B2 COURSE

Unit 8 - Articles

x
x x x xx x x x
x xx x x x x x x x xx
x
x x x x x x xx x x
x
Proper

x name x x
(a) general (c) proper name (a) one specific (b) group of items, (a) any one of a set
group or item, distinguished from (b) a particular but
category, or distinguished other items unspecified thing

O the a / an
(b) abstract idea from others

a) Dogs frighten me a) The lecture this morning was boring a) I need a new car
b) Love is bliss b) The red apples are sweeter than the green ones b) A bird sat upon an olive tree
c) Madonna sings

8.1. - The indefinite article

Grammar guide Examples

To make pronunciation easier, a is used Our town has a theatre, a university,

in front of words that begin with a large park and a conference hall.
consononant or vowels with a Many Chinese people still believe an
consonant-like sound. Englishman always carries an
At the same time, an is put in front of umbrella.
words that begin with a pure vowel It’s an old custom.
It’s a strange old custom.
sound or a mute ‘h‘

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Unit 8 - Articles

Grammar guide Examples

Do not trust the spelling of the words to The coastguard received an SOS.
know when to use a or an. He spent an hour standing in line.

The indefinite article a or an is placed in

front of a countable noun that is being I have two cars: a Ford and a Audi.
mentioned for the first time. Once you The Ford is white and the Audi is silver.
have mentioned it, the article can change
to the.

In front of professions, use an indefinite

She is an architect and he is a doctor.
article.

You can also use the indefinite article He earns 200€ a day.

instead of per when giving the rate or She swims twice a week.
pace of something. He drove at 100km an hour.

She has a little money and a few friends,

If you add an indefinite article in front so she’ll probably get by.
of little and few, their meaning becomes Compare:
more positive.
She has little money and few friends, so I
doubt she’ll get by.

SUMMARY: Indefinite article (a/an)

USE EXAMPLES NOTES

An elephant and a mouse Yesterday, I met a boy

To refer to something for fell in love near my house. The boy
the first time Would you like a drink? wanted to communicate
I've finally got a good job with me

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Unit 8 - Articles

Notice also that we usually

Meaning 'one', referring to a
single object or person
I'd like an orange and two
lemons, please
say a hundred, a thousand, a
million.
NOTE: that we use 'one' to
add emphasis or to contrast
with the other numbers:
I don't know one person
who likes eating elephant
meat
We've got six computers
but only one printer

John is a doctor
Mary is training to be an
With names of jobs
engineer
He wants to be a dancer

With nationalities and John is an Englishman

John is British
religions Kate is a Catholic

8.2. - The definite article

Grammar guide Examples

The definite article , the, is used in I have two cars: a Ford and an Audi.
front of any noun that you already The Ford is white and the Audi is
know about. It has been mentioned silver.
before.

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Unit 8 - Articles
The is also used when the existence of
something is common knowledge, or
comes as no surprise because of the
context it is in
The definite article is used in front of
things that are unique
Nouns preceded by superlative
adjectives and ordinal numbers require
the definite article
The definite article is used in front of
countable nouns representing a whole
class or category of something
The is used in front of oceans, seas,
rivers, islands, mountain chains, deserts
and countries with plural names
The is used in titles and place names
including of
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Last week a fighter plane crashed
into a field, but the pilot managed
to eject safely
Yesterday I spent the afternoon at
home
I threw my work clothes into the
washing machine and went outside
to sit in the garden
The sun, the moon, the sea, the sky,
the Artic Circle, the environment, the
capital, the air, the ground, etc
It was the worst day of my life!
The captain was the first person to
leave the sinking boat
The computer has changed our lives
It is left up to the consumer to decide
which one to buy
We all have the duty to look
after the old and ill
The Pacific, the Mediterranean, the A
mazon, the West Indies , the Rockies,
the Sahara, the Netherlands, etc
It is unlikely the Queen of Denmark
has ever swum in the Bay of Bengal
 B2 COURSE
Unit 8 - Articles

The Empire State Building, the

The is also used in proper names English Channel, the White House,
consisting of noun(s) and/or the Royal Festival Hall, the Rolling
adjective(s) + noun Stones, the British Museum, the
Titanic

The Hilton Hotel, the Savoy, the

The is used in hotel names
Sheraton

The Times, the Guardian, the 
The is used for newspapers
Vancouver Sun, the Mirror.

The is used for many larger

organisations and institutions, The Commonwealth, the Fed, the EU
including those with initials that are , the BBC, the FDA, the IAEA, etc.
normally spelt out. It was the worst day of my life!
The captain was the first person to
Compare:
Acronyms (initials read as whole leave the sinking boat
words) are treated the same way as OPEC, NATO, NASA, etc.
regular names and so do not require
an article.

The U.S. dollar has risen against the

The is used for currencies
yen but fallen against the euro

In front of people’s names, the is only

I’m the Jess Scott that lives in Spain.
used to avoid confusion

The is used with the names of

Andy plays the violin
instruments

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Unit 8 - Articles

The can be used instead of a possesive She was hit on the head by a

form when referring to parts of the snowball. (= a snowball hit her
body and items of clothing head)

Many forms of entertainment are I go to the cinema, the theatre, the

preceded by the definite article. circus, the ballet and the opera

SUMMARY: Definite article (the)

USE EXAMPLES NOTES

With adjectives, to refer to a

whole group of people (as
plural nouns), families,
nationalities ending in -sh, -
ch, -ese
Other plural nationalities are
The Japanese, the English,
used with or without "the":
the Dutch, the Greens, the
The Greeks, the Italians,
old, the poor, the rich
Latvians (the Latvians)

With the words: beach, We often say "television"

He likes going to the
cinema, country (side), without "the":
theatre
ground, jungle, radio, sea, We often watch television
She went to the stations to
seaside, theatre, world, But! Turn on the television
meet Jim
station, shop, pub, library (set)

Don't use "the" if "most" is a

Before "most" (as a
superlative)
determiner followed by a
She is the most beautiful
noun:
girl
Most people believe he is
a liar

But don't use with: at night,

I'll be at home in the
Morning, afternoon, evening at noon, at midnight, at 4
evening
o'clock, by day / night

The Renaissance, the

Historical references / events Middle Ages, the First But: World War I
World War