1. Articles
What are Articles?

2. .
The Use of Articles
Page 4

3. Articles
 The articles can be Definite and Indefinite.
The Indefinite Articles: A / AN
An is used before a word beginning with a vowel sound whereas A is used before a word beginning with a consonant sound.
e.g.: an apple, an accident, an hour, but a horrible event, a university, but an unusual event.

4. An article is required with a singular countable noun.
e.g.: I need ( X ) furniture.
I need ( X ) chairs.
I need ( the/a ) chair.
The article is required even if a descriptive adjective accompanies the singular countable noun.
e.g.: I need a comfortable chair.
However, if a determiner other than the article accompanies the noun, the article is not used.

5. e.g.: I need this (or my, one, another, …) chair.
Indefinite A vs. Indefinite Some:
Corresponding to indefinite A used with singular countable nouns is indefinite Some used with plural and noncountable nouns.
e.g.: I need a chair.
I need some chairs.
I need some furniture.
In such indefinite use, it is possible to omit Some but not A.

6. Indefinite A with noncountable nouns:
In some sentences, noncountable abstract nouns with adjective modifiers may be used with a/an meaning a kind of.
e.g.: He exhibited a courage that surprised me.
We encountered an unexpected friendliness wherever we went.

7. A/An with nouns that are both countable and noncountable:
Some nouns that are derived from verbs may have both a countable and a noncountable use. The noncountable word refers to the act itself – operation, government, mixture – and the countable word to the concrete product or the result of the act – an imitation, a mixture, a government.
e.g.: The child learns through imitation.
(BUT) – Art is an imitation of life.
This picture is a good imitation.

8. Indefinite A/An vs. classifying A/An:
Note that Some is used with the plural of indefinite A, but not with the plural of classifying A.
Singular
Plural
Indefinite A
He ate an apple.
He ate some apples.
Classifying A
He is a good student.
A lion is very strong.
They are good students.
Lions are very strong.

9. The Indefinite Article “The”: (Omission)
The is often used with a noncountable noun when the noun is followed by a modifier.
e.g.: The milk which I bought a few days ago should still be good.
The silver in this ring is of inferior quality.
However, when the noun is used in a general sense, no article is used.
e.g.: Milk is good for children.
Silver is used for money and jewelry.

10. In a general statement it is possible to use the, a, or no article with a concrete countable noun that represents a class.
e.g.: The lion is a wild animal. (The emphasizes the class itself, without regard for concrete representatives of the class.)
A lion is a wild animal. (A emphasizes an individual representative of a class. It had the sense of any.)
Lions are wild animals. (No article – the plural form without an article emphasizes all the representatives of this class in a general sense.)

11. The is also omitted before:
1) Home.
When home is used alone i.e. not preceded or followed by a descriptive word or phrase, the is omitted.
e.g.: He is at home.
Paul is going to stay home tonight.
Home used alone can be placed directly after a verb of motion, like go.
e.g.: He went home.
I arrived home after dark.
I sent him home.

12. But when home is preceded or followed by a descriptive word or phrase it is treated like any other noun:
e.g.: They went to their new home.
We arrived at the bride’s home.
For some years this was the home of your queen.
A mud hut was the only home he had ever known.
2) bed, church, court, hospital, prison, school, college, university.
When the places listed above are visited or used for their primary purpose, the is not used before them.

13. We go:
e.g.: to church to pray.
to school / university to study.
to prison as prisoner.
to court as witness, etc.
to hospital as patients.
to bed to sleep.
When these places are visited or used for other reasons the is necessary:
e.g.: He goes to the school sometimes to repair a few things.
I went to the court with a letter for someone important.

14. 3) Sea.
e.g.: We go to sea as sailors.
To be at sea = to be on a voyage.
But
We go to / are at the sea = we go to / are at the seaside.
We live by the sea.
4) Town.
When speaking of the speaker’s own town, the can be omitted:
e.g.: We go to town sometimes to buy clothes.
We were in town last Monday.

15. 5) Work or Office.
Work, meaning “place of work”, is used without the:
e.g.: He isn’t back from work yet.
He is at work.
He’s on his way to work.
Note that work can also mean working; hard at work = working hard.
e.g.: He’s hard at work on a new picture.
Office = Place of work needs the: He is at/in the office.
To be in office (without the) means to hold an official (usually political position). To be out of office = to be no longer in power.

16. Credits
Teacher Wagner Junior
Articles
Grammar