Articles
INDEFINITE ARTICLE: a / an
A singular countable noun mentioned for the first time:
A man went into a bar.
When referring to any one of several things:
Shall I put a record on?
When talking about a person’s job:
My father is a nuclear scientist.
With some numbers:
A hundred and one Dalmatians.
When it means per in some expressions:
50 miles an hour.
ZERO ARTICLE
When referring to nouns in a general sense:
Do you think computers will replace teachers?
We sang songs of love and peace.
Alan won’t eat cheese or meat.
With countries, continents or regions ending with the name of a country /continent:
North America
With islands, states, provinces, towns and cities:
London
Exceptions: The USA, The UK, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic
With roads, streets, parks, bridges, shops, and restaurants:
Oxford Street
Exceptions: motorways and numbered roads
Individual mountains and lakes:
Lake Windermere
DEFINITE ARTICLE: the
There is only one of something, either in existence or in a particular context:
I’d like to speak to the manager, please.
Something is mentioned again:
I’ve read three novels.
What did you think of the novels?
Both listener and speaker know what is being referred to:
The film starts in 10 minutes.
Talking about a specific aspect or part of sth, where the noun is followed by of:
Hand in your books at the end of the lesson.
To speak generally about certain groups of singular countable nouns:
Inventions: The mobile phone is thought to pose a serious threat to health.
Animal species: The whale is still hunted by countries such as Japan.
With adjectives referring to general classes of people:
The homeless
With superlatives:
Who is the greatest footballer in the world?
With mountain ranges: The Alps
With rivers: The Thames
With seas: The Mediterranean
With canals: The Panama Canal
With deserts: The Sahara
With island groups: The Canaries
With theatres: The Globe
With cinemas: The Filmworks
With hotels: The Hilton
With galleries: The National Gallery
With museums: The British Museum
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