Articles are some of the smallest words in English, but they’re very important. In fact, most English sentences have at least one article!
Making mistakes with articles is common for English learners, even though there are only three articles in English. Find out how to use articles in English grammar for clear, understandable writing and speaking.
Table of Contents
What are articles in English?
The three articles in English are the, a, and an. They come before nouns to show which noun you’re talking about. Their pronunciation depends on the English dialect you speak and if the words that come after them start with a vowel or consonant sound.
| Article | Pronunciation | Rule | Sentence |
| the | thuh/thee | Use for specific nouns | I ate the banana. |
| a | ey/uh | Use for general nouns that begin with a consonant sound | I ate a banana. |
| an | uhn/an | Use for general nouns that begin with a vowel sound | I ate an apple. |
Definite vs. indefinite articles in English
The is a definite article, while a and an are indefinite articles. In the sentence I ate a banana, you could be talking about any banana because a is an indefinite article. But in the sentence, I ate the banana, you’re describing a specific banana using the as a definite article in English. You’re talking about a banana the reader or listener already knows about.
Definite article: ‘the’
The English word the is a definite article, which means it points to a specific noun. It’s pronounced “thuh” when it comes before a noun that starts with a consonant sound, and “thee” when the noun starts with a vowel sound. Pronunciation might depend on the dialect of English you’re speaking.
You can use the English article the before specific or unique singular nouns, when the listener or reader knows which noun you mean.
| ‘The’ + Singular Noun | Sentence |
| The boy | The boy raised his hand. |
| The cat | Did you feed the cat? |
| The lesson | I enjoyed the lesson today. |
The can also come before plural nouns. Unlike Spanish articles or grammar in other languages, the always stays the same, whether the noun is singular or plural.
| ‘The’ + Plural Noun | Sentence |
| The boys | The boys raised their hands. |
| The cats | Did you feed the cats? |
| The lessons | I enjoyed the lessons today. |
In the first sentence, you can tell boys is plural because it ends with an “s,” and the sentence includes the plural possessive English pronoun their. Cats and lessons are also plural because they end in an “s,” but they all still use the English article the.
Indefinite articles: ‘a’ and ‘an’
The other two articles in English are a and an. They’re known as indefinite articles because they indicate that a noun is general or unknown. You may also see a and an when a writer mentions a noun for the first time.
The word a is pronounced “uh” most of the time, and “ey” when you’re stressing the sound. Put a before nouns that begin with a consonant sound, including words that start with vowels that make a “y” sound (such as university or uniform, which start with a “yoo” sound).
| ‘A’ + Singular Noun | Sentence |
| A man | A man asked for directions. |
| A book | My sister read a book. |
| A university | I want to attend a university. |
The word an is usually pronounced “uhn,” and “an” when you’re putting extra emphasis on it. You’ll use it before nouns that begin with a vowel sound, including some nouns that begin with a silent “h” (such as honor or hour).
| ‘An’ + Singular Noun | Sentence |
| An egg | Would you like an egg? |
| An ant | We saw an ant outside. |
| An hour | I spent an hour doing my homework. |
Unlike the, a and an only describe singular nouns and essentially mean “one.” If you want to describe plural indefinite nouns, you’ll need to use indefinite determiners like some, many, or several.
| Indefinite Determiner + Plural Noun | Sentence |
| Some eggs | Would you like some eggs? |
| Many ants | We saw many ants outside. |
| Several hours | I spent several hours doing my homework. |
Do articles come before adjectives?
Adjectives are words that describe nouns, and are usually placed before the nouns they describe. You can use English articles before adjectives following the same rules. For example:
- I drove the blue car.
- Manny is taking an easy test.
For indefinite articles, use the article that matches the adjective that directly follows it, not the noun. For example, even though test starts with the consonant sound “t,” the adjective easy starts with the vowel sound “ee.” Use an in this case.
Which words don’t use articles?
Even though the, a, and an are some of the most common English words, you won’t use them for every noun. Some categories of words don’t need articles in front of them.
Uncountable nouns
Words like some, too much, and no are not articles. They’re called determiners, and they modify uncountable nouns.
- May I have some water?
- Those cookies have too much sugar.
- We did no work today.
However, when you use articles with the above nouns, you’re talking about a specific container or amount of that noun.
- Pour the water over here.
- Please pass the sugar.
- The work was difficult.
The water, the sugar, and the work now refer to countable nouns, such as a bucket of water, a cup of sugar, or the finished work.
Proper nouns
Proper nouns are specific nouns, so they don’t use an article. Instead, you’ll capitalize proper nouns in a sentence. For example:
- My name is Alice.
- We live on Mulholland Street.
- Holland is a wonderful place to visit.
However, some proper nouns do use a definite article. Use the with proper nouns that describe famous buildings, geographical terms, and some countries (but don’t capitalize the).
- Have you seen the Eiffel Tower?
- I am traveling to the United States.
- The airplane crossed the Pacific Ocean.
There are other categories of proper nouns, so you’ll need to memorize which proper nouns use the, and which ones don’t. The more you practice reading and speaking English, the more you’ll understand grammar rules for proper nouns!
Possessive determiners
If possessive determiners like my, your, his, her, its, our, or their come before a noun, don’t use an article. For example:
- My pencil has an eraser.
- Is your dog named Mario?
- His brother lives next door.
You don’t need to add the in front of my pencil, your dog, or his brother. The determiners do all the work already!
Acronyms and initialisms
An acronym is a set of letters that represent other words, such as NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) or NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). When you say their letters together, they form new words. NASA is pronounced “nah-suh,” for example, and NATO is pronounced “nay-toh.”
Since most acronyms are proper nouns, they don’t require the English articles the, a, or an in front of them.
- NASA launched a new mission.
- NATO was founded in 1949.
However, you will use an article before an acronym if the acronym is being used as an adjective:
- The NASA spacecraft was launched this morning.
- A NATO officer spoke to the crowd.
Initialisms also use the first letter of each word to create a new word. But unlike acronyms, you pronounce each letter rather than saying the whole word. For example, the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) is pronounced “ef-bee-ahy,” and the UN (United Nations) is pronounced “yoo-en.” Both use the in a sentence. You may also use a and an articles for singular initialisms.
- The FBI investigated the case.
- What countries are in the UN?
- A POW was freed last month.
- They sent an SOS signal during the night.
Once you learn more English, it will be easier to tell which acronyms and initialisms don’t sound right when you put the, a, or an in front of them.
Learn all about English articles, nouns, and more
Articles in English help you understand more about the nouns in a sentence. Now that you know how to use the, a, and an before a noun, you’re ready to learn more about using English words in your speech and writing!
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