Articles

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DEFINITION OF ARTICLES

Articles are words or determiners that are put before a noun (in front of nouns) to provide additional information about the noun, such as if the noun refers to something specific or general, or if it is singular or plural.

OBSERVING

Look at the pictures below.

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Picture 2

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Are you bored? Try to watch the following video then observe and learn.

TYPES OF ARTICLES AND THEIR FUNCTION

English has two types of articles: definite and indefinite. There are two types of articles indefinite ‘a’ and ‘an‘ or definite ‘the’. You also need to know when not to use an article.

Let’s take a look at some examples to make it easier.

During the long journey, the family played car games.

You can see that when we use the article ‘the’, it means that we are talking about a specific day and also a specific family. However, if we change the article, it means that we are not talking about a specific journey or family. Take a look at the example now:

During a long journey, a family can play car games.

Simply by changing the article, we have made the sentence a more general statement and not about a specific thing or person.

⏩ Indefinite Article

Indefinite Articles—a, an

When we are talking about the indefinite article, we are referring to the words ‘a’ and ‘an’ and depending on which word they are referring to, will depend on which one you use. So, the use of ‘a’ and ‘an’ is to represent one thing. Because the number is only one, of course the object is singular and can be counted (countable).

If the noun begins with a vowel, you should use ‘an.’ ‘an’—used before singular countable nouns beginning with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u) or vowel sound: an apple, an elephant, an issue, an orange.
If the nouns begins with a consonant, you should use ‘a.’ ‘a’used before singular countable nouns beginning with consonants (other than a, e, i, o, u): a stamp, a desk, a TV, a cup, a book.

We use the indefinite article as a way of demonstrating that we are not referring to a specific item or person but rather talking a more general sense. Let’s take a look at some examples of the indefinite article being used within a sentence.

A man is walking down the street. (I make a general observation that does not single out a specific person.)
I bought a jacket for my trip to Toraja. (Not a specific jacket.)

‘the’

The man is walking down the street. (We point out a specific man.)
I have got the tickets for the show, so we are ready to go. (We refer to a specific set of tickets.)

📌Sometimes ‘a’ and ‘an’ can be used for first mention (the first time the noun is mentioned). Then, in subsequent sentences, the article ‘the’ is used instead.

He would like to live in a large house. The house should have at least three bedrooms and two bathrooms.

In the first sentence (first mention), ‘a’ is used because it is referring to a nonspecified house. In the second sentence, ‘the’ is used because now the house has been specified

📌Countable nouns - refers to items that can be counted and are either singular or plural. Uncountable nouns - refers to items that are not counted and are always singular.

The following video can help you understand more about articles.

THE RULES OF ARTICLES

Following are the rules which explain the use of definite and indefinite articles.

⏩Using Indefinite Article: a & an

👉 Rule 1:

A common noun in the singular number always requires an article before it. But a plural common noun does not require an article always. Example:

I saw a snake. (Refers to a random snake)
I saw snakes in a zoo. (No article is required)

👉Rule 2:

The choice between the two indefinite articles – a & an – is determined by sound. Words beginning with consonant sounds precede ‘a’. Words beginning with vowel sounds precede ‘an’ such as the sound of like "y" and "w". There are some special cases also. Example:

a university, a union, a useful book, etc.
a one-dollar note, a one-man army, etc.
an MA, a BA, an LLB, a BSC, etc.

👉Rule 3:

A or an - sometimes makes a Proper Noun a Common Noun. Proper nouns generally do not take any articles, but when a proper noun needs to be used as a common noun, you must bring a or an - for it. Example:

He thinks he is a Shakespeare. (Here, ‘Shakespeare’ does not refer to the actual person but someone like him.)
He seems to be an Australian. (‘Australia’ is a proper noun but ‘Australian’ is a common noun because there is only one Australia but a million of Australians.)

👉Rule 4:

Sometimes indefinite articles are used to refer the number ‘one’/’each’/’per’. Example:

I earned a thousand dollar in that job. (One thousand dollar)
I have a car. (One car)
It goes 50 miles an hour. (Per Hour)

👉Rule 5:

Indefinite articles often precede descriptive adjectives. Example:

He is a good boy.
What a nice car!

👉Rule 6:

A’ sometimes comes before determiners, for example, a few, a little, a lot of, a most, etc. but in the case of many, a or an - comes after. Example:

I have a few friends coming over.
There is a little milk in the jar.
Many a fan welcomed

THE RULES OF ARTICLES

⏩Using Definite Article: the

👉 Rule 1:

The’ is used to indicate a particular person(s) or thing(s) in the case of common nouns. Example:

The man is running. (A particular man)
I saw the boy stealing.
Where is the pen I gave you last year?
I gave him a ball, but he lost the ball. (‘a ball’ became ‘the ball’ in the second clause because that ball was not a random ball anymore.)

👉 Rule 2:

Sometimes ‘the’ is used to generalize a group/whole class. Example:

The dog is a faithful animal. (Refers to the whole species of dog.)
The English are industrious. (Refers to the people of England as a nation)
The honest are respected. (The + adjectives = plural noun)
The poor are not always dishonest. (The + adjectives = plural noun)

👉 Rule 3:

To specify a non-count noun ‘the’ is required before it. Example:

The water of the Arctic ocean is freezing.
Please return the money I lent you last year.

👉 Rule 4:

The’ is mandatory before a thing which is only one of a kind in the universe. Example:

The moon is shining tonight.
The earth is moving around the sun.

👉 Rule 5:

Using ‘the’ with geographical nouns generally depends on the size and plurality of the things those nouns refer to. ‘The’ is generally used everywhere except some cases. So, it’s better to know those exceptions first.

‘The’ must not precede:

Names of continents: Asia, Europe, Australia, Africa, South America, North America, Antarctica.
Names of countries: Australia, Bolivia, England, France, Spain, etc.
Names of states, cities, or towns: Los Angeles, Alaska, Sydney, London,
Names of streets: George street, Albion Street, New town street,
Names of singular lakes and bays: Lake Carey, Lake Eyre, Lake Hillier, Shark Bay,
Names of single mountains: Mount Everest, Mount Solitary, Mount Bindo, Mount Fuji, etc.
Names of single islands: Easter Island, Bare Island, Bird Island, Fatima Island,
Names of languages: Spanish, Russian, English, (When ‘the’ precedes these nouns, they refer to the population of those languages.)
Names of sports: cricket, football, basketball,
Names of discipline/subject of studies: biology, history, computer science, mathematics.

Note:

‘The’ is a widely used article in English. Except for the list mentioned above and proper nouns, ‘the’ is used before almost all the nouns which mean something definite/particular. The above list has some opposite factors also. Those factors are explained in the following list:

‘The’ must precede:

Names of oceans, gulfs, seas, and rivers: the Pacific, the Atlantic, the Coral Sea, the Timor Sea, the Persian Gulf, the Nile, the Murray River, the Darling River, etc.
Names of countries with united states or islands: the United States of America (the USA), the UK, the UAE, the Philippines, etc.
Names of great lakes: the Great Lakes, the African Great Lakes
Names of mountain ranges: the Himalayas, the Alps, the Andes, etc.
Names of a group of Islands: the West Indies, the Andamans, etc.

EXAMPLES OF ARTICLES

Following are the examples of definite and indefinite articles.

C O U N T A B L E	A/An	The	Translation
	a plate	the plate, the plates	piring
	a box	the box, the boxes	kotak
	a city	the city, the cities	kota
	a man	the man, the men	pria
	a woman	the woman, the women	wanita
	a child	the child, the children	anak
	a user	the user, the users	pengguna
	a university	the university, the universities	universitas
	a European	the European, the Europeans	orang Eropa
	a sweet tomato	the sweet tomato, the sweet tomatoes	tomat manis
	a rotten egg	the rotten egg, the rotten eggs	telur busuk
	a wild animal	the wild animal, the wild animals	hewan liar
	an apple	the apple, the apples	apel
	an orange	the orange, the oranges	jeruk
	an umbrella	the umbrella, the umbrellas	payung
	an actress	the actress, the actresses	aktris
	an idea	the idea, the ideas	ide
	an exam	the exam, the exams	ujian
	an owl	the owl, the owls	burung hantu
	an hour	the hour, the hours	satu jam
	an FBI agent	the FBI agent, the FBI agents	agen FBI
	an honest boy	the honest boy, the honest boys	laki-laki yang jujur
	an old dress	the old dress, the old dresses	gaun tua
	an empty plate	the empty plate, the empty plates	piring kosong
U N C O U N T A B L E	~~a sugar~~	the sugar	gula
	~~a water~~	the water	air
	~~a money~~	the money	uang
	~~a patience~~	the patience	kesabaran
	~~a safety~~	the safety	keselamatan
	~~an air~~	the air	udara
	~~an advice~~	the advice	saran
	~~an enthusiasm~~	the enthusiasm	antusiasme
	~~an information~~	the information	informasi
	~~an electricity~~	the electricity	listrik

Watch the following video and you can practice through the song in the video.

Do you like watching animated story? Well, you can also learn the use of articles through the following animated story. Watch and find the definite article "the" and the indefinite articles "a/an".