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When the article a is placed in front of nouns. What is the difference between a definite and an indefinite article in English? the definite article the

1. When it is clear from the previous context or situation which object, phenomenon, etc. is being discussed, or when a specific object, etc. is meant, known in the situation to the speaker and listener, or when the given noun is already at least earlier mentioned in this context.

   Close the door, please. Close the door, please.
   (specific, this door, the door in the room in which the speaker is located or which he means situationally).
   Ann is in the garden. Anna (is) in the garden (which is near the house, in the known to us, etc.).
   Please pass me the wine. Please pass me the wine (the one on the table).
   A car struck a tree. You can see the mark on the car and the tree. The car hit a tree (some car hit some tree). Traces of what happened are visible on (this) car and on (that) tree.

2. Before a countable noun in the singular, which means an animate or inanimate object as a representative of the entire class, category or group, that is, an object that expresses the general in a single concept.

   The Hon is the king of beasts. Leo is the king of beasts (all lions).
   The young man must be polite. The young person should be polite (the young person representing the younger generation).

3. Before nouns that are one of a kind:

   the Earth - Earth, the Sun - Sun, the sky - sky.

4. Before nouns that have a definition with them, expressed in a definitive restrictive turnover, sometimes with the preposition of.

   The water in the river was very cold. The water in the river (water in this river) was very cold.
   The girl in blue stood by the window. The girl in blue (the girl in blue, not red or white) stood by the window.
   The English teacher of our group was ill. Our group's English teacher was sick.

5. Usually before nouns:
   • which are defined by adjectives in the superlative degree (meaning "most").

     He is the best student in our group. He is the best student in our group.

   • which are used with definitions expressed by the words same - the same, very - the same, only - the only one, next - the next, last - the last.

     Read the same text. Read the same (same) text.
     You are the very man I am looking for. You are (exactly) the (very) person I am looking for.
     The next day we went to Moscow. The next day we went to Moscow.

6. Before nouns denoting the names of rivers, seas, oceans, mountain ranges, ships, newspapers, some states, cities, as well as before proper names in the meaning of a whole family:

   the Volga - the Volga, the Black Sea - the Black Sea, the Pacific Ocean - the Pacific Ocean, the Alps - the Alps, the "Kurchatov" - "Kurchatov" (name of the ship), the "Pravda" - "Pravda" (newspaper), the Ukraine - Ukraine, the Smirnovs - Smirnovs (the whole Smirnov family or the Smirnovs' husband and wife).

7. Before the names of musical instruments, when this type of instrument is meant in general, and not a unit, one of them.

   She learns to play the flute. She is learning to play the flute.

Greetings, my dear readers.

I know that I usually start with something else, but today I have an assignment for you right away. I want you to look at these suggestions and tell me what the difference is.

Tommy sat down on a chair while waiting for his turn.- Tomi sat down on a chair while waiting for his turn.

Tommy sat on the chair nearest to the door while waiting for his turn.- Tomi sat down on the chair closest to the door while he waited for his turn.

You've probably already noticed that the difference is in the very articles and meanings that they carry. And yes, my dears, today an exciting journey awaits us, where there will be an important topic for us - articles in English. I will tell you the basic rules, I will give you many examples, both for children and adults. And also immediately give you links to and on the topic of articles.

What is it and what is it used for?

Let's define at once: article is what should always come before a noun. He, speaking very roughly, defines a noun so that we can better understand what is being said.

What are they and what are they used with?

There are three of them in total: a, an and the.

And their use depends on which noun comes next. There are two types of nouns in English:

• Countable- those that we can count. For instance:

Pen - pen

Earring - earring

• Uncountable- those that we cannot count. For instance:

Sugar - sugar

Water - water

To understand when articles are used, we also need to remember that nouns can be singular (diamond - diamond) or plural (diamonds - diamonds).

And now, so that you can absolutely understand, here's to you table with examples where you can clearly see where and with what they are used.

Brother "a"

This article also bears a not at all proud name " uncertain » ( ). This is because it is usually placed in front of objects, of which there are many all over the world. And it is used only with nouns that can be counted, and even if they are in the singular. That is, if there is a lot of something, and you need to mention one thing, you need to use this particular article. Let's take a look at some examples:

This morning I bought a magazine.“I bought a magazine this morning. (Not a specific magazine, but one of those that were in the store).

I had a sandwich for lunch.“I had a sandwich for lunch. (Some one sandwich).

My sister has got a job... - My sister got a job. (One of the existing works all over the world).

By the way, the article "a" has a small, modest brother who appears quite rarely - in front of words starting with vowels. This is "an". His goal is the same, so do not be afraid - you will not get confused.

I've got an apple and an orange with me. - I have an apple and an orange with me.

Brother "the"

The article the, it also bears the name definite , is used when we know the subject in question. Countable and uncountable nouns, both in the singular and plural ( You can learn more about him).

In addition, it is very often used with place names and fixed expressions that you just need to learn. But it is important to remember that everywhere, including in the names of places, there are exceptions, which we will study separately ( Come in to find out about it).

Rosy doesn’t feel well. She went to the doctor... “Rosie is not feeling well. She went to the doctor. (To the doctor she usually goes to).

Did Molly get the job she applied for?"Did Molly get the job she was applying for?" (Exactly the job she applied for.)

When is he not at all?

Well, OK,- you say. - When these articles are used, we get it. But we do not always use only them!

And here you will be right, because the English language prepared a small test for us and created such cases when the article is not needed at all. And this phenomenon even got its name - zero article... Its use is mainly associated with exceptions to the previous rules. Or if our speech uses proper names(Tom, Mary, Ritha) or any concept in general.

Apples grow on the trees.- Apples grow on trees. (In general, all apples are like a species).

Tom bought a bike.“Tom bought himself a motorcycle. (The article is not placed before proper names).

There are also situations when you don't need to put anything in front of a noun. It happens after pronouns(my, our, his, this, that, etc.).

By the way, my dears, after completing the lesson with the rules, never forget to practice. I have for you that will help to consolidate the new material for a long time. You can also, which will help you remember the rules for using articles for a long time. Of course, articles are not the easiest rules for children, whether it's grade 2 or grade 8. And adults usually also suffer with them. But with my help, I hope you can figure them out faster.

Don't forget that you can get my blog news much faster by simply subscribing to the newsletter. Be the first to know about all important events.

Rules for the use of definite and indefinite articles (Articles) in colloquial English.

Correct use of the indefinite and definite articles in English is very important for mutual understanding. When communicating with an English-speaking person, you run the risk of being misunderstood if you make mistakes in using the article.

What is an article?

An article in English is a service word that is one of the main formal features of a noun, determines it, stands in front of a noun or before a word that defines it. The article itself is not used, has no meaning and is not translated into Russian.

Example

a pen - pen
a blue pen - blue pen

In Slavic languages ​​and, in particular, in Russian, articles do not exist, therefore, for many students of English, this part of speech causes difficulties in understanding how, where and why to use articles. In English, using the articles, a clarification is introduced - we are talking about an abstract or concrete subject.

Indefinite article

The indefinite article has two forms: a and an, is used before countable nouns in the singular. Form a [ə] used before words that begin with a consonant. Form an [æn] used before words that begin with a vowel sound.

Indefinite (a / an)

The indefinite article a (an) is used:

1. When we mention a subject for the first time.
Example:
I saw a cat. - I saw a cat.

2. Before the names of professions.
Example:
I am a doctor. - I am a doctor.

3. Before a noun if there is an adjective in front of it that describes it.
Example:
She is a beautiful woman. - She's a beautiful woman.

4. In combinations

• a couple
• a pair
• a little
• a few

Definite article

The definite article has one form the [ði:], is used when we are talking about something specific or already previously encountered in a context, conversation, or about what the interlocutor knows from his general knowledge. Definite article the comes from the word that (that), can be used with singular and plural nouns, with countable and uncountable.

Although the article the it is always spelled the same, its production differs depending on which letter the next word begins with. Before vowels the pronounced with a long at the end (transcription [ði:]), and before consonants - with the sound [ə] (transcription [ðə]).

Definite (the)

The definite article the is used:

1. When we talk about an object or person that has already been mentioned before, or it is clear from the context what we mean.
Example:
I saw a cat. The cat was black.
We've talked about this cat before.

Where is your son? - Where is your son?
He is in the kitchen. - He's in the kitchen.
The house has only one kitchen, so it's clear what we mean.

2. Before objects that are unique or exist in a single copy.

The Sun, the Moon, the President (the only president in the country)

3. Before adjectives in superlative degree the best.

4. Before titles:

• seas (the Black Sea);
• rivers (the Danube);
• oceans (the Atlantic Ocean);
• newspaper titles (The Times);
• hotels (the Black Sea hotel);
• theaters, galleries, museums.

Zero article

No article

The article is not used:

1. If we are talking about a subject in general, as a class.
For example: "I am afraid of dogs." - I'm afraid of dogs.
I'm not afraid of any particular dog, but of all dogs in general.
That is, I'm talking about dogs in general as a class.

2. The article is not used before:

• country names (England);
  • exceptions: the USA, The Great Britain;
• city ​​names (London);
• street names (Bakers street);
• languages ​​(English);
• airports, stations.

3. Articles are not used in expressions:

• at home;
• at school;
• at university;
• at work / to work;
• in bed / to bed;
• by bus / by train / by car.

Do some practice exercises

Supply “a / an”, “the” or “-“:

Example

He is (_) strong man. - He is a strong man.

1. I'm going to bed. I've got (_) headache.
2. Paris is (_) capital of France.
3. I'll be back in (_) minute.
4. (_) black is her favorite color.
5. I go to (_) cinema twice (_) week.
6. Coffee (_) produced in Brazil.
7. They make (_) good coffee here.
8. She does not know (_) English, she speaks (_) Spanish.
9. My brother, (_) geographic teacher, knows (_) lot about it.
10. I saw (_) wonderful picture.
11. Mister Alan grandma was (_) artist.
12. (_) cats should eat fish.
13. She is (_) economical woman.
14. (_) president is changing every 4 years.
15. I bought (_) couple of glasses in (_) museum yesterday.

Despite the fact that initially in the minds of a Russian-speaking person, the category of articles is absent, nevertheless for the overwhelming majority of modern European languages ​​it is extremely significant and is absorbed literally with mother's milk. Therefore, today we will consider how to use the article a / an, the in English correctly so that you never make mistakes in the future.

Rules for the use of article a

This article is called indefinite article and always accompanies countable nouns in the singular, that is, those that can be counted, enumerated. The very essence of the article is expressed in the fact that it, together with an, is a remnant of the Old English word meaning "one." That is why the article a used exclusively with words in the singular. In addition, the use cases for this particular article include the following:

• The first mention of the subject. For example, if the speaker talks about their new notebook to a friend, they will say: Yesterday I bought a nice notebook. The notebook is green and pink. As you can see, the indefinite article was used for the first time. a, in the second already definite article - everything according to the established rules.
• When naming a profession or occupation, for example: She’s a doctor. I am a teacher.
• After the constructions there is, it is, that is, this is, for example: This is a beautiful dress. There is a computer on the table.
• If the adjective describing it is in front of the noun, then the article will not destroy their bundle, but will stand in front of the adjective, for example: I’m a young boy. In that vase there was a beautiful red rose.
• After quite, such: Such a smart woman!
• In expressions denoting quantity, namely: a lot of, a couple, a dozen, a way too, a great many, a great deal of.
• In constructions where a replaces the preposition per(in, for): 7 Euros a kilo, twice a day, etc.
• In exclamation sentences like this: What a nasty weather! What a good puppy! What a tasty pancake!
• Sometimes accompanied by proper names, namely: Two days ago I met a Mrs. Black, which translates as “Yesterday I met some Mrs Black. "

Article an

It should immediately be noted that this article is not independent and is only a form of the above article. a... Therefore for an the same rules of use are characteristic, however, the main condition for its use is the presence of a situation in which the countable word in the singular begins with a vowel. Example: I’ve bought an apple. In his bag there is an orange. An umbrella is what I really need now!

Combinations to Learn

For each article ( a / an, the) there is a set of certain stable combinations, having memorized which you can be sure that you will not fall on your face. Often, it is on them that the compilers of all kinds of exams like to catch people learning the language.

For articles a / an it is necessary to remember the following basic stable phrases:

• To be in a hurry - to be in a hurry, in a hurry.
• To be at a loss - to be in difficulty, perplexity.
• To be in a rage - to be in a rage, rage.
• To have a headache - to have a headache.
• To have a toothache - to have a toothache.
• In a loud voice - in a loud voice.
• In a low voice - in a quiet, low voice.
• In a whisper - in a whisper.
• It's a pity - what a pity; it is a pity that….
• It's a shame - a shame.
• It's a pleasure (to do something).

Definite article

The definite article is identical to the demonstrative pronoun "this" and "that" and is used with both singular and plural nouns in the following situations:

• If we are talking about a subject that has already been mentioned in the conversation, or the context allows us to understand which specific subject from the set is being spoken about, for example: Yesterday I went in the cinema and saw a film. The film was absolutely not interesting.
• With words that serve as a nomination for unique objects, things or phenomena, one of a kind, namely: sun, sky, Earth, moon.
• After prepositions indicating a place, for example: There is a dog in front of the door.
• With superlative adjectives.
• If a whole category is meant for one object, for example: The dog is a mammal (a dog is a mammal; we mean not a single dog, but their aggregate set).
• With ordinal numbers, namely: the second grade, etc. However, it is important to consider here: if a numeral denotes a number, the article is not used at all, for example: Lesson 3, Section 6, page 172, etc.
• When mentioning the cardinal points: in the south.
• With the surname, if the whole family is meant, and not its individual member: the Petrovs.
• In stable constructions to remember: in the morning / evening / afternoon, to the theater / cinema, to the market / shop.
• Always with the words: same, next, only, very, previous, last, left, right, upper, very, central, following, main.
• Together with adjectives that have passed into another part of speech, to nouns (such words are called substantivized), namely: The rich (rich) and others.

The definite article is also used with the place names of all:

• rivers (the Neva);
• oceans (the Pacific Ocean);
• seas (the Red Sea);
• lakes (the Baikal; however, if there is a word lake, for example Lake Superior and etc., the use of the article is not required at all);
• channels;
• straits and bays;
• mountain ranges (the Alps);
• deserts (the Victoria Desert);
• archipelagos and islands (the British Isles);
• states, if their names contain the words Kingdom, Federation, Republic (for example, the Dominican Republic), if the name is in the plural (the Netherlands) or is an abbreviation (the USA);
• with two exceptions: the Gambia and the Bahamas;
• with the names of cinemas, theaters, newspapers (The New York Times), magazines, hotels.

And again idioms

Another portion of stable phrases that are actively used in everyday speech by the British and everyone who can speak their language, but already with the article the, as follows:

• To tell (or speak) the trurth - to tell the truth. You can remember with the help of an association: the truth is one and only, there are many lies (that's why they say a lie).
• To play the piano - play the piano.
• In the day-time - during the daytime, during the day.
• To read in the original - read in the original (i.e. not in translation).
• On the one hand ... on the other hand ... - on the one hand (one opinion) ..., on the other hand (another opinion).
• It's out of the question - this is out of the question.

So, when the basic rules for how the article is used a / an, the, considered, it's time to deal with the zero article and find out why these categories were generally formed in English, but not in Russian. In addition, it is also necessary to work out the theoretical basis with the help of practical exercises.

Without article

There is a certain set of situations when the use of the article is not required (zero article, or "zero"). This includes the following cases:

• If the word is used in the plural and generalizing meaning, for example: Children like bonbons (in general, all children (any) love candy).
• With uncountable nouns, if no defining and descriptive units are given: My father likes music.
• With proper names (countries, cities, human names).
• With nominations for days of the week and months, for example: September, monday.
• With the words breakfast, lunch, dinner.
• When a word already has determinants in the form of possessive and demonstrative pronouns, as well as the words any, every, some.
• Together with the names of vehicles: I prefer traveling by plane.
• With words for sports.
• With nouns denoting parents, family, educational institutions (if there is no specification and clarification): Are you at college?
• With words expressing insufficiency: few, little.
• With the names of the holidays (Easter, Christmas).
• With nominations for diseases (flu, cancer).
• And also in a number of stable combinations.

How English developed. Articles a / the: history of origin

It must be said that the articles did not exist in languages ​​at once. In addition, even foreigners who have an article system in their own native languages ​​cannot always understand the system of this official part of speech in another language. For example, the system of articles of the German language is considered the most sophisticated and complex, but many people in Germany admit that they absolutely cannot understand the scheme of using the English articles, and vice versa.

Article a / an, the, as well as zero - all this today is natural for a native English speaker, and it is understandable why. The point is, the history of the English language as a whole is the history of the grammatical revolution. At a certain period of its development, this representative of the Indo-European language family took and changed the "pronoun + noun" link, which is so characteristic, for example, for Slavic languages, into the "noun + article" link.

Resources to help with material development

Articles today a / the, the rules of use of which were discussed above, sometimes become a stumbling block at the very beginning of the path to learning English. Therefore, this article has collected resources and materials that will help solve the difficulties that have arisen:

1. Duolingo is a site where all topics, including articles a / the, the use and examples of which have already been covered in detail in the article, are provided with visual tables and explanations.
2. Njnj is a seemingly unremarkable, but useful service at least for a one-time visit. Anyone here can work out the articles. a / the; exercises contain clues.
3. Lim-english - site for the final stage. Here you can fix articles a / the; tests, among other rules, cover this section and invite you to test yourself by answering 20 questions.

Afterword

As you can see, there is nothing wrong with the articles. Yes, for a Russian-speaking person who is just starting to get acquainted with foreign languages, it is extremely unusual to use them, but here, as you know, experience and practice are the main ones. The regularity of classes, watching movies and listening to music in the original will quickly help you to accept and understand the category of articles.

This article explains the difference between the indefinite (a / an) and the definite (the) articles.

What is an article? Basically, an article is an adjective. Like adjectives, the article defines a noun.

There are two articles in English: the and a / an. The article the is used before definite or special nouns; the article a / an is used to change the meaning of indefinite and non-special nouns. We call the article the definite article and the article a / an indefinite.

the = definite article

a / an = indefinite article

For example, if you say "Let" s go in the room, "then it means a certain specific room. If you say," Let "s go in a room," then it means any room, and not any specific one.

Another explanation: the article the is used to identify some special or special member of the group. For example, "I just heard the most horrible story." There are many stories, but only one of them is the most dire. Hence the definite article the is used here.

The article "a / an" is used to identify a non-special or non-special member of a group. For example, "I would like to go to a pub." This phrase does not refer to a specific pub. Any pub is meant here. There are many pubs and I want to go to any of them. I do not mean a specific pub.

Let's consider each of the articles in more detail.

Indefinite articles: a and an

The articles "a" and "an" indicate that the noun is indefinite and refers to any member of the group. Example:

• "My son really wants a cat for Christmas." Any cat is meant here. We do not know which cat, as we haven’t found it yet.
• "Somebody call a doctor!" Any doctor is also meant here. We don't need any special doctor; we need any available doctor.
• "When I was in the church, I saw an angel!" Here we are talking about one non-specific subject, in this case about an angel. There may be several angels in the church, but there is only one that we are talking about here.

Remember that the use of the articles a or an depends on the sound of the next word following the article. So that...

• a + singular noun starting with a consonant: a toy; a cat; a zoo; a bike; a dog
• an + a singular noun starting with a vowel: an angel; an apple; an avocado; an olive; an ear
• a + a singular noun starting with a consonant: a user (sounds like "yoo-zer", that is, it starts with a consonant "y", so the indefinite article "a" is used); a university; a unicycle
• an + noun starting with the dumb letter "h": an hour
• a + noun starting with the pronounced "h": a horse
  • In some cases, if the letter "h" is pronounced, for example in the word "historical," then the indefinite article an can be used.
    However, the use of the indefinite article a is more common and desirable.
    A historical event is just something that happened in the past.

Remember that these rules also apply when using acronyms:

Who is a Member of Technical Staff (MTS)? This is an engineer and his / her work effort in a technical subject area within the organization mission and all the elements needed to support that engineer. Therefore, an MTS can also be considered a "manyear of technical service".

This rule also applies in another case, when acronyms begin with a consonant, but a vowel sound is pronounced:

Apply Now for an MBA (Master of Business Administration) Program in one year.
The algorithm to compute the Cholesky factor of an SPD (Symmetric Positive Definite) matrix is ​​close to the Gaussian elimination algorithm.

If a noun is defined by an adjective, then the choice between the articles a and an depends on the first sound in the adjective that follows the article:

• a broken wing
• an unusual gem
• a European city (sounds like "yer-o-pi-an", that is, the word starts with the consonant sound "y")

Remember that in English, indefinite articles are used to denote group membership:

• I am a welder. (I am a member of a large group known as welders.)
• Cody is an Irishman. (Cody is a member of a group of people known as the Irish.)
• Frank is a practicing Catholic. (Frank is a member of a group of people known as Catholics.)

The definite article: the

The definite article is used in front of both singular and plural nouns if the noun is definite or special. The article the indicates that the noun is definite and refers to a member of the group. Example:

"The cat that scratched me ran away". Here we are talking about a certain cat that scratched me.

"I was happy to see the doctor who saved my dog!" It also speaks of a certain doctor. Even if we don't know his name, it's still some special doctor, because he saved my dog.

"I saw the tiger at the zoo". Here we are talking about a certain specific noun. There is probably only one tiger in the zoo.

Countable and uncountable nouns

With uncountable nouns, you can use the definite article the, or you can do without the article altogether.

• "I like to sail over the water" (meaning some specific part of the body of water) or "I like to sail over water" (meaning any water surface).
• "He spilled the drink all over the floor" (meaning a certain drink, perhaps the one that was bought in the morning of the same day) or "He spilled drink all over the floor" (any drink in general).

the indefinite articles "a / an" can only be used in conjunction with countable nouns.

• "I need a bottle of rosay."
• "I need a new glass of drink."

Most of the time, you can't say "She wants a water" unless you mean, for example, a bottle of water.

Use of the definite article the with place names

There are special rules for using the definite article the with place names.

The definite article the not used before:

• names of most countries and territories: Georgia, Spain, Italy; but the Netherlands, the Dominican Republic, the Republic of Poland, the United States
• city ​​or state names: Quebec, Miami, Texas
• street names: Independence Blvd., Elm St.
• the names of lakes and bays: Lake Tahoe, Lake Bell, except for the names of a group of lakes, for example the Great Lakes
• mountain names: Mount Rushmore, Mount Vernon, except for mountain ranges like the Alps or the Rockies, or unusual names like the Matterhorn
• continent names: Australia, Europe
• island names (Cocos Island, Maui, Key West), excluding the island chain, for example, the Aleutians, the Hebrides, or the Canary Islands

The definite article the is used before:

• the names of rivers, oceans and seas: the Nile, the Atlantic
• names of points on the globe: the Equator, the South Pole
• geographical area names: the Middle East, the West
• the names of deserts, forests, bays and peninsulas: the Sahara, the Persian Gulf, the Black Forest, the Iberian Peninsula

Cases when articles are not used

Articles are not used with some common types of nouns:

• with the names of languages ​​or nationalities: Chinese, English, Spanish, Korean (if you do not mean the population of the nation: " The Turks are known for their warm hospitality. ")
• with the names of sports: football, baseball, hockey
• with the names of academic subjects: physics, history, biology, geology