The word the is one of the most common words in english. One of the most confusing parts of english grammar for many nonnative speakers is the use of. Articles are something that are very important to the english language, but for some reason many students do not use them when they are speaking. We generally use either the or no article with geographical names in english. Use of articles one of the most confusing parts of english grammar for many nonnative speakers is the use of articles. Pdf information structure and english article pedagogy. There are many different rules some of which we have already presented but these are the main three. Nouns in english are preceded by the definite article when the speaker believes that the listener already knows what he. Download english grammar lessons, for free, in the pdf format. The results of a pilot study in which one group of nonnative english speakers is taught the article system using information structure as an. Notes on why native speakers do not always use the past perfect when learners have been told they must, using questions. In many languages, articles are a special part of speech which cannot be easily combined with other parts of speech. Download as a pdf best for printing download as a microsoft word document. Articles are used to help us separate or understand new vs.
How to use articles in english correctly a, an, and the. English articles 3 simple rules to fix common grammar. Articles with geographical names download this explanation in pdf here. And they help us understand if you are talking about. This lesson will teach you three simple rules to help you to use english articles better. Ameng speakers do not use definite articles all the time. The teacher i spoke to at the school was very friendly. We are going to look the three basic rules about the use of article.
Choosing which type to use is challenging because article rules are complex. Articles with geographical names perfect english grammar. These articles are in pdf format for which you will need to download adobe reader. As such, learners of english are likely to be heavily exposed to hundreds of instances that contain a wide range of uses of english articles, which will, presumably. By using the article a, weve created a general statement, implying that any cup of tea would taste good after any long day. Articles and notes dealing with english grammar and english language usage topics. Definite and indefinite articles a, an, the tip sheets. Articles exercises 2 a an the learning english online. The definite article the is the most frequent word in english.
It is often difficult to decide whether an english noun needs an article before it, and. To view the following lessons you need to have adobe acrobat reader. Feel free to download, reuse, or share the following english grammar lessons with your friends, colleagues, or students. We use a an when the listener doesnt know what thing we mean. Most of esl students have trouble with the articles.
I know this is a lesson that you need to watch because articles are one of the most complicated parts. In particular, the use of the definite article with the. Definite and indefinite articles pdf worksheets english. Using articles articles are used to indicate whether a noun refers to a specific or a general item. In english, articles are used to modify nouns in certain situations. Articles in english grammar university of adelaide. If the noun is modified by an adjective, the choice between a and an depends on the initial sound of the adjective that immediately follows the article a broken egg. This is a free worksheet you can use in your class. We call the the definite article and aan the indefinite article. Articles worksheets are in pdf format and consist of a worksheet and answer sheet to check your results. Articles a an the learning english online grammarbank. The articles a, an, and the are difficult for many nonnative speakers of. A complete the following exercise with a an or the articles. Learn how to use articles a, an, the in english with useful grammar rules, esl printable worksheets and example sentences.
Articles in english sentence structure tippie college of business. There are two types of articles indefinite a and an or definite the. The first time a noun is introduced use a an, then when you refer to that same noun again use the. Even after studying articles for years, many nonnative speakers of english find it challenging to use articles, especially in formal academic writing in english. The is used to refer to specific or particular nouns. A and an are indefinite articles and are used to indicate a single item.
We use the definite article in front of a noun when we believe the listenerreader knows exactly what we are referring to. The definite article the is used before a noun to indicate that the identity of. English grammar articles and for the teachers to teach the articles is to employ the traditional approach. However, learning a few general rules about the use of the articles is helpful. The rules for using articles in english are quite complex, so for students whose first language is. English articles the importance of using articles correctly articles in english are one of the key indicators of native speaker competence, and the ease with which native speakers use articles can. The definitive guide to spanish definite and indefinite. In this lesson, learn the 7 rules for using articles in english correctly. How to use the and no article with geographical names. In addition to learning the rules, you can gain a good working use of the articles through reading and listening. The main things to consider when choosing an article are whether or not the noun is countable, and whether it is definite. Using articles a, an, the there are only two types of articles. Some of the rules that govern article usage are very subtle.
We do not use articles before the names of countries, people, continents, cities, rivers and lakes. Grammar handbook necessary, however, to use you when addressing more than one person. How do american english and british english use the. The learner has to decide nounbynoun which one of the articles to use. It limits the meaning of a noun to one particular thing. Articles are used before nouns or noun equivalents and are a type of adjective. In fact, there are 4 choices to make, because sometimes no article is necessary. The rules for using articles in english are quite complex, so for students whose. Articles in english are complicated, and there are many rules for their use. Rules of using articles with examples learn english. Download this pdf version of the rules for spanish definite and indefinte articles to use as a study reference.
898 1573 1570 1501 1063 1007 468 1340 744 882 1444 1020 1544 1278 1303 1543 115 1335 1464 851 288 634 782 547 695 683 236 334 1432 1186 660 70 282 1453