THE ARTICLE

I. THE INDEFINITE ARTICLE

■ Form: A (AN)
The initial sound of the word that immediately follows the indefinite article determines whether it should be a or an:
the form a is used before a word beginning with a consonant sound (a man, a red apple, a year, a house) and the form
an is used before a word beginning with a vowel sound (an apple, an hour, an honest man)

■ Uses: with singular count nouns

1. to introduce a person or a thing for the first time: I saw a girl in the street. There is a book on the table. - 2. used in a
general statement (generically): A tiger is a cat. (means all tigers)
3. with a noun complement, including names of profession: He is/became/remained a doctor.
4. with certain numerical expressions (whole numbers, fractions, money, weights, measures): a couple, a dozen, a
quarter, a score, a hundred, a thousand, a kilo, a foot, a yard, a lot of, a great many
5. in expressions of price/weight, speed/distance/fuel, ratio, frequency/time and in exclamations: $5 a metre; twenty
kilometres an hour, 30 miles a gallon; three times a day/twice a day. What a pity!

- The nouns that take the indefinite article in the singular take the zero article in the plural:
e.g. A cat is a domestic animal = Cats are domestic animals.

➔ Make the singular sentences plural and the plural sentences singular. 1. A small computer isn't expensive. 2. A
watch doesn't last forever. 3. I like plays with messages. 4. I admire politicians who are sincere. 6. Even an efficient
system can break down. 7. A road map is always out of date. 8. A rule is meant to be broken. 9. Inns shouldn't charge
much. 10. How much do car radios cost? 11. A bus leaves here every hour. 12. How long does a letter take to get
there?

II. THE DEFINITE ARTICLE

■ Form: THE
■ Uses: both with singular and plural count nouns and with uncount nouns.
e.g That's the man we saw last night. Those are the men we saw last night. The new furniture is beautiful.
1. to indicate something which is already known (specific reference): I ordered a book and the book has arrived.
2. to indicate something which is common knowledge (with nouns whose reference is immediately understood by the
users of the language): the earth, the sea, the sky, the weather, the press . He's gone to the cinema/ the theatre/ the
bank.
3. with an adjective to represent a class of persons: the old = old people in general; the sick = sick people in general.
4. before superlatives: John is the best student in the class.
5. with a singular count noun to represent a class of animals/ things (generic reference): The whale is a mammal.
6. with uncount nouns if speaking in specific terms: The sugar on the table is from Cuba.

➔ Supply the definite or the indefinite article: 1. We were looking for ... place to spend ... night. ... place we found
turned out to be in ... charming village. ... village was called Lodsworth. 4. When you go out, would you please stop at
... supermarket and get some oranges. 5. I've got ... appointment this afternoon. I've got to go to ... doctor's. 6. We went
to ... theatre last night and saw Othello. It's ... wonderful play. 7. We prefer to spend our holidays in ... country, ...
mountains or by ... sea. 8. We have seen what ... earth looks like from ... moon. 9. This is the front room. ... ceiling and
... walls need decorating, but ... floor is in good order. We'll probably cover it with ... carpet. . 11. ... history of ...
world is ... history of ... war. 12. Is there ... moon round ... planet Venus?

III.THE ZERO ARTICLE

■ Uses:
1. with plural count nouns (when they mean everything within a certain class) in general statements: Tigers are cats.
Women need better opportunities. Apples are good for your health.
2. with uncount nouns in general statements: He likes music/ beer/ chess/ baseball. Life is short.
3. with most proper nouns: Beethoven composed nine symphonies.
4. with common nouns in abstract or specialized use:
a) seasons: e.g. spring, summer
b) institutions: e.g. to be/ to go to bed/ church/ prison/ hospital/ class; to be at/ to go to school/ sea.
 c) means of transport: e.g. to travel/ to leave by bus/ car/ boat/ train/ plane.
d) times of the day and night: e.g. at dawn/ daybreak/ sunrise/ sunset/ noon/ midnight/ dusk/ twilight/ night;
by night; day and night; before morning.
e) meals: e.g. breakfast, lunch, cocktails, supper.
f) illnesses: appendicitis, diabetes, influenza, anaemia, hepatitis
g) parallel structures: e.g. arm in arm, day by day, man to man, face to face, husband and wife, from right to
left, from top to bottom.

➔ Supply the definite article for specific reference and the zero article for generic reference.
1. A lot of people are giving up ... meat. 2. ... meat we had for lunch last Sunday was tough. 3. I don't know much
about ... life of ... Napoleon. 4. ... running is supposed to be good for you. 5. I ought to be fit with all ... running I do,
but I don't feel fit. 6. Which is your favourite color? ... blue. 7. I think ... blue one will suit you best. ... Blue is more
your color. 8. We learned ... English at school, but ... English we learned was useless. 9. ... Washington is a safe city
today, but ... Washington of the 18th century was pretty rough. 10. ... watches have become very cheap and very
attractive. 11. Most of ... watches you see today work on ... quartz. 12. ... indoor plants require a lot of effort and
attention. 13. ... Mozart gives me a great deal of pleasure. 14. ... Mozart recording you bought for my birthday is first
class. 15. What has been the longest period of ... peace in ... history? 16. If you study ... History, you have to read a lot
of books. 17. ... fasting during ... Ramadam is more difficult in the summer months. 18. ... journeys to unknown places
require a lot of preparation. 19. ... lives of ... poets and ... playwrights have often been unbearably difficult. 20. I'm not
interested in the price of ... silver or the price of ... gold. 21. ... time is ... money. 22. I often listen to ... music and I like
... classical music best.

- Details about the zero article with names and titles:

- Doctor is abbreviated to Dr in writing and a surname is used after it, but the full form can be used on its own as a
form of address: I'm Dr White. It's my heart, Doctor.
- In British English Madam/Sir can be used as forms of address, but Sir is also a title in front of a first name
(+surname). In American English Sir is used on its own as means of expressing politeness: Can I help you, Madam
( the salesgirl said). Sir Lawrence Olivier. I'll do what you say, Sir.
- Professor and military ranks can be used either with names or on their own.

➔ Mark with an X those sentences which are wrong and explain why:
1. Excuse me, Mr__, can you tell me the way to the station? 2. Good morning, Doctor__. 3. Don't tell me. Tell Mrs
Elisabeth__ . 4. May I introduce you to Mrs Elisabeth Caldwell__? 5. I have an appointment with Dr Green __. 6. I
have just received a phone call from cousin Jeffrey__ . 7. Can I help you, Mrs__ . 8. Can I help you, Madam__ . 9. Sir
Falstaff__ is a famous Shakespeare character. 10. May I have a word with you please, Professor__? 11. I have
addressed the letter to Professor Michael O'Connor__. Is that right? 12. Nurse__, could I speak to you for a moment,
please?

- The zero article is used with school, hospital, prison, bed, church, class, college, sea, town, university, work when
we are referring to their normal purpose: Ann has gone to school. Michael is in hospital.
- The indefinite article is used when we are not referring to their normal purpose: Ann has gone to school for a
meeting. I'm going to make the bed.
- Nouns which are not part of this special group behave normally: e.g. Ann is at the office (perhaps to work). John is in
the kitchen (perhaps to eat). The company has an office in London.

➔Supply the correct articles:

1. I'm really tired and I'm going to ... bed. 2. Your shoes are under ... bed. 3.Tim's been in ... bed for hours. 4. My father
went to ... sea when he was 14. 5. When do you hope to go to ... university? 6. Maria has been taken to ... hospital. 7.
How long will she be in ... hospital? 8. There's a strike at ... hospital. 9. We have ... fine new hospital. 10. We have
bought ... lovely new bed. 11. We took some photos outside ... church. 12. We always go to ... church on Sunday. 13.
Have you ever worked in ... factory? 14. Susan is in ... class at the moment. 15. When do you get home from ... office?
16. John is at ... work at the moment.

- Use - the definite article with: the flue, the plague, the mumps, the measles.
- the indefinite article: a cold, a headache, a sore throat.
- use or omit the indefinite article with: to catch (a) cold, to have (a/an) backache/ earache/ stomach-ache/
 toothache.
Proper nouns (names) with unique reference take either the definite or the zero article.
DEFINITE ARTICLE
●geographical names
- oceans, seas, plural lakes: the Atlantic Ocean, the
Red Sea, the Great Lakes
- rivers: the Danube, the Amazon
- canals, gulfs, bays, straits: the Panama Canal, the
Suez Canal, the Gulf of Mexico
- chains of mountains: the Alps, the Rockies, the
Himalayas, the Andes
- islands: the Hebrides, the Bahamas
- deserts: the Sahara, the Gobi Desert
- earth, moon: the earth, the moon
● names of continents/ countries/cities
- certain continents: The Antartic, The Arctic
- certain countries or groups of countries with more
than one word (except Great Britain): The
Argentine, The United Kingdom, The Netherlands
- certain names of cities: The Hague
● public institutions
- hotels, restaurants: the Ritz
- theatres, cinemas: the Scala, the National Theatre
- museums, libraries: the British Museum
- schools, colleges, universities when the phrase
begins with school, etc: the University of Florida,
the College of Arts and Sciences
● ordinal numbers before nouns: the First World
War, the third chapter
● newspapers: The New York Times, The Times
●personal names
- with a title: The Emperor Napoleon, the Duke, the
Queen, The President
- organizations: The United Nations
- plural names: the Browns, the Midlands
●●names of ships: The Titanic
●● historical documents: the Constitution, the
Magna Carta or events: The French Revolution
●● wars (except world wars): the Crimean War, the
Korean War
➔ Supply the definite or the zero articles.
ZERO ARTICLE
●geographical names
- singular lakes: Lake Geneva, Lake
- mounts: Mount Vesuvius, Mount McKinley, Everest
- some islands: Malta
- planets, constellations: Venus, Mars, Orion
● names of continents/countries/cities
- continents and states: Europe, Asia, Florida,
- countries with only one word or preceded by New
or an adjective such as a direction: Iran France,
Argentina, New Zealand, South Africa,
- names of cities: Toronto, Paris, London
● public institutions
- buildings, streets: Wall Street, Windsor Castle,
- airports, railway stations: Kennedy Airport,
Victoria Station
- schools, colleges, universities when the phrase
begins with a proper noun: Florida State University,
Oxford, Princeton University
● cardinal numbers after nouns: World War One,
chapter three
● magazines: Newsweek, Time magazine
● personal names
- with no title: John, Mary
- with a title: Dr Smith , President Clinton, Mr/ Mrs
Brown, Judge Brown, Queen Elisabeth
- organizations: Congress, Parliament
- family relations: Father, Daddy, Nurse, Uncle
●●temporal names
- names of festivals: Christmas, Thanksgiving
- names of months, days: March, Sunday
 1. I like to read newspapers like ... Times and ... Washington Post. 2. I read ... Economist every week and ... Time
magazine. 3. Do you think ... New Yorker and ... Punch have much in common? 4. We can't be sure about the history
of ... human race, but ...man developed earlier then we think, though we certainly weren't around at the time of ...
dinosaurs. 5 . I like watching old films. I recently watched ... Graduate and ... Jaws on video. 6. The Ancient Greeks
believed in ... gods. The idea of ... God was not unknown to them. 7. I've read Homer's ... Odyssey, but I haven't read
Joyce's ... Ulysses. 8. ... United Nations may be a talking shop, but so is ... Congress. 9. A lot of people object to
attempts to bring up ... Titanic. 10. My oldest son joined ... Navy and now my youngest wants to join ... Army. 11.
France celebrated the 200th anniversary of ... French Revolution in 1989. 12. In many countries, the head of state is
called ... President. 13. Do you know who killed ... President Lincoln? 14. Because of "the greenhouse effect" ...
climate of the world is changing. 15. I've always understood ... Dark Ages to refer specifically to ... Medieval Europe.
16. I've been to ... Brazil and ... Argentina, but I've never been to ... USA. 17. I'd love to do a tour of European capitals
and visit ... London, ... Paris, and ... Vienna. 18. What's your address? I live in ... Madison Road, number 10. 19. Karl
was born in ... Bavaria, but now he lives in ... Wisconsin. 20. I've been climbing in ... Alps, but I've never managed to
get up ... Mont Blanc. 21. I'd love to travel down ... Nile as far as ... Luxor. 22. There's a splendid view of ... Lake
Geneva from this hotel. 23. Go down ... Oxford Street till you come to ... Oxford Circus, then turn right. 24. Do you
know the song about ... london Bridge? 25. You can't visit ... Paris without seeing ... Louvre.
➔ Fill in the blanks with the definite or the indefinite article.
a) I live in ... small house in ... country. There is ... small city ... few miles away. Going to ... city is no problem unless
you are in ... hurry. There is ..b .u. hhich stops at ... little gas station opposite our house, but ... driver of ... bus never
carries ... watch or pays any attention to ... printed schedule which he distributes regularly. Therefore, when I have ...
appointment or ... important engagement, I never depend on ... Weston Transportation Company (... name of ... bus
line). ... week ago, I wanted to go into ... city to buy ... suit. However, I was expecting ... guest to come to spend ...
evening with us, so I wanted to get back to ... house early. In order not to lose any time, I drove to ... city. I parked in
front of ... one-hour parking meter. When I returned with ... suit, ... policeman was standing there. ... meter indicated ...
violation. I had been away more than ... hour. ... policeman was putting ... parking ticket on ... car. I tried to persuade
him to tear up ... ticket. I soon realized this was ... waste of time. When I went to ... Court House ... week later, I found
out ... fine for ... violation was five dollars.
➔ Fill in the blanks with the definite, indefinite or zero articles.
a) Primary care services are ... general health care practice services which are offered to ... population at ... point of
entry into ... health service system. Primary services are concerned with ... individual patients's care as well as with ...
community health. They are responsible both for .... curative and preventive activities involving ... individuals and ...
community. Primary medical care, i.e. ... front-line medical care, is as ... rule not limited to ... patients with ... specific
diseases within specific age-groups. ... primary physician is ... physician, working mainly in ... community, who
undertakes ... treatment of any medical condition within his competence. He may be ... generalist or ... specialist, but in
... latter event deals with ... patients who seek his help direct, as well as with any referred by ... colleagues.
b) ... drug dependence is ... state of periodic or chronic intoxication produced by ... repeated consumption of ... drug
(natural or synthetic). Its characteristics include: (1) ... overpowering desire or need (compulsion) to continue taking ...
drug and to obtain it by any means; (2) ... tendency to increase ... dose; (3) ... psychic (psychological) and generally ...
physical dependence on ... effects of ... drug; (4) ... detrimental effect on ... individual and on ... society. These
characteristics will vary with ... agent involved , and this must be made clear by designating ... particular type of ...
drug dependence in each specific case - for example, ... drug dependence of ... morphine type, of ... cannabis type,
of ... barbiturate type, of ... amphetamine type, etc.
➔ Add the definite or the zero article in the blank spaces.
There is no part of ... world which I have not visited. I have travelled through ... thickest jungles of ... Africa and ...
upper regions of ... Amazon. I have been through ... Taj Mahal, ... Vatican, and ... Leaning Tower of ... Pisa. I have
even gone to ... Seven Wonders of ... World. I wonder if you can tell me ... names of ... seven great structures in this
group? I have been over ... Cuba, ... Philippine Islands, ... England, and ... Soviet Union. I have touched ... top of ...
Empire State Building, ... peak of ... Mount Everest, and ... whole range of ... Alps. I have drifted on ... Rhine River, ...
Lake Victoria, ... Atlantic Ocean, ... Caribbean Sea, and ... Gulf of ... Mexico. I have been through ... streets of ... New
York, ... Berlin, and ... Singapore. I have wandered through ... Balkans, ... Near East, and ... Scandinavian Peninsula.
How many of these things have you done? I have passed through ... House of ... Parliament in ... Great Britain, through
... White House in ... Washington, and through ... Kremlin in ... Moscow. I have been to ... Coliseum in ... Rome, ...
Acropolis in ... Athens, ... Louvre in ... Paris and ... Statue of Liberty in ... New York Harbor. I have been in ...
Texas, ... largest state in ... United States, in ... Venezuela, and in ... Republic of ... Panama, split by ... Panama Canal.
Do you think that you could locate all these places on your map? I have been through ... Orient, over ... lenghth of ...
Long Island, and down ... Park Avenue. I have traveled down ... Mississippi River and around ... entire Australian
Continent. I have gone through ... United Nations Building and ... Imperial Japanese Palace. I have been through all ...
countries in ... Americas, in all ... cities in ... Europe, and from ... one end of ... British Commonwealth to ... other.
Although I have gone to ... Columbia University and ... M.I.T., ... Oxford, and ... Sorbonne, ... University of ...
California I didn't learn geography in these schools.
6. The articles a/an and the have been omitted from the following texts. Supply the correct article wherever
necessary.
SUGAR
Sugar is one of most important plant products. Word sugar applies to more than 100 distinctive substances, each with
scientific name. Sugar most commonly obtained form plants is sucrose.When it has been refined, sugar is colorless and
odorless. However, sugar obtained from sap of maple tree tastes different from sugar derived from juice of sugar beet.
Impurities account for difference in taste of two forms of sugar. Sugar is produced in Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia,
and Americas. Sugar which comes from Cuba is largely cane sugar. Sugar from midwestern part of United States is
largely beet sugar.
WATER
Water is necessity for sustaining life in plants and animals. Men have always been interested in nature of water. At one
time, water was considered to be element. Most water is derived from ocean directly or indirectly. Water which New
Yorkers use does not come from Hudson River. Water used in New York homes comes from large reservoirs. Water in
these reservoirs is purified. However, absolutely pure water is probably unknown. Lake water is relatively pure,
especially in mountainous regions. Most people think spring water is pure. However, water which comes from springs
sometimes contains large amounts of two tupes of salt. Therefore, water in your springs should be analyzed.