Articles — a, an, the
a, an, the — small words, big job
- Articles come before nouns. English uses them a lot — Chinese doesn't.
- a / an = one, not specific. the = a specific one we both know.
- Sometimes we use no article at all.
a / an — one, not specific
- Use before a singular countable noun: a book, an apple.
- a before a consonant sound; an before a vowel sound.
- Listen to the sound: an hour (h is silent), a university (it starts "yu-").
a or an? Listen to the sound
Choose a / an by the SOUND that follows, not the letter.
Choose the correct article: I waited for ___ hour.
“hour” starts with a vowel sound (h is silent) → an hour.
Translate into English: 她是一名工程师。
“engineer” starts with a vowel sound → an: “She is an engineer.”
the — the specific one
- Use the when we both know which one: Close the door.
- For something mentioned again: I saw a cat. The cat was black.
- For unique things (the sun, the moon) and before superlatives (the best).
Complete with one word: ___ sun is very bright today.
The sun is unique → use “the”: The sun is bright.
zero article — no word at all
- Plural / uncountable nouns in general: I like music. Cats are cute.
- Names of people, most countries, cities: Tom, China, Beijing.
- Fixed phrases: go to school / bed / work.
Talking about music in general — is “I like the music.” correct?
For music in general, use no article: “I like music.”
Common mistakes
- ❌ I want to be teacher. → ✓ I want to be a teacher. — jobs need a / an.
- ❌ I went to home. → ✓ I went home. — no to, no the before home.
- ❌ He plays the football. → ✓ He plays football — but: play the piano.
Which article? Match each phrase.
Unique things take the; a / an follow the sound; fixed phrases like go to bed take none.
Is this correct? “She plays the piano.”
Yes — instruments take the: play the piano / the violin. Sports take none: play football.
- a / an = one, not specific (an before a vowel sound).
- the = the specific one we both know.
- No article for general plurals / uncountables and most names.
Write one sentence that uses “the” for something specific (for example: the door, the teacher, the book on your desk).
Example: “Please open the window.” (a specific window we both know)