МИНИСТЕРСТВО ОБРАЗОВАНИЯ И НАУКИ РОССИЙСКОЙ ФЕДЕРАЦИИ

КОМИ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННЫЙ ПЕДАГОГИЧЕСКИЙ ИНСТИТУТ

КАФЕДРА АНГЛИЙСКОГО ЯЗЫКА

Английский язык The Use of Articles in Modern English

Сыктывкар

2010

ПЕЧАТАЕТСЯ ПО РЕШЕНИЮ РЕДАКЦИОННО-ИЗДАТЕЛЬСКОГО СОВЕТА КОМИ ГОСУДАРСТВЕННОГО ПЕДАГОГИЧЕСКОГО ИНСТИТУТА ОТ ...

Рекомендовано к изданию заседанием кафедры

английского языка КГПИ от 22.04.2010, протокол № 6

Рецензент: О.И. Килюшева, ст. преподаватель кафедры английского языка

Т.А. Головень

The Use of Articles in Modern English: Учебно-методическое пособие для студентов 2 курса. – Сыктывкар: Изд-во Коми пединститута, 2010. - 55 с.

Настоящее пособие предназначено для студентов II курса английского отделения. Оно посвящено одному из наиболее сложных разделов грамматики английского языка — употреблению артикля в английской речи. Цель пособия — формирование и совершенствование навыков правильного употребления артикля. Данное пособие содержит упражнения на различные случаи употребления артикля, которые изучаются на 2 курсе английского отделения факультета иностранных языков.

Пособие рекомендуется использовать на занятиях по практике устной и письменной речи на II курсе, а также при самостоятельной работе студентов.

© Т.А. Головень.

© Коми государственный педагогический институт, 2010

The Use of Articles with Class Nouns

Exercise 1. Change the nouns into the plural. Use some (any) where necessary and make the other necessary changes.

1. A kitten likes to play.

2. A violet does not smell so sweet as a lily of the valley.

3. Have you bought an apple for your child?

4. Here is a letter to be posted.

5. He ate a spoonful of broth and a sandwich.

6. I must buy a postcard.

7. She did not bring me a magazine, she brought me a newspaper.

8. She made a step towards him.

9. In the bedroom a candle was burning.

10. Did she ever lend you a book?

Exercise 2. Insert a, some or any where necessary. Change the number of the nouns, making all other necessary changes.

1. … letter of or to … soldier can be sent without … stamp.

2. … drug-store in the USA and Canada is … shop where one can get not only … medicines but also … drinks and snacks.

3. … days passed, but there weren’t … sings of … change coming.

4. There remained … toast, … rolls, and … bun on the plate.

5. Shall I treat you to … apple or … pear? — I always prefer … apples to … pears.

6. Give me … nail. I bought … picture and want to have it fixed.

7. The other day I spoke to … geologists who told me that … new deposit of diamonds had been found in this region.

8. … man’s jacket usually has … breast pocket.

9. I expect to get … letter from them in two weeks.

Exercise 3. Insert the appropriate articles where necessary.

1. … door is locked.

2. Have you …telephone?

3. … telephone is out of order.

4. It is dark on … landing.

5. Do you like … dogs?

6. Don’t tease … dog.

7. Never try to stroke … dog if you don’t know it.

8. … fountain-pen won’t write.

9. Have you got … fountain-pens on sale?

10. Where can I have … coat made to order?

11. Where did you have … coat made?

12. In this store they always have a wide choice in … coats and … suits.

13. … suits are ready-made.

14. Where is … key?

15. How many flats are there in … house?

16. How much are … dinner-sets? How many articles are there in … set?

17. How much are … dinner sets nowadays?

Exercise 4. Translate into English. (Dictation-translation)

1. a) Мне нужно снять комнату. b) Проветри комнату.

2. a) Нож не режет. b) У тебя нет ножа? c) Возьми нож и отрежь себе хлеба.

3. a) Мы не знали, что здесь есть озеро. b) Озеро глубокое.

4. a) Замок сломался. b) Кому бы мне отдать починить замок? c) Ты не знаешь, где чинят замки? d) Не забудь купить замок.

5. a) У нас сегодня апельсины на третье. b) Апельсины в буфете. c) Возьми себе апельсин. d) Апельсин не кислый?

Exercise 5. Insert articles where necessary. (Articles with class nouns.)

1. Not … word was spoken in … parlour. (Caldwell)

2. … room itself was filling up, so was … staircase. (Snow)

3. I think that … man’s life is worth saving, whoever it belongs to. (Shaw)

4. Not … word was spoken, not … sound was made. (Dickens)

5. Edward remained … week at … cottage. (Austen)

6. Dinny looked up at … house; and suddenly saw … face in … window of … dining-room. (Galsworthy)

7. Roger looked at him and, without … word, took out his wallet and gave him … ten-shilling note. (Snow)

8. This morning … tobacconist was at his door. (Bennett)

9. She had … key of her own. (Conan Doyle)

10. I am afraid I addressed … wrong person. (Collins)

11. … rooms has three doors; one on … same side as … fireplace, near … corner, leading to … best bedroom. (Shaw)

12. Thank you, Stephen: I knew you would give me … right advice. (Shaw)

13. When I was … child my mother used to make … cakes and send me out with them as … presents to … neighbours. And … neighbours would give us … presents too, and not only at Christmas time. (Murdoch)

Exercise 6. Use the proper article. Pay attention to the use of the definite article when the context or the whole situation makes it clear which object (or person) is meant.

1. … trees swayed to and fro under … grey sky.

2. … air tasted fresh and clean with that special smell, like good bread-and-butter, which means that … open country is near at hand.

3. “This is St. Clair Road”, she said as … taxi turned up … long steep hill.

4. Could you tell me where you’ve put … money?

5. “Now, Laura” said her mother quickly, “come with me into … smoking-room.”

6. “How did you like … film?” she asked.

7. She hurried in again and found … water almost boiled away.

8. How is … weather? I suppose it’s as hot as in the Gobi.

9. … small station was dimly lit by two square lamps.

10. Chance entered … cabin. Arlie was sitting on … bed, her eyes wide with … fright.

11. He slammed down … phone without waiting for … answer.

Exercise 7. Analyse the use of the article with the nouns in bold type. Translate the sentences into Russian.

1. The tiger is a big cat-like animal ranging in several races from India and the Malay Peninsula to Siberia.

2. The clown appeared in the English circus first.

3. All the four sides and angles of the square are equal.

4. The invention of the radio was for a long time ascribed to Marconi.

5. Kennedy’s Plain was always a good trapping ground because it was unfrequented by man and yet lay between heavy woods and settlement. (S. Th.)

Exercise 8. Say in which of the following sentences you are dealing with generic singulars and generic plurals and explain the use of all the articles.

1. Nature provides animals with weapons of defence; the snake, the scorpion, the bee have their sting.

2. The French, he thought, are always finding occasions to block traffic.

3. There was nothing of the artist in her.

4. Man’s flight to the moon and his safe return to the earth has now left the realm of science fiction.

5. “The Italians are a wonderfully hospitable people,” she said.

6. From the door to the end of the line the unemployed began hopefully discussing their families.

7. The Tories were trying hard to attack the mining industry.

8. The article is generally placed before the noun or its attribute.

9. The ignorant naturally fear those who are interested in things they don’t understand.

10. “The respect for property is ingrained in the English soul,” she remarked.

11. She loved to talk on the quality of television entertainment for the young.

12. It was a drama depicting the life of the aristocracy.

13. The police said that Indians could come freely to the town and do their shopping.

14. “Do you know why American women live longer than American men, Jimmy?” “Because they sleep as long as they like in the morning.” “Then my ambition is to live as long as the American Woman,” Jimmy said lying back on the bed again.

15. I spoke of the economic position of woman.

Exercise 9. Supply the required articles for nouns in the following sentences, paying special attention to their generic use.

1. He killed reluctantly those animals he liked. He hated … mink because it was … most voracious little predator in … bush. He liked … skunk because it was fearless, he liked … bear, because it was … great fool, he liked … raccoon because it was clean, … beaver because it was clever, but he despised … fox, because it was cunning, … wolf because it was ruthless, and … squirrel because it was … nuisance.

2. … English are … political nation, and I was often asked to … houses where politics were … ruling interest.

3. There is so much of … schoolgirl still about her.

4. “… Swiss haven’t had … war in a hundred and fifty years and what have they produced?” Jimmy shrugged: “… cuckoo clock.”

5. When they are hurt, … tough usually suffer more than … tender.

6. … man does not live by bread alone.

7. While waiting for … flight, and without ever leaving … terminal, … visitor could shop, take … bath, have his hair cut and suit pressed.

8. She spent … great part of her life looking after … sick.

9. “… French are … easy-going people,” her father used to say.

10. Slowly but surely … man is conquering Nature.

11. No man born of … woman can live in such conditions.

12. In the town there were lots of shops kept by … Chinese.

13. “Do you notice the way … Italians drive?” Maurice asked. “Well,” Jack said, “it’s better than the way … Frenchmen drive.”

14. She learned entirely by … eye.

15. Learning comes easier to … young.

16. … public are requested to keep off … grass in … park.

17. … woman can’t resist buying … cosmetic articles in … shops.

18. … Future Tense is not used in … adverbial clauses of time and condition.

Exercise 10. Explain the use of articles with nouns denoting unique objects and notions.

1. He turned away, and lay with side-open eyes, looking out of the window at the sinking sun.

2. The storm had blown itself out. The last clouds, broken in lurid, ragged-edged fragments, were sailing gently over a soft blue sky.

3. “I suppose I oughtn’t to tell you, but someone ought to be thinking of the future,” said Aunt Milly.

4. She opened her eyes to their widest when she was told what a brilliant future spread before her.

5. On such an evening every one looks up at the Milky Way.

6. Charles broke in: “She wants a good world.”

7. It was the same house all right. We entered the tall gloomy archway as we had so often in the past.

8. The night was very dark, with a cold, damp gusty wind from the west.

9. That is Sirius, a gigantic sun, many millions of miles from us.

10. People all over the world want peace.

Exercise 11. Use the appropriate article with nouns denoting things considered to be unique.

1. The clouds were lying so closely below the plane that nothing could be seen of … earth.

2. The huge disc of … moon was rising in … east.

3. The clouds broke away and we had the advantage of … full moon.

4. Magellan was killed in battle. 18 of his companions reached Spain in 1522, completing the first voyage round … world.

5. Quite … new world opened before him.

6. The night was so dark that the sailors could distinguish neither … sky nor … sea.

7. … sea was sparkling under … cloudless sky.

8. … clear midday sky was suddenly overcast by heavy clouds coming from nowhere.

9. The air was filled with the odour of … sea of blossoms.

10. … high noon sun was incredibly strong, … summer sun now, sudden, uncompromising.

Exercise 12. Supply the required articles for nouns in the following sentences, paying special attention to those indicating unique objects and notions.

1. … sky was still dark to … east, but it would soon be … dawn.

2. It was … night still, but … stars were pale in … sky, and … day was at … hand.

3. It was … August night of … extreme beauty, … moon was just about to rise over … hills.

4. … cloud, hitherto unseen, came upon … moon.

5. … stars were faint and dim and lovely in … soft misty night sky.

6. “We’ve got to make arrangements for … future.” “But have we … future?” he asked.

7. It was … perfect night and … moon was just rising.

8. We hope for … future and regret … past.

9. Obviously we take … different views of … world. I want … better world.

10. … moon made … faint pathway on … water, but … house was still lit up by … setting sun.

11. There was … hamburger stand … block to … east.

12. … moon set, and in … sky … countless stars shone with their terrifying brilliance.

13. … man is … master of … whole earth, above and below, from … Equator to … Poles.

14. It was … glorious night … moon had sunk and left … quiet earth alone with … stars.