Content:
I. Introduction
II. Definition
III. When to use articles
IV. Exceptions
V. Activity
I. Introduction
Articles in English are complicated, and there are many rules for their use. However, learning a few general rules about the use of the articles is helpful; the logic of these rules can be transferred to most uses of the article. In addition to learning the rules, you can gain a good working use of the articles through reading and listening.
II. Definition
In English grammar, an article is a type of determiner that follows a noun.
Basically, two articles are recognized in English: the definite article (the) and the indefinite (a/an). Generally speaking, the definite article specifies a particular individual in a particular context. The indefinite article indicates that the following noun is a member of a class. (The indefinite article a is used before a consonant sound, an before a vowel sound).
III. When to use articles
articles
-definite (the)
-indefinite( a, an)
Study and look at the chart below.
NOUN
-Common ( teacher, school) ✔
-Proper ( Francis, De La Salle University)✖
We basically use articles in front of a common noun.
Article is needed in front of a common, countable, singular noun.
Common/Countable/Singular
She is in the room.
Both sentences are correct; however, each sentence has a different meaning.
Common/Countable/Plural
Teachers are very generous. (general)
The teachers in the classroom are very generous. (specific)
Common/Uncountable
Water is dirty. (general)
The water in the bathroom is dirty. (specific)
Exceptions:
A and An are used when you are talking about an idea.
I want to eat a cucumber. ( There is no cucumber yet. It is just an idea.)
I want to eat the cucumber. (It is used when you are talking about specific thing.)
It is also used when it is clear in the situation which thing we mean.
Could you close the door?
In using the article "THE", you can see below a lost of the specific uses of the definite article "THE"
1. Parts of the house (the kitchen, the bedroom...)
2. Parts of the universe (the sun, the galaxy...)
3. Musical instruments (the piano, the violin...)
4.Ordinal numbers + Noun ( on the second floor...)
5. Dessert (the dessert/the Sahara dessert...)
6. Directions not followed by an noun (the north...)
7. Superlatives (the craziest, the most handsome...)
8. Adjectives not followed by a noun (the rich, the kind...)
9. Mountain ranges (the mountain, the Alps...)
10. Hotels and restaurants (the hotel/the secret garden hotel...)
11. Theaters and movie theaters (the theater/ the Magna Theater...)
12. Museum and gallery (the museum/ the National Museum...)
13. Organizations (the organization/ the Red Cross)
etc...
ACTIVITY
ACTIVITY A
http://www.agendaweb.org/exercises/grammar/a-an-the-exercises
ACTIVITY B
http://www.englishpage.com/articles/articles_9.htm
ACTIVITY C
http://www.quiz-tree.com/ESL-Grammar_Articles-1_1imageXML.html?subjPage=ESL_Grammar_main&tableID=2
13 comments:
Very Informative!
Wow! Thank you so much for this information. This blog is so informative, and so far, it's the easiest explanation I have read among all the books and internet posts I've seen. I understand every part, even the confusing parts. Some parts are actually new to me, so I am very delighted to know each. As a teacher, I become a little shy because of being unaware of the rules. Thank you for enlightening me. All my students will also benefit from your blog since I will share this to my students through my lessons and discussions. I will also apply the rules in making my reports and in checking my students' essay. I hope you can also share this to more teachers and students.
Thank you! This article provided a clear explanation about the proper usage of articles. Articles like a, an and the are very short words, but they play a very important role in the English Grammar. After reading the this article (not the articles a, an and the), I realized the importance of these modifiers. Thank you . Please post more informative blogs. Keep it up~~
Thank you for giving us the easiest way to understand articles. Most of the time, we get confused when we use a, an and the. After I read this, I understand it clearly, and I can use them according to their uses. Also, it will be helpful to students because they only know the basic in grammar. I will surely recommend this article to my colleagues and my students. This blog is very informative. ^^
Very informative. Thank you for discussing this subject matter. I often get confused with the use of articles but this is very helpful. I hope students will also get a chance to read this article. This will be very helpful for them. More powers to you, author!
Thank you for this article. I have learned a lot from this. This is the simplest explanation regarding articles that I've ever read. it makes the subject matter easier to understand and remember.
Wow! Very clear and concise discussion regarding articles. Thank you for making this so much easier to understand. I will recommend this article to my siblings who are still studying. This will surely help them in understanding aeticles. Thank you.
Thanks for posting this! I can use this in teaching my tutee (nephew). Hope to see more posts like this in your blog. Very informative, indeed, teacher!
Most people nowadays ignore the importance and proper use of articles. This would be a good refresher for those people. Very informative, indeed! Please keep writing!
Woah author-nim! I commend you for this one. I gotta say that this pretty much summed up the common mistakes most of us make. This discussion should be shared since a lot of us often interchange those articles and more often than not, some actually do not know when or how to use them. You discussed everything in the easiest way possible. On point, easy to understand and to remember. Thanks for this and I hope you would write/discuss more of this. This is really worth sharing. I gotta say, it irks me whenever I read errors like this. ^^ not a grammar Nazi though. More power and you really did a good job on this one!
This one's a very useful information towards fluency in English, it really helped me realize that a grammar construction might incur different meaning from the one that a person has in mind, so proper grammar orientation and delivery should be executed well. Thanks for sharing an awesome reference!
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