Svetlana EgorovaEnglishThe articlesInglise keel > Keeleõpetus > grammatikaForm 9Teacher Igor Jallai

Use the definite article the to talk about the following:

inventionsWhen was the telephone invented?

• mountain rangersThey went skiing in the Swiss Alps.

• rivers, seas and oceansThe river Volga flows into the Caspian Sea.

• species of animalsThe domestic cat has lived alongside humans since the time of Pharaohs.

island groupsThe Seychelles are a group of islands in the

Indian Ocean.

.

• cinemas, theatreWe are going to the Odeon this evening

•hotelsThe Grand Hotel is in Baker Street.

• desertsThe sand on this beach was imported from the Sahara.

newspapersWhich newspaper shall I buy – the Independent or the

Herald?

• organisationsHe used to work for the BBC.

• museums, art galleriesYou should go to the Science Museum. It’s very interesting.

• national groupsThe Welsh are famous for their singing.

Also use the definite article:

• to talk about previously mentioned thingsThere is a cat in the yard. The cat is black.

• to talk about particular nouns when it is clear what we are referring toWhere is the dog? I want to take him for a walk.

• when there is only one of somethingThe earth goes round the sun.

He is the tallest boy in our class.

• with superlatives

Use the indefinite article a/an: with (singular) jobs, etc.She is a doctor.

• in exclamationsWhat a lovely dress!

• with these numbers: 100, 1,000, 1,000,000There were over a hundred people at the party.

• with singular countable nouns (mentioned for the first time or when it doesn’t matter which one).I need a pencil.

The zero articleUse no article (the zero article) to talk about: continentsThey are travelling through Asia.

• countriesHave you been to Russia?

• mountainsThey have reached the summit of Mount Everest.

• lakes

Chicago is on Lake Michigan.

villages, towns, cities

We live in Tartu.

• streets, roads, etc. He lives in Oxford Street.

• magazines

Do you read Time magazine?

• illnesses

He’s got flu.

• uncountable, plural and abstract nouns used in their general senseLove makes the world go round.We buy fruit and vegetables at the market.

Also use no articles in the following expressions:

to/ at/ from school/university/ college

in/ to class to/ in/ into/ from church to/ in/ into/ out of prison/

hospital/ bed to/ at/ from work for/ at/ to breakfast/ lunch/

dinner by car/ bus/ bicycle/ plane/

train/tube/ boat/ on foot

Put the articles where necessary:

William Shakespeare, … greatest English playwright, was born in 1564 in …Stradford-on-Avon in … England. …Stradford is … small country town in … farming district near … centre of … England. … Avon, which is … pretty river with … grass and … trees all along its banks, runs through … Stradrord. Not much is known of … Shakespeare’s father. He was … farmer who, at … different times of his life, sold … meat and bought and sold … wool. He was poor and was often in … money difficulties. Very little is known about … life of his only son William also. … little house in which … great writer was born still stands It is now … museum. William went to … school in … Stradford. In 1586 he went to … London. Probably … first work he did there was at one of

… the two theatres that there were in … London at that time. Then he became … actor and soon began to write … plays for … company of actors to which he belonged. Shakespeare bought … largest house in his home town in 1597, but he did not spend much time there till 1610. He spent … last years of his life mostly in … Stradford, but he often visited … London. He died in 1616.