THE DEFINITE ARTICLE (THE) We use the: With things we have already mentioned or when it’s clear who/what we are referring to: Example: She bought a laptop. They told her that the laptop had a three-year guarantee. With things which are unique: Example: the Internet, the world, the sun

With the names of countries which include Republic, Kingdom, States and Emirates : Example: The United Kingdom, The United States With an adjective used as a noun describing a nationality: Example: the Japanese, the French, the Germans With the name of a whole family: Example: the Beatles, the Mitchells With adjectives to express groups: Example: the rich, the poor

With the names of rivers, seas, oceans, canals Example: the Danube, The Adriatic Sea, The Atlantic With a group of mountains: Example: the Alps, the Himalayas With instruments: Example: He plays the guitar. With hotels, restaurants, cinemas, theatres... Example: the Hilton, the Opera House, the National theatre

With superlatives: Example: the best, the worst, the biggest When the noun is followed by of: Example: Belgrade is the capital of Serbia. When the noun is followed by a defining relative clause: Example: The social network we use most often is Facebook. With common expressions Example: at the moment, at the age of 10, in the end

INDEFINITE ARTICLE (a, an) We use a, an: (An + a,e,i,o,u) For singular, countable nouns: Example: a student, a pupil, an essay For something that has not been mentioned before Example: I’ve just heard an amazing story. For professions Example: She is a teacher.

To talk about things in general Example: A dog is a devoted animal. With certain words which express an amount Example: a great deal, a lot, a little, a few With expressions of frequency Example: once a month, twice a week Meaning one Example: in an hour (one hour), a million (one)

We don’t use articles: When talking in general: Example: Business people prefer five-star hotels. When using abstract nouns: Example: She hates dishonesty. With the name of a language Example: I speak English. (but: The English language is spoken all over the world.) With an adjective Example: He is tall. (but: He is a tall boy)

With an airport or train station Example: Gatwick Airport, Charing Cross Station With a university Example: Cambridge University With a shop or bank named after people Example: Harrod’s, McDonald’s, Barclay’s bank With a church or cathedral Example: St Paul’s Cathedral With meals Example: We always have lunch together.

With an illness Example: He has cancer. With streets or roads Example: She loves shopping in Oxford Street. With a mountain or continent Example: Mount Everest, Europe With countries and cities Example: England, London With lakes Example: Lake Ontario

With hospitals, schools, universities, churches, prisons With hospitals, schools, universities, churches, prisons...when we think of the purpose of the institution Example: He is in hospital (as a patient). He goes to the hospital (to visit a patient). With the means of transport (a way of travelling) Example: I always go to the seaside by car. With the names of days, holidays, months, seasons Example: Sunday, summer, June