Just like definite articles, indefinite articles indicate the gender masculine or feminine and number singular or plural of a noun and have four forms, which are listed below. This worksheet includes listening and speaking tasks as well as some grammar notes and practice. Spanish indefinite articles, which translate to a, an, some or a few in english, agree with the nouns they modify in both gender and number. The indefinite article an is used to make pronunciation easier when reading a text aloud. Articles grammar academic guides at walden university. In english, the definite article is the word the regardless of whether the noun it introduces is singular or plural. Whether a noun is definite or indefinite depends on whether you and your reader or listener both know what you are referring to. The can be used with uncountable nouns, or the article can be dropped entirely. Articles worksheets are in pdf format and consist of a worksheet and answer sheet to check your results. Indefinite articles block bare nominal arguments it is commonly assumed that a language that has articles doesnt allow for bare nominal arguments and vice versa. In english, the two indefinite articles are a and an. This is a form which is used in certain constructions, including following sense verbs such as hear.
Often the article chosen depends on if the writer and the reader understand the reference of the noun. Pdf using and translating the definite article the. Indefinite and definite articles indefinite articles. Rules of articles in english grammar with examples pdf. The definitive guide to spanish definite and indefinite. I dont have time in this situation, time is uncountable. Definite and indefinite articles video khan academy. The word the is one of the most common words in english. A common question from students and teachers of english as a second language is when do i use the indefinite articles a, an, and some which acts like an indefinite plural article, and when do i use the definite article the the truth is that the answer is extremely complextoo complex in fact. The is used to refer to specific or particular nouns. Learning video about indefinite articles in english.
Online exercises with questions and a or an articles, positive and negative sentences. The entire lesson plan along with all the necessary handouts is included in one download for your convenience. But, there are several situations such as talking about transport, dates, the time, or referring to someones identity where spanish articles dont behave as you would expect. This handout is an effort to simplify those rules and make them readily accessible. We call the the definite article and aan the indefinite article. When using a plural noun, these two articles are unnecessary. Did you see the film on television or at the cinema. Indefinite article aan if the noun is singular and countable, and this is the first time you have mentioned it, then you will usually need the indefinite article. Articles the proper use of articles comes naturally to most native english speakers. A or an articles with free online exercises, examples and sentences, questions and a or an articles negative sentences. Grammar quiz indefinite pronouns complete the sentences below. Definite and indefinite articles what is an article. We use the indefinite article, aan, with singular nouns when the listenerreader does not know exactly which one we are referring to. Esl grammar definite, indefinite, and no article in english.
Rules of articles the use of indefinite articles a, an. Art003 definite and indefinite articles elementary. The speaker may believe this for many different reasons, some of which are listed below. The indefinite articles a and an are used to modify singular nouns. Using english articles with countable and uncountable nouns may be confusing. Definite and indefinite articles courses university of helsinki. Remember, too, that in english, the indefinite articles are. Nouns in english are preceded by the definite article when the speaker believes that the listener already knows what he is referring to.
When a word doesnt begin with a vowel, we put an instead of a, for example, an apple. In spanish, the definite article has 4 forms, depending on whether the noun is masculine, feminine, singular or plural. English has three indefinite articles two for singular nouns and one for plural and uncountable nouns. Articles clarify whether a noun is specific or general, singular or plural. When the letter is a consonant, we put a before it, for example, a ball. An article is a word or a letter which is often used before a noun and tells about the certainty of that noun. The soviet union was the first country to send a man into space. We left rome, flew over alps and made a quick stop in london. Decided whether to use the definite article the or not. They are used with a singular countable noun when the noun referred to is nonspecific or generic. There are two types of articles, definite and indefinite. Police are searching for a 14yearold girl we also use it to show that the person or thing is one of a group she is a pupil at london road school police have been looking for a 14yearold girl who has been missing since friday. Use a before a word which begins with a consonant sound.
The two indefinite articles in english are a and an. While listening to two american songs, students will get familiar with compounds of every, some, any and no indefinite pronouns. English practice downloadable pdf grammar and vocabulary worksheets. For exercises, you can reveal the answers first submit worksheet and print the page to have the exercise and the answers. Articles in english grammar university of adelaide. You need to define them use a, the, this, that, some, my, etc. We use an if the following word starts with a spoken vowel. Like other articles, indefinite articles are invariable. In this contex t, it is interesting to consider french, which has a very complete ar ticle paradigm.
Online exercises english grammar and courses free tutorial a or an articles. Download rules of articles in english grammar with examples pdf. Definite and indefinite articles english grammar rules. You use one or the other, depending on the first letter of the word following the article, for pronunciation reasons. The general rule is to use a when the indefinite article precedes a word beginning with a consonant sound and an when it precedes a word starting with a vowel sound. It is intended to test english articles, that is a, an. The four examples above hour, honest, honor, herb and their variations honestly, honorable, herbalist, etc.
But for some nonnative speakers, learning when to use a, an and the can be time consuming, and the rules themselves can seem arbitrary. The present article investigates the difficulties that encounter the arab learners of english as a foreign language, when using or translating sentences and phrases, which containing the definite. A and an are indefinite articles and are used to indicate a single item. Your first example does not have a plural verb, but rather a verb in the subjunctive mood. The indefinite article a is the same for all genders. There is an exception to the rule sometimes because, for instance, the u in universal makes a y sound. The worksheet found here would be great for classes of intermediate students.
Definitions and descriptions of definite and indefinite articles and rules and examples for how to use them correctly can help a writer avoid misuse. Articles a, an, the are determiners or noun markers that function to specify if the noun is general or specific in its reference. Articles are used before nouns or noun equivalents and are a type of adjective. How to use the and no article with geographical names. Definite and indefinite articles pdf worksheets english. Use of definite and indefinite articles english grammar. I cant meet you tomorrow because couldnt find that i liked. If the word were, say, umbrella, then you would put. Use of definite and indefinite articles english words can be preceded by a definite or indefinite article no gender distinction exists. Plural nouns can take either a definite article or no article at all. There we went shopping at harrods, visited tower and enjoyed a sunny afternoon in hyde park.
We use eineine if something is unknown, new or non specific and we use it only with singular nouns tip. According to hewson 1972, the definite and the indefinite articles are among the ten most frequent words of english discourse p. The words a, an, and the are special adjectives called articles. English has an indefinite article and doesnt allow for bare singular. Spanish definite and indefinite articles are great because in most situations youll use them in the same way as english articles. Art004 definite and indefinite articles intermediate. Think of a language like english and a language like chinese. We use a an when the listener doesnt know what thing we mean. This portion of the site is dedicated to definite articles. Sometimes no article is used, referred to as 0 article. Definite and indefinite articles worksheet english grammar.
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