The article: a/an vs the vs zero

Jesus solarte
A/an

use an with a vowel SOUND: a

A countable noun is something university, a uniform, a European, a
that you can count. Like a hot
Euro.
potato. You can say one plate,
two plates, three plates. Plate
has a plural form so it is
countable. You can add an ‘s’ to Use ‘an’ when the word begins with a
the noun. vowel SOUND – an hour, for example.
A/AN

Don’t put an extra sound before

consonant clusters; for example, a
student (not Xan estudentX)
a/an is the indefinite article which
means it’s not specific. Use it when
you talk about things in general:
“Let’s take a taxi” (any taxi)
Use a/an when you talk about
something for the first time:
“I bought A new laptop last week.”
“The laptop has A lovely screen.”
A/an
 Use a in some expressions such
as: a few, a little
 I have few friends (negative –
not many friends) / a have a few
friends (I’ve got some friends)
 I have little time (negative – I
don’t have much time, I
probably won’t be able to help
you) / I have a little time (I can
help you. I have some time)
The
 The definite (or specific) article
 Barak Obama is the president of
the United States. (there is only
ONE president)
 The moon, the sun, the
president
 Use the when something is
already known to the listener
or when it was previously
mentioned:
 “I’m going to the bank.”
 “I’m going to the
supermarket.”
The
 “Can you open the door?” (There
is only one door and the
speaker and the listener know
which doo it is)
 “Coud youopen the window?”
(There is only one window)
 “Could you open a window?”
(There is more than one
windown and any window
will do. It’s not a specific
window.)
Zero
 Use the zero article When
generalising (not specific)
 Do NOT use ‘the’ when you
speak about people and groups
IN GENERAL.
• Example:
 It is NOT correct to say, X“The
women are better drivers than
the men.”X
 It IS correct to say, “Women are
better drivers than men.” (In
general)
 “Life is good.” (in general)
 “The life of Cervantes.” (a specific
life)
Zero


Do NOT use ‘the’ with
possessives: X“It’s the Craig’s
book.“X is NOT correct. You
should say, “It’s Craig’s book.”

Use compound nouns, for
example The door of the car = “the
car door”, the door of the
classroom = “the classroom door”.