ARTICLES

Angga Rosma Pramodhawardhani

Articles are used to help us understand
…
■ new vs. old information

■ specific vs. general information

■ many vs. all vs. one

 Articles

a an the ø
 A/An (indefinite)

■ The first time you mention or ■ When you also mean “one”
refer to a noun  I had an ( =one) apple at
I bought a new pair of shoes lunch.
yesterday! Can you believe the
shoes were 50% off!! (First
mention). ■ Expressions that quantify
A little (bit) of
■ To name a member of a group A lot of
Jobs (I’m a teacher.) A ton of
Nationalities (He’s an
American.)
Religions (She’s a Buddhist.)
 The
■ With something already
mentioned
I bought a new pair of shoes
yesterday! Can you believe the
shoes were 50% off!! (Second
mention – now it is clear which shoes)
■ When there is just one of
something
I took a walk in the forest. (There is
only one forest where you live.)
■ When you define a specific
person, object or place
I loved the book my dad gave me
for my birthday. (Not just any book,
but specifically the books your dad
gave you for your birthday.)
(definite)
■ With things that are unique
(there is only one)
The sun
The President of the U.S.
The CEO of Apple
■ With ordinal numbers and
superlatives
The first, the second, the third
The biggest, the best, the fastest,
■ With some proper nouns:
Rivers (The Nile)
Mountains Ranges (The Rockies)
Oceans (The Pacific Ocean)
 Ø (Zero Article)

■ Talk about things in general (all ■ With possessives

things everywhere) My coffee …
I love watching whales! (All whales Her dog …
everywhere, not just one specific
whale.) ■ Uncountable nouns (unless
I love Italy. referring to a specific example)
I love adding milk (uncountable)
■ Countries to my coffee (uncountable +
He’s from Germany. possessive).
Have you visited Algeria? ■ Specific mountains, lakes, and
■ Languages islands
French Mt. Fuji
Japanese ■ Most cities, towns, streets, and
■ People’s names airports
Kiev
New York
Main Street