Definite and indefinite articles

Definite articles Spanish has only one definite article, but the article has four forms because it must agree in gender and number with the noun it precedes. El (masculine / singular) The La (feminine / singular) Los (masculine / plural) Las (feminine / plural)

The book El libro (masc./singular) (masc./singular) The houses Las casas (fem./plural) (fem./plural) *First look at the gender (masculine or feminine) and number (singular or plural) of the noun and then choose the correct article. When nouns have the same gender and number as the articles they are said to be in agreement.

Ejercicios Choose the correct article (El, La, Los, Las) The cat (gato)_____________________ The chair (silla)____________________ The tables (mesa)__________________ The class (clase)___________________ The pencils (lápiz) __________________ The desk (escritorio)________________ The rulers (regla) __________________

Definite articles are used: Before titles such as señor (El señor), señora (La señora), señorita (La señorita). Professions. La doctora, El ingeniero, El arquitecto, La maestra, El psicólogo. Some nouns keep the same form for masculine and feminine. In these cases, the gender is identify by the article. Ex: el estudiante / la estudiante el artista / la artista

With days of the week, when in English “on” is used. Ejemplo: Yo estudio los lunes. I study on Mondays. With parts of the body or articles of clothing, especially if the possessor is clearly stated. Ejemplo: Me duele la cabeza. My head hurts. Me pongo el sombrero. I put on my hat. With the seasons. La primavera (spring) El otoño (fall) El invierno (winter) El verano (summer)

Contractions If the preposition a (to/from) is used with the article “el”, you must use the contraction “al”. a el (to the) al (to the) ¿Puedo ir al baño por favor? If the preposition de (of/from) is used with “el”, you must use the contraction “del”. de el (of the) del (of the) This doesn’t occur with the other forms of the article. Ex: a + la = ok and de + la = ok

Exceptions Use “el” when the article is in front of a feminine noun that begins with a stressed a or ha. Ejemplo: el agua, el águila, el arpa. The reason is because when you pronounce the article and the noun, the two a’s will get swallowed into one sound. Ejemplo: la agua. This doesn’t happen with the plural form. Las aguas, las águilas, las arpas.

Indefinite articles In English, indefinite articles are used only with singular nouns. They are “a” or “an” if used before a noun that start with a vowel. In Spanish, indefinite articles can be used with singular and plural nouns. un (masculine / singular) a or an una (feminine / singular) some unos (masculine / plural) unas (feminine / plural)

Ejercicios Choose the correct indefinitive article (un, una, unos, or unas) A pencil (lápiz) ____________________ Some pencils______________________ A notebook (cuaderno)______________ Some notebooks___________________ A desk (mesabanco)________________ Some desks_______________________

Ejercicios Write the correct definite article _____ cocina _____silla _____carro _____cocinas _____sillas _____carros _____bandera _____doctores_____alumna Write the correct indefinite article Standard Deviants. Module 5 Articles. Drive C: Game shows /Nouns (Article games)