Sign inArticles for beginners
Articles are used as modifiers for nouns. However, some nouns do not need to be modified. In this lesson, we will learn about them.
What Are Articles?
Articles are small words that come before a noun. They show if the noun refers to a specific or general example of something.
English Articles
In English, there are two types of articles: 'the' is called the definite article and 'a' and 'an' are called the indefinite articles.
| Definite Article | Indefinite Article |
|---|---|
| The | A/An |
Indefinite Articles
'A' and 'an' are called indefinite articles. We use them with singular nouns to refer to any nonspecific or general noun of that type.
We use 'a' before a consonant sound and use 'an' before a vowel sound (a,e,i,o,u):
| a | an |
|---|---|
|
a |
an |
|
a |
an |
|
a |
an |
|
a |
an |
|
a |
an |
Definite Article
'The' is a definite article. We use it before a singular or plural noun to refer to a specific or particular noun that is known to both the speaker and the listener. Pay attention to the examples:
I ordered
That is
Mary has
In the second sentence it is already clear which dog the speaker is talking about. So, the definite article is used.
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