COURSE GUIDE GRAMMAR TIME OF WORK

English IV 3 Definite and non-definite articles. 8 hours

A / An / The /

Connected speech

PROFESSOR: ANGELA PATRICIA NUÑEZ ROJAS

DUE DATE: DEC 10TH, 2021

1. Objectives
 Learn the use of A/AN/THE when writing
 Read and record short stories with excellent pronunciation and grammar according
to the topics learnt.

Definite and non-definite articles A-AN-

THE
What is an article?

Articles ("a," "an," and "the") are determiners or noun markers that function to specify if the
noun is general or specific in its reference. Often the article chosen depends on if the
writer and the reader understand the reference of the noun. There are two types of
articles: definite (“the”) and indefinite (“a”, “an”).

Taken from: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/writingcentre

Let’s start with the definite article “THE”.

THE
 The article "the" is a definite article. It is used to show specific reference and can be
used with both singular and plural nouns and with both countable and uncountable nouns.

The movie that I watched last night was terrifying. (In this sentence,
“movie” is a singular, countable, noun. It is also specific because of the
phrase “that I watched last night.” The writer and reader or the speaker
and listener know which movie is being referred to).

The books assigned for this class are useful. (In this sentence, "books" is a plural,
countable noun. It is also specific because of the phrase “for this class.” The writer and
reader or the speaker and listener know which books are being referred to).

"The" is used in the following categories of proper nouns:

Museums and art galleries: the Walker Art Center, the Minneapolis Institute of Art

Buildings: the Empire State Building, the Willis Tower

Seas and oceans: the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean

Rivers: the Mississippi, the Nile

Deserts: the Sahara Desert, the Sonora Desert

Periods and events in history: the Dark Ages, the Civil War

Bridges: the London Bridge, the Mackinac Bridge

Parts of a country: the South, the North, the Upper Midwest

In general, use "the" with plural proper nouns.

the Great Lakes

the French

the Rockies (as in the Rocky Mountains)

"The" is often used with proper nouns that include an “of” phrase.

the University of Minnesota

the International Swimming Hall of Fame

Use “the” with countries that include the words "republic", "kingdom",
or "states" in their names.
the United States

the Republic of Ireland

Use "the" when the noun being referred to is unique because of our understanding of
the world.

The Earth moves around the Sun.

Wolves howl at the moon.

Use "the" when a noun can be made specific from a previous mention in the text. This
is also known as second or subsequent mention.

My son bought a cat. I am looking after the cat while he is on vacation.

I read a good book. The book was about how to use articles correctly in English.

Do not use “the” with names of countries (except for the special cases
above).
Examples:

Germany is an important economic power.

He's just returned from Colombia.

Do not use “the” with the names of languages.

Examples:

French is spoken in Tahiti.

English uses many words of Latin origin.

Indonesian is a relatively new language.

Do not use “the” with the names of

meals.

Examples:

Lunch is my favorite meal.

I like to eat breakfast early.

Do not use “the” with people's names.

Examples:

John is coming over later.

Mary Carpenter is my boss.

Do not use “the” with titles when combined with

names.
Examples:

Prince Charles is Queen Elizabeth's son.

President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.

Do not use “the” after the 's possessive case.

Examples:

His brother's car was stolen.

Peter's house is over there.

Do not use “the” with

professions.
Examples:

Engineering is a well-paid career.

He'll probably study medicine.

Do not use “the” with names of

Examples:
shops.
I'll get the card at Smith's.

Can you go to Boots for me?

Do not use “the” with years.

Examples:

1948 was a wonderful year.

He was born in 1995.

Do not use “the” with the names of individual mountains, lakes and islands.

Examples:
Mount McKinley is the highest mountain in Alaska.

She lives near Lake Windermere.

Have you visited Long Island?

Do not use “the” with most names of towns, streets, stations and
airports.

Examples:

Victoria Station is in the center of London.

Can you direct me to Bond Street?

She lives in Florence.

They're flying into Heathrow.

A/AN
The articles "a" and "an" are indefinite articles. They are used with a
singular countable noun when the noun referred to is nonspecific or
generic.

Take a look at the examples below:

I do not own a car. (In this sentence, "car" is a singular countable noun that is not
specific. It could be any car).

She would like to go to a university that specializes in teaching.

("University" is a singular countable noun. Although it begins with a vowel, the
first sound of the word is /j/ or “y.” Thus, "a" instead of "an" is used. In this
sentence, it is also generic; it could be any university with this specialization,
not a specific one).

Sometimes "a" or "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 non-specified house. In the second sentence, "the" is used because now
the house has been specified.

Use “a/an” with names of

jobs.
Examples:

John is a doctor.

Mary is training to be an engineer.

He wants to be a dancer.

Use “a” with the names of days of the week when not referring to any particular day.

Examples:

I was born on a Thursday.

Could I come over on a Saturday sometime?

Use “a/an” to refer to an example of something.

Examples:

The mouse had a tiny nose.

The elephant had a long trunk.

It was a very strange car.

Use “a/an” with singular nouns after the words 'what' and 'such'.

Examples:

What a shame!

She's such a beautiful girl.

What a lovely day!

Use “a/an” meaning 'one', referring to a single object or person, or a single unit of
measure.
*In these sentences using "one" instead of the indefinite article is grammatically
correct. It will add emphasis to the number, and contrast with other numbers.

Examples:

I'd like an orange and two lemons please. - I'd like one orange and two lemons please.

The burglar took a diamond necklace and some valuable paintings.

I can think of a hundred reasons not to come.

I need a kilogram of sugar. - I need one kilogram of sugar.

You can't run a mile in 5 minutes!

Let’s finish this theoretical part, reviewing the use of no article.

NO ARTICLE
No article is used when a plural countable noun is generic or non-
specific.
Examples:

I bought new pens and pencils at the store. (general, not specific ones)

Cats have big eyes that can see in the dark. (cats in general, all of them)

Babies cry a lot. (babies in general, all of them)

No article is used when a non-count noun is generic or non-specific.

Examples:

I bought milk and rice at the store. (generic reference)

We were assigned homework in this class. (generic reference)

There has been previous research on the topic. (generic reference)

If you want to get more information about definite and indefinite

articles, click on the links below. You will find some videos concerning
this topic.

Definite article: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBxF4wlXR0c

Indefinite articles: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LwqWULsgD0

No article: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CmpEX6ftYc

Definite and indefinite article: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyAde007llM

PRACTICE
READING.
Read the text below and choose a/an/the to fill in the blanks. If there should be no
article, then place * in the blank.

READING 1

Mr. Coleman was ____ very annoying person. He lived three ____ streets away from us,
in ____ small house with ____ beautiful garden. Having taken early retirement from his
____ job as ____ button counter, he had plenty of time to worry, and this he did very
successfully. He often spent sleepless nights trying to figure out how he could successfully
cook both sides of ____ omelet without it breaking, or how he might achieve better access
to ____ tins at ____ back of his cupboard. ____ most of his home was exceptionally neat
and tidy, but several loose cables behind ____ television set bothered him, and he never
quite knew what to do with ____ empty plastic bags.

READING 2

Read the text below and choose a/an/the to fill in the blanks. If there should be no
article, then place * in the blank.

I am from Winchester, Hampshire. Winchester is ______ city in ____ United Kingdom. I

live in ____ town called _____ Taunton which is on ______ River Tone. I live in ___ house
in ______ quiet street in _____ countryside. ____ street is called “Hudson Street” and
_____ house is more than 100 years old! I am ___ English lecturer at _____ college near
_____center of _____town. I like _____ books, music and taking _____ photographs. I
usually have _____ lunch at college. I usually go --___home____ by___ car. We have all
kinds of food in _____ England. I like ______ Polish food very much. Sometimes, I go to
_____ Polish restaurant in Bath. ____ restaurant is called “Magda’s”. _____ Polish food is
delicious.

GRAMMAR

Fill in the article a, an or the where necessary. Mark x where no article is used.

1. What do you usually have for ____ dinner?

2. My dad is ____ very careful driver. He never exceeds ____ speed limit.
3. Mr. Davis has been ____ accountant for ____ year.
4. ‘How much are ____ bananas?’ ‘They are 90 cents ____ kilo.’
5. ‘Where have you been?’ ‘I’ve been to ____ school.’
6. Drinking ____ milk with ____ honey and ____ lot of lemon juice is good for ____ sore
throat.
7. My brother works in ____ office. ____ office is just around ____ corner.
8. Tom was so thirsty that he drank ____ whole bottle of mineral water.
9. We’ve never been to ____ Paris before. It’s ____ first time we’re visiting ____ France.
10. Listen! Jane is playing ____ flute. She is ____ very talented person
11.Robert and Jessica went to ____ party last night.
12.Can you tell me how to get to ____ cinema from here?
13.____ college is closed today.
14.Gregory is one of ____ strangest people I know.
15.I recommend you try ____ tomato soup at this restaurant.
16.____ beer is not good for you.
17.Would you like to see ____ film?
18.____ apple a day keeps ____ doctor away.
19. I can't believe I failed ____ yesterday's test!
20.Do you have ____ dictionary that I can borrow?
21.There were many dogs in the park. One dog was ____ Dalmatian.
22.Pandas and ____ tigers are both endangered animals.
23.Magda is wearing ____ blue dress with red shoes
24.Bornholm is ___ island in the Baltic Sea.
25. Bornholm is ___ island in the Baltic Sea.

PRODUCTION 😊
Choose one of the readings underline THE ED ENDINGS with red /t/, with blue /d/ or with
green /id/ and link the words where you can use connected speech and then record an
audio and send it to my email.

Reading 1

A YOUNG AND AN OLD MAN

Once upon a time, there was a very old man who lived in the mountains above a small
village. One day, the old man decided to walk down into the village. As it was a very hot
day, the man needed to sit down, so he did it on top of a rock. Suddenly, he saw a young
man passing by, so he watched him for a moment. The young man got surprised and
thought the old man was maybe suffering so he decided to get closer and offered him a
piece of bread and some water he had with him.

After appreciating this meaningful and thankful moment, the old man smiled and thanked
the young man for that great help and talked for a long time. As sun was getting down, the
old man asked the young man for a favor. He needed to buy some vegetables so the
young man run to the closest store and bought everything the old man wanted. After that,
the young man helped the old man get back to the mountains and after saying goodbye
the young man returned to the village.

At night, when the young man looked at his pockets when he was getting undressed, he
discovered something his eyes could have never seen before. He realized that there was
one little red bag in each pocket of his jeans. He opened the bag curiously, and saw each
bag contained five big and gold coins. He whispered thanking the old man and God for his
generosity.

Reading 2
A DAY IN TOM’S LIFE

Tom stretched in his bed, then he yawned. He walked to the bathroom, washed his face
and cleaned his teeth. He got dressed, folded his pajamas and placed them under his
pillow. Then, he looked in the mirror and first brushed and then combed his hair. He looked
at his watch and Whoops! He was late! so he kissed his Mum and said good-bye. Tom ran
out of the house and jumped over the garden wall. Since he ran down the road to school
really quick, he arrived at 8:50am. Phew! He wasn’t late!

At school he talked to his friends and they laughed a lot. He worked hard at his math and
colored his bar-graph beautifully. At play-time he played football with the boys, but he
tripped over and cut his knee. He hopped into school with the help of his friends. His knee
was bathed in clean water. His friends watched and then helped him get back to class.

In the afternoon the class painted some water-lilies. They used blue, green and white paint
only, and later washed their brushes in water. When Tom arrived home his Mum asked
him to help her bath the dog because the dog had rolled in cow-dung and smelled awful!
Tom covered his clothes with an old shirt, then lifted the dog into the shower and he and
his Mum washed the cow-dung off. Tom showed his Mum his hurt knee, so she kissed him
to make him feel better!

REFERENCES

https://academicguides.waldenu.edu/
https://www.adelaide.edu.au/writingcentre
https://education.seattlepi.com/
https://www.ef.com/ca/english-resources/english-grammar
https://www.adelaide.edu.au/writingcentre
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBxF4wlXR0c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LwqWULsgD0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CmpEX6ftYc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NyAde007llM
https://pronuncian.com/pronounce-sh-sound
https://www.learning-english-online.net/pronunciation/the-english-th/
https://pronuncian.com/pronounce-ch-sound
https://www.passporttoenglish.com/Beginning-English/Lesson3/Pronunciation.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dz7FHvzaItE
https://www.passporttoenglish.com/Beginning-English/Lesson3/Pronunciation.html