English Grammar and Exercises / The articles: a, an & the

The articles: a, an & the
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​An article is a word used to modify a noun, basically, it’s an adjective. English has two types of articles: the (definite article) and a/an (indefinite articles). They’re used very often  and are very important for using English accurately.

Indefinite articles
A and an are indefinite articles used to refer to a singular countable noun. These articles are used to refer to any member of a group or class. The speaker doesn’t tell us exactly which one he or she is referring to.

Use a/an for naming a member of a group:
EXAMPLES
  • Mrs. Doudtfire is a nanny / Oscar works as an engineer (Jobs).
  • Diego Armando Maradona is an Argentine (Nationalities).
  • Barbara is a Jewish (Religions).

​THE USE OF THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE “A”
 1) “A” is used before a consonant (b, c, d, etc.)
EXAMPLES
  • a car.
  • a dog.
  • a Friday.
  • a tiny nose.
  • a 15 year-old boy.
  • a year / week (time).
  • a kilo / mile (measurements). Also using “one” instead of “a” is correct.
2) “A” is used before a vowel but consonant sound 
EXAMPLES
  • a university. [juː]
  • a unit. [juː]
  • a European. [jʊ]
  • a one (1). [w]
3) “A” is used before a pronounced “h”
EXAMPLE
  • a horse.

THE USE OF THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE “AN”
 1) “An” is used before a vowel (a, e, i, etc.)
EXAMPLES
  • an orange.
  • an eye.
  • an alligator.
2) “An” is used before an unpronounced (mute) “h”
EXAMPLE
  • an hour [a].
  • an honest [ˈɑ] (N. Amer.) - [ˈɒ] (Brit.)
  • an honor [ˈɑ] (N. Amer.) - [ˈɒ] (Brit.)
  • an heir [ɛ] (N. Amer.) - [e] (Brit.)
  • an herb  [ɜ] (N. Amer.)
3) “An” is used before a consonant but vowel sound
EXAMPLES
  • an “F”. [ε]
  • an MBA. [ε]

Definite article
The is a definite article used to refer to something specific (singular or plural nouns). The speaker talks about a particular (or known) member of a group.
EXAMPLES
  • The book on the table is about horror stories.
  • Could you pass me the sugar, please?
  • The movie was great.

​THE USE OF THE DEFINITE ARTICLE “THE”
1) “The” is used before a noun which has already been previously mentioned
EXAMPLES
  • I lost the wallet you gave me yesterday.
  • They have a dog and two cats. The dog is Siberian husky.
2) “The” is used to indicate a noun that is unique or there is only one
EXAMPLES
  • The President of United States lives in the White House.
  • The Eiffel tower was built in 1889 to commemorate the French Revolution.
  • The Nile is a river in Africa.
  • Where is the bathroom?
​3) “The” is used before superlative adjectives
EXAMPLES
  • It’s the largest river in the world.
  • She is the most beautiful lady of all time.
4) “The” is used to talk about the whole population of a country or region
EXAMPLES
  • The British drink too much tea.
  • The Romans invaded Britain in AD 43.
  • The Mayans were famous for their architecture and astronomical knowledge.
HOWEVER: When generalizing about nationalities or a group of people, “the” is not usually used: “Americans eat a lot of hamburgers”
5) “The” is used to indicate all the members of a family
EXAMPLE
  • The Simpsons live in Springfield.
6) “The” is used to talk about musical instruments
 EXAMPLE
  • She plays the piano every day.
7) “The” is used to talk about directions (cardinal points)​
EXAMPLES
  • the north.
  • the south-east.
Here's a list of Articles (a, an & the) Exercises: