Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P.

– A Grammar of the English language

11. ARTICLES IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE

11.1. DEFINITION

The articles are form words which specify, identify or classify the nouns
or noun groups in the sentence to see whether they are indefinite or definite.
Articles were considered a separate part of speech, though current approaches
are more likely to include them within the class of determiners.

11.2. CLASSIFICATION

In the English language, the articles are classified into 3 different kinds:
- Indefinite Article
- Definite Article
- Zero Article.

In several European languages, such as French, Italian, Spanish,

German,…, there are rules about when to use or not to use the articles. These
rules generally depend on the gender of the nouns and on whether they are
singular or plural.

In English, gender doesn't affect our choice, but whether the nouns are
singular or plural may do so. It is because articles don't have gender or special
plural forms in English, and their number is limited, their use seems easy to
learn at first. However, choice is complicated by the following factors.
- Whether a noun is countable or uncountable.
- Whether we are making general statements.
- Whether we are referring to something or someone the listener or
reader can positively identify or not.

11.2.1. Indefinite Articles: ‘a’ and ‘an’

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 1
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

"A" and "AN" are only used with countable singular nouns. "A" comes
before a word beginning with a consonant or a semi - vowel in pronunciation.
"AN" comes before a word beginning with a vowel or a mute "H" or a non-
stressed syllable beginning with "H".

E.g.: A book / a table / a yard / a university / a European /

a one-eyed man / a B / a K / …
An apple / an orange / an hour / an historical novel / an A /
An H / an X / …

"A" and "AN" are used with countable singular nouns in the general
sense.
E.g.: A small car is more economical nowadays than a big one
A dog is a faithful animal.
An architect is a person who designs houses and buildings.
James is an electrician.

"A" and "AN" are used with the meaning: One - Each - Every.
E.g.: They have a son and a daughter
This is a book and a pen for you
Once a week / Twice a month / Sixty miles an hour /
She can type sixty words a minute.
You need a screwdriver to do the job properly.
He drove at 60 miles an hour.
“A” and “AN” are used when we refer to one unit of measurement in
terms of another. If we want to emphasize „each‟, we use „per‟ instead of
„a/an‟.
E.g.: 40p a/per kilo.
60 km an/per hour.
40 miles a/per gallon.
Once a/per week.

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 2
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

Many nouns are „paired‟, that is they are considered to accompany each
other naturally, and “A” and “AN” are used before the first noun of a pair.
E.g.: a hat and coat / a bowl and spoon / a knife and fork / …

If two words are used which are not considered to be a „natural pair‟, the
indefinite article must be used before each noun.
E.g.: When you go out for a picnic, take a raincoat and a camera.

"A" and "AN" are used with nouns of nationality, occupation, religion,
politics, etc.
E.g.: He is an American.
She is a Frenchwoman.
She is a doctor.
He is an engineer.
He is a Muslim.
She is an Anglican.
Hilary is a democrat.
He is a socialist.

"A" and "AN" can be used before title (Mr., Mrs., Miss . . .) with the
sense of "a certain person whom I don't know":
E.g.: A Mrs. Tandy phoned and left a message for you.

"A" and "AN" are used after the following words: What / such / many /
quite / half, etc.
E.g.: What an interesting story!
Such a beautiful day.
He is quite a good fellow.
Half an hour.

"A" and "AN" are used to refer to illnesses, and idiomatic expressions.

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 3
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

E.g.: She's got a headache / a cold / a backache.

To be in a hurry / to be at a loss / as a rule.....

11.2.2. Definite Article: "THE"

- a singular countable
"THE" can be used in front of - a plural countable
- an uncountable

"THE" is pronounced / / when it comes before consonant and semi-

vowel sounds : the day , the book, the way, etc.

"THE" is pronounced / / when it comes before vowel sounds and the

mute "H" : the end, the outside, the hour, etc.

"THE" normally has a definite reference (i.e. the person or thing referred
to is assumed to be known to the speaker, writer, listener or reader).

"THE" can combine with the singular countable, plural countable, and
uncountable noun (which are always singular).

"THE" is used when the noun is definite by the situation or context.

E.g.: The book you gave me is very interesting.

"THE" is used for classifying a certain class from other classes,

nationality, etc.
E.g.: The cobra is dangerous.
The British and the American are allies.

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 4
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

"THE" used with plural name can refer to the group as a whole like:
families, races, politics, group or community.
E.g.: The Smiths, The Johns, The Europeans, The Africans, The
Liberals, The Beatles, etc.

Some nationality adjectives, particularly those ending in –ch, -sh, and –

ese are used after ‘the’ when we wish to refer to „the group as a whole‟.
E.g.: The British / The Vietnamese / The French.

"THE" is used with collective nouns or plural countable denoting

specific groups, particular groups or community.
E.g.: The police, The army, The public, The bosses.
Getting the Unions and the bosses to agree isn't easy.

"THE" is used for specifying in certain context, structure.

E.g.: It is a quiet village. The village has a population of only a few
hundred people.
The life of Smith was full of hardship.
The Johns you are looking for no longer lives here.
Who's at the door? - It's the post man.
She got the bread from the baker's

"THE" is used with a certain part of body, object, places, …

E.g.: The head, the heart, the mind, the veins, the lungs, the
brain, the stomach, the mind, etc.
The ceiling, the door, the floor, the back, the country, the
seaside, the mountains, the centre, the outside, etc.

"THE" is used to express time and time expressions.

E.g.: The beginning, the end, the past, the future, the day, the night, at
the moment....

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 5
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

"THE" is used with superlatives and ordinal numerals.

E.g.: The most, the best, the next, the last, the first, the twenty first

"THE" is used with unique objects, positions, items, etc.

E.g. : The Sun, the Moon , the Jupiter, etc.
The Chairman, the President, the Queen, etc.
The Titanic, the Pioneer, the Canberra, etc.
The Economist, the Times, the Guardian, etc.
The Conservative Party, the Labour Party, etc.
The climate, the temperature, the weather, etc.
The dinosaurs, the reptiles, etc.

"THE" is used with musical instruments, with fixed phrases, "The + Adj.
+ ER …. The + Adj. + ER" and with certain idiomatic expressions.
E.g.: Carlos plays the guitar / the piano (note the difference between
British and American English)
The sooner the better / The more the merrier
On the one hand ... (and) on the other hand

"THE" is used with adjectives to form substantivized nouns or abstract

nouns.
E.g.: The blind need everybody's help and sympathy.
There is a perpetual conflict between the rich and the poor.
Not all the beautiful become the good.

"THE" is used with plural name of countries, and full name of countries.
E.g.: The Philippines, The United States,
The Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern
Island.

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 6
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

11.2.3. Zero Article

In a number of cases the noun is associated neither with the definite nor
the indefinite article. But not every absence of the article is a mere omission
of it. Therefore, Zero Article is the state of using neither indefinite nor
definite articles.

- a plural countable
Zero Article is often used in front of - an uncountable
- proper nouns.

E.g.: The people who work next door are architects.

Sugar is not good for your teeth.
Margaret is a very good student.

Zero Article is used with plural countable in general sense, abstract

nouns in general sense, and material nouns in general sense.
E.g.: Cats catch mice. Women are fighting for their rights.
Books are our true friends.
Independence or death.
Life is short, art is long.
Gold is a valuable metal.
Oil is essential for industry.
Water must be purified then we can drink.
Money makes the world go round.

Zero Article is needed with names of meals, nouns of colour, languages,

days of week, month of year, festive days, seasons.....
E.g.: Breakfast is ready./ She is now at lunch.
He likes green./ Brown is my favourite colour.

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 7
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

English is a world language / My native language is

Vietnamese.
Monday is the first day of the week.
July is the hottest month of the year.
May Day is the festive day for all labourers.
Autumn is the nicest season in a year.

Zero Article is used with names of subjects, art, spots, games, places,
means of transport with "by", headline news, ...
E.g.: Chemistry is an interesting subject to learn.
She is studying music and fine art.
Football is the most popular sport in the world.
They play chess whenever they have free time.
He is now in hospital.
He was sent to prison for four years.
Children go to school at the age of six.
She went to the States by air.
Hotel fire disaster in Chicago was unidentified.

Zero Article is used in fixed phrases, proper nouns with position, "pair"
joined by "and"....
E.g.: To fight side by side / to go from North to South.
To go hand in hand / from left to right...
President Lincoln / Queen Elizabeth.
This business has been run by father and son.
At noon / At night / Last week

Zero Article is used with certain nouns when we refer to their „primary
purpose‟, that is the activity associated with them. Here are some of them:

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 8
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

bed, church, class, college, court, hospital, market, prison, school, sea, town,
university, etc.

Zero Article is used in certain fixed phrases, such as: arm in arm, come
to light, face to face, from top to bottom, hand in hand, keep in mind, make
friends, make fun of, etc.

Zero Article is also used in „pairs‟ joined by „and‟, such as: day and
night, father and son, husband and wife, light and dark, young and old, pen
and ink, sun and moon, etc.

11.2.4. Position of the article

a. The article is generally placed before the noun or its attribute:

E.g.: I am reading an article.
This is a good English book.
We are in the same boat, so we must help one another.
He was the only soldier who survived after that fight.
There was a high mountain between the two villages.

b. In the following cases the article is placed after the attribute:

+ The definite article follows the pronouns All and Both

E.g.: All the books you gave me are very good and interesting.
He has read both the articles I mentioned.
All the class members are present at the meeting.
She bought both the dresses because they fitted her well.

+ The indefinite article follows the demonstrative pronoun Such and the
exclamatory What:
E.g.: Never have I seen such a terrible accident.
Such a storm was really strong and hard.

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 9
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

What a well - organized student club.

What a beautiful sunset I have ever seen.
I don‟t like such an awful words of hers.

+ The indefinite article is placed between an adjective used as an attribute and

its noun if the adjective is preceded by one of the following adverbs: As,
So, Too, How:
E.g.: So beautiful a tree should not be destroyed.
How happy a time we had on our holiday.
It is too difficult a task to be done in so short a time.
It is as difficult a problem which I have to make out.

+ Both articles are used after "Half":

E.g.: She spent half the morning in packing up.
This must be half a morning's work.
She bought half a kilo of cheese.
There is only half a liter of drinking water left.
I am completely broke. I don‟t even have half a coin.

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 10
Le, H.T., Dang, D.T., & Tran, H.P. – A Grammar of the English language

Le, Dang, & Tran (2015) A Grammar of the English language. ĐH HN Page 11