- •The Article Main Cases of the use of the Indefinite Article
- •The Article Main Cases of the use of the Definite Article
- •The Article We do not use an article before:
- •Use of articles with names of persons
- •Abstract nouns
- •The use of articles with geographical names
- •Special difficulties in the use of aricles
The Article Main Cases of the use of the Indefinite Article
The Indefinite Article has the following meanings:
nominating meaning (we give a name to the object we have in mind):
eg. It’s a bus (not a car).
numeral meaning (= the meaning of oneness):
eg. I have a son and a daughter.
generalizing meaning (when the noun is used in a general sense and denotes a typical member of class. The article has the meaning of “every”):
eg. A hungry man is an angry man.
in the plural no article is used:
eg. Cats are domestic animals.
The Indefinite Article is used:
to denote something which has not been mentioned before:
e.g. I’ve just seen a car coming up a driver. There’s a spider in the bus.
denotes a noun belonging to a class. It has the meaning of “какой-то”, “один”, “некий”:
eg. It’s a teenager novel (not for grown-ups).
in apposition (приложение):
eg. His aunt, an old woman of 56, was also present there.
in exclamatory sentences after WHAT, SUCH, RATHER, QUITE:
eg. What a nice girl!
Plural nouns take zero article: eg. What nice girls!
with nouns denoting time, measure, weight and with numerals: hundred, thousand, million, dozen, score:
e.g. A week has passed. The case weighs a hundred pounds. We go there twice a fortnight.
in the construction “there is / was” and after “It is… This is….” with a singular countable nouns:
eg. There is a book on the table.
with professions, trades, occupations: eg. He is a lawyer.
in expressions of frequency: e.g. twice a week; fifty pounds a day.
to denote two things that are often mentioned together as though they are one thing: e.g. a knife and fork; a cup and saucer.
to denote somebody’s name when we don’t know the person:
e.g. There is a Mr. Wilkins to see you.
with ordinal numerals in the meaning of «ещё один»: e.g. a second cup of coffee.
The Indefinite Article is used in some set expressions:
a lot of |
a great deal of, |
at a speed of |
at a distance |
a great number of |
in a loud/low voice |
at a time when |
a good deal |
it’s a pity |
to be in a hurry |
to have a mind |
as a rule |
a few/ a little |
to fly into passion |
to have a cold |
at a flash |
all of a sudden |
as a result of |
to have a seat |
in a whisper |
as a matter of fact |
at a time/ at a glance |
to take a seat |
to keep a secret |
for a short/long time |
to get in a fury/in a rage |
to have a headache |
to tell a lie |
it’s a shame |
to be at a loss |
to go for a walk |
to put an end to |
to give a permission |
to have a good time |
to have a smoke |
to give smb a hand |
The Article Main Cases of the use of the Definite Article
The Definite article has the meaning of definiteness = specifying meaning. It arises from the previous mention of the noun in the context. eg. We have a house in the country. The house is small.
The Definite Article is used:
when the situation makes the object definite, when the speaker and listener know what particular object is meant: eg. Open the door, please.
when the speaker uses an attribute pointing out particular objects (a particularizing attribute): eg. This is the flat I live in.
with nouns in word-groups the first element of which is SOME, NONE, MOST, MANY and the second noun with the preposition OF:
eg. Most of the ladies looked pleased.
with nouns denoting unique things: eg. The sun was bright.
to denote something which is unique in some way:
e.g. Which is the tallest building in the world?
with nouns modified by adjectives in the superlative degree:
eg. This is the shortest story.
with nouns modified by the pronoun SAME, NEXT, WRONG, RIGHT, VERY, ONLY, LAST: eg. He asked the same question.
with nouns modified by the ordinal numeral: eg. I’m reading the first chapter.
the definite article has a generic meaning when the noun is used in a general sense and denotes the whole class: eg. The telephone was invented in the 19th century.
When the noun MAN is used in a general sense no article is used:
eg. Woman is man’s helpmate.
with the name of a group of mountains: the Alps, the Himalayas
with the name of a canal, river, sea ocean: the Atlantic, the Mississippi
with the names of certain countries: e.g. the United States; the Lebanon
with the name of hotels, theatres, museums/galleries, cinemas, restaurants/pubs, newspapers, ships (+ the names with of):
e.g. the Hilton / the Sheraton / the British Museum / the Tower of London
to denote somebody we visit regularly: She has gone to the doctor/dentist.
with an adjective used as a noun referring to a group of people:
e.g. the sick / the injured / the rich / the young
with an adjective used as a noun describing a nationality:
e.g. the Japanese / the Asians
with the names denoting the whole family: e.g. the Simons
with the date (in speech): e.g. March the twenty-fifth
to denote somebody in an official position: e.g. the Pope / the President / the Queen
The Definite Article is used in some set expressions:
in the morning |
in the evening |
out of the question |
at the latest |
in the night |
in the country |
to make the bed |
at the weekend |
on the right/left |
on the one/other hand |
to do the washing up |
at the time |
on the whole |
the day before yesterday |
to keep the house |
for the most part |
the other day |
to go to the theatre |
to lay the table |
the sooner the better |
to play the piano |
to tell the truth |
under the influence |
in the end |
to pass the time |
all the same |
to make the most |
on the phone |
at the moment |
in the distance |
to tell the time |
to tell the time |
in the original |
in the shade |
on the safe side |
in the doorway |
on the spot |
in the dark |
in the sun |
in the middle of |