A(An) vs.

The

A and AN are called indefinite articles. "Indefinite" means "not specific". Use A(AN) when you are talking about a thing in general,
NOT a specific thing.

Examples:

I need a phone. Not a specific phone, any phone

Mark wants a bicycle. Not a particular bicycle, a bicycle in general

Do you have a driver's license? In general

Use A(AN) when talking about a thing which is new, unknown, or introduced to a listener for the first time. Also use A(AN) when you
are asking about the existence of something.

Examples:

I have a car. The car is being introduced for the first time.

Tom is a teacher. This is new information to the listener.

Is there a dictionary in your backpack? Asking about the existence of the dictionary

Similarly, use A(AN) to introduce what type of thing we are talking about.

Examples:

That is an excellent book. Describing the kind of book

Do you live in a big house? Asking about the kind of house

I ate a thick, juicy steak. Describing the kind of steak

REMEMBER: You cannot use A(AN) with plural nouns because A(AN) means "one" or "a single".

Examples:

I saw a bears in Yellowstone National Park. Not Correct

I saw bears in Yellowstone National Park. Correct

USE 10

THE is called a definite article. "Definite" means "specific". Use THE when talking about something which is already known to the
listener or which has been previously mentioned, introduced, or discussed.

Examples:

I have a cat. The cat is black.

There is a book in my backpack. The book is very heavy.

Do you know where I lef the car keys? The listener knows which specific car keys you are talking about.

Do you own a car? Is the car blue? You assume they do have a car after asking about it in the first sentence.

Nobody lives on the Moon. The Moon is known to everyone.

IMPORTANT: You can use THE with both singular nouns and plural nouns.

Examples:

I saw the bear in Yellowstone National Park. Correct

I saw the bears in Yellowstone National Park. Correct

Fill in the correct article (A , AN or THE) where necessary or leave blank !

1. _____________ modern life is stressful.

2. Whats the capital of your country?

3. A doctor earns more than a teacher.

4. Do you know who invented the computer ?

5. Have you seen the newspaper? I cant find it anywhere.

6. Is this the first time youve stayed at the Hilton ?

7. Is the Nile or the Amazon the longest river on ____ earth ?

8. Several million visitors a year are attracted to the ski slopes of the Alps.

9. Ill meet you outside the post office. Ill be there in a quarter of an hour.

10. ___ young people tend to think that ____ life was more difficult in the past.

11. In my opinion ____ education should be free.

12. The education I got at ____ school was excellent.

13. In some cities, ______ cars have been banned from the centre.

14. I went to _____ Buckingham Palace today. It was great.

15. I took the train to London and then the underground to ____Victoria Station.

Its a short walk from there.

16. Would you like to come with us to see __ Titanic at the cinema tomorrow?

17. I had a experience at work today.

18. The car sped past at 100 miles an hour.

19. ___ Mount Everest is the highest mountain in the wold.

20. ____ Middle East is one of the worlds hot spots.

21. We lived in the Netherlands before moving here.

22. If you ever go to London you must see the Tower of London and ____ Tate Gallery.

23. We noticed a strong smell coming from the refrigerator.

24. She lives in ____ England, which is part of the UK.

25. Afer his wifes death he lef ____ home and joined the army.

26. He should have called me an hour ago.

27. They visited grandmother in the hospital.

28. ___ history is an interesting subject, but what I like most is the history of the United

States.

29. The Browns ofen watch _____ television in the evening.

30. Munich lies in the south of Germany.