English The Easy Way : English Grammar : Nouns : Determiners
Determiners - Articles
What are articles?
- Articles are used to clarify if a noun is specific or if a noun is not specific.
- They are used before the nouns or adjective.
There are 2 kinds of articles:
- Definite articles - are used for specific nouns.
- "The" - is a definite articles
Indefinite articles - are used for non specific nouns.
- "A- An" are indefinite articles
- It is used to refer to a noun that is not something or someone specific such as a pen, an apple, a bus).
- " A" or "An" is used when it is not important as to which the nounis refering to (example: an apple on the table, a pen on the table or a book from the room).
- It is unknown as to which the noun is referring to (example: a teacher in the hall, a letter in the mail box, a car in the street).
- "A" is used if the letter before the next word starts with a constenent (not a vowel a, e, i, o, u).
- An is used if the letter for the next word starts with a vowel (a, e, I, o, u).
- I see a dog in the street. *
- The girls see the big black dog on the other side of the street. **
- Please bring me a pen.*
- Please bring me the black pen that is on my desk.**
- I think that is a teacher from the school.*
- I think that is the math teacher.**
* A refers to something that is not specific, it is not clear or important as to which dog, pen or teacher.
** The refers to a specific pen "the black pen" not just any pen, "the big black dog" not just any dog, and "math teacher" not just any teacher.
English The Easy Way : English Grammar : Nouns : Determiners
