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In English, we have three articles: "a," "an,"
and "the." There’s also one more that’s important:
no article or zero article. Today, let’s go
through all the information you need step by
step. The first part of this lesson is going to
cover the general concept of articles. The second
part of this lesson is 18—yes, 18—specific rules
you need to memorize. I hope you’re ready. My
name’s Arnel. Let’s start.A and An
"Jack is a student."
"Teresa is an artist."
"I took a picture of an octopus."
"It was an honest answer."
Last sentence: "I got an X-ray." So,
when do we use "a"? When do we use "an"? We use
"a" and "an" with a singular noun. Singular means
one. We use "a" with a consonant sound and "an"
with a vowel sound. What? What’s a consonant?
What’s a vowel? Vowels are "a," "e," "i," "o,"
"u," and consonants are all the other letters. So,
it’s clear: "a student." "S" is a consonant, so
we say "a student." "A" in "artist" is a vowel,
so we say "an artist." "A picture." "An octopus."
Easy. But "h" is a consonant. Why do we say "an"?
Remember, we need to look at the sound, not the
letter. "Honest" begins with the "o" sound—vowel
sound. "X-ray" begins with the "e" sound,
so again, we need "an." Common mistake:
Remember, about a minute ago I said we use "a"
and "an" with a singular noun. Singular means one.
"I need pen."
"My daughter wants axelottle for her birthday."
"Can I have fork?" We have our
singular nouns. We need an article:
"a pen," "an axelottle," "a fork." Don’t forget
your articles. Your turn to practice: a or an.
Pause the lesson. And here are the answers. In
number two, we have the adjective "interesting."
Even though "interesting" is not a noun, you still
need to follow the vowel or consonant rule. So,
at the top here, let me add "adjective" because
that is optional. In sentence number three,
"university" begins with the "y" sound—"y"—so
you need "a." Number three is kind of a trick
sentence. Mini pronunciation note:
Many times in fast spoken English,
people don’t say "a"—a—they say "uh," "uh."
It’s kind of an ugly sound, right? "Uh." So,
in today’s lesson, I might say "a" to be
really clear, or I might just say "uh." Okay,
let’s move on to "the." I’ll keep our first rule
at the top here: "a/an + (adjective) + singular
noun." Let’s first start with the pronunciation.
We can say "the" or "the." What’s the difference?
The general rule is "the" plus consonant sound,
"the" plus vowel sound. See, it’s a good thing you
already know what vowels and consonants are:
"The bank," "the person," "the tablet," "the
envelope," "the otter," "the assistant." Here’s
a little trick: "the" has the "e" sound, right?
"The"—the "e" is a vowel, so you want "the" before
a vowel sound. But this isn’t really a hard rule,
meaning you’ll hear native speakers using a mix
of "the" and "the." Don’t worry too much about it.
This is just a good guideline. Okay. At the top,
we have "the + adjective + singular noun." Okay.
But we can also use "a" and "an" for singular
nouns. What’s the difference? Here are two people:
the speaker and the listener. Is this new
information for the listener? Use "a" or "an."
Does the listener already know what the speaker
is talking about? Use "the." Let’s compare:
"I bought a gift for Rosie."
"I bought the gift for Rosie."
Both are grammatically correct, but the feeling
is different. We use "a" when the listener doesn’t
know what type of gift you bought. Maybe flowers,
maybe stationery, maybe a mug—whatever. "A gift"
is nice. This is general. We use "the" when the
listener already knows what you are talking about.
"The" is specific. Specific. We need to travel
back in time. Rosie’s birthday is coming up.
I’m thinking about buying her a picture frame
with her name engraved on it. She’ll love
that. What a great idea. Okay. Now, when the
speaker says, "I bought the gift for Rosie,"
it’s clear the listener knows you mean the
picture frame. Here’s a common mistake:
"How was your weekend?"
"Really nice. I watched the movie."
Which movie? I don’t know which movie you watched.
Did we speak about this earlier? In this case,
you need: "I watched a movie." You’re just
introducing a new idea. And this isn’t just
about information from a past conversation.
If it’s clear what’s being spoken about,
use "the." Like, imagine you’re with a friend:
"Do you see the woman over there?" "The"—because
both of you know what’s being spoken about.
You are pointing. It’s clear. Don’t forget
"the" is used when something is clear. You
might see something like this in the news:
"A robber walked into a bank with a duffel bag
in one hand and a gun in the other." A "robber"
is a thief. And a "duffel bag" is a large bag
like this—um, a big soft bag in kind of that
cylinder shape. Later, as you’re reading,
the article will say something like this:
"The robber held up the gun. He filled the
duffel bag with money." Next time you read an
article in English, look for this. "An" introduces
something new to the reader. Later, "the" is used
because it’s already clear, right? Singular nouns.
Okay, but what about plural nouns or uncountable
nouns? We use "the." Let’s do a quick review:
Singular means one, like "book." Plural
means more than one: "books." "Stone"—stones.
"Potato"—potatoes. Uncountable nouns only have
one form: "information," "vocabulary," "homework."
Informations. Vocabularies. Homeworks. No. Use
the rules up here to help you complete this
mini paragraph. Pause the lesson to do this.
We need: "a friend," "an online course," "a
website." "The course," "videos," "content," and
"course" again. Final answer: "a web developer."
Because again, we are introducing something new,
and we are not talking about a specific
web developer. Hmm. What if I want to use
a plural or uncountable noun in general?
What if I don’t want to be specific? Use
the zero article, also called no article:
"People enjoy spending time with their family."
"I love dogs."
"I think coffee or tea is always
a great gift to give someone."
"Kevin reads books."
"Love is all you need." Plural noun. Plural noun.
Uncountable noun. Plural noun. Uncountable noun.
Which people? People in general. Which dogs?
Dogs in general. Which books? I don’t know.
And finally, "love." Love is everywhere. Love
is general and uncountable. Common mistake:
"Most of the people like ice cream." Which people
do you mean? Did you go to a party or something?
People at a party were talking about ice cream.
Um, did you have a vote in your office about ice
cream? When we use a plural noun and just mean
something in general, do not use an article:
"Most people like ice cream." That’s a fact.
Okay, the first part of this lesson is done.
Here’s a complete summary if you want to pause
the lesson. Now, it’s time to start part two:
18 rules. I want to make it clear now that there
is some flexibility with these rules. Of course,
things depend on the situation. But knowing
these 18 rules will massively help you understand
articles. You know what can also help you learn
articles? Review. If you want all the notes to
today’s lesson, become a channel member. You
can download all these pages and have them
in one place. You can review them on your phone,
review them offline, whenever. I’ll leave a link
to become a member in the video description.
Our 18 rules focus on the definite article.
Okay, here we go. Number One: Use "the" when
there is only one. Everybody knows what you
are talking about: "the government," "the king,"
"the moon," "the CEO," "the definite article."
You can see usually there’s only one.
"I want to speak to the manager."
"We only use the dining room when
guests come over. Otherwise, we just
eat in the kitchen." Places of service.
What do I mean by places of service?
I’m talking about all the public places that
a city has—the places that most people need:
"the post office," "the bank," "the gym," "the
train station," "the hospital." Cultural note:
In British English, "the" is
often removed before "hospital":
"John is in the hospital."
"John is in hospital."
Both are correct, perfectly fine.
"I’m going to the bank after work." In this case,
it doesn’t matter which bank you mean. Banks are
pretty much all the same. Public transportation:
"The bus," "the train," "the subway."
"The bus should be here any minute."
And in English, "any minute" means very
soon. "The bus should be here very soon."
But it’s correct to say "a bus," "a
train," right? Yes, that’s also correct.
But usually when we are speaking about public
transportation, "the" is used. Let’s compare:
"I don’t have a car, so I
always take the bus to work."
"A bus splashed me with water." Public
transportation. And the second example is
a bus in general. Keep in mind that there
is definitely flexibility with articles,
which is one reason why they are so
difficult and annoying. Superlatives:
"The best," "the worst," "the hottest," "the
most beautiful," "the least expensive." What’s
a superlative? "Good, better, the best."
"Hot, hotter, the hottest." "Expensive,
more expensive, the most expensive." Superlatives
are the strongest form of an adjective. If you
want more information on superlatives, you can
watch this lesson here. I’ll link it down below
for you. Here’s an example with a superlative:
"Um, which delivery service is the fastest?"
Number Five: Discussing scientific
inventions or discoveries.
"The telephone," "the computer," "the
internet," "the telescope." Mini note:
"Internet" is sometimes capitalized in formal
writing, but lowercase is perfectly correct and is
becoming more and more common. I know some of my
English lovers are going to ask me that question.
"The telephone changed the
way people communicate."
"The steam engine powered the industrial
revolution." With rule number five,
here we are really talking about inventions,
not just the objects. Let’s compare:
In general: "We need a new
light bulb. This one is out."
The invention: "Before the light
bulb, homes were lit with candles
or oil lamps." Six: Groups of people.
"The" plus adjective. We do this,
and it acts like a noun: "the rich," "the poor,"
"the elderly," "the unemployed," "the wounded."
"Wounded" means hurt in war or a natural disaster.
"The sick need special medical attention."
In this sentence, I’m talking about
all sick people. It’s like a group.
"The government is introducing new
programs to support the unemployed."
I’m talking about unemployed people.
"School should focus more on meeting
the needs of the young"—all young
people. Seven: Decades and centuries.
A decade is 10 years, and a century is 100
years. "Decade." "Decade." "Century." "Century."
"The 1990s." "The 18th
century." "The 21st century."
"Jazz—jazz music became popular in the 1920s."
"My parents grew up in the 1980s."
"The 20th century brought incredible advances
in medicine." Eight: Dates, but not all dates.
With this specific structure:
the number + of + month.
"Independence Day in the US is on the 4th of
July." The US—we’ll get to that rule later.
"My appointment is on the 22nd of March."
"We got married on the 15th of
September." Right. Number Nine:
We are halfway through this list of rules. Okay,
how are you doing? Let’s keep going. In + season:
For this one, "the" is optional. It’s really
a personal choice: "in the spring,"
"summer," "fall," or "autumn," "winter."
"We usually visit relatives
living in Montana in the summer."
"Students have exams starting in the fall."
Sometimes you see "the," sometimes you don’t. 10:
Here’s another optional one—instruments.
Sometimes you see "the," sometimes you don’t:
"Harry played the piano for years."
"Jackson plays drums in the school band."
"Alice practices the guitar every
day." 11: The week. The weekend.
"Friday is my favorite day of the week."
"Do you have any plans over the weekend?"
Right. There’s been a lot of information in
this lesson so far. Can you think of your
own example sentences? One of the best ways
to remember something is by using a personal
example. Leave me some of your examples in
the comments below with these rules. Okay. 12:
General geographical locations.
"The desert," "the country," "the
wilderness," "the ocean." When I say "country,"
I don’t mean countries like Poland, China,
Brazil. "Country" also means large areas of land
without many people, often used for farming.
"After years in the city, Emily moved back
to the country where she grew up." Look here:
"the city" also refers to just a general
area. I’m not speaking about a specific
city. I’m talking about an urbanized area:
"After a week in the country, they returned
to the city feeling refreshed."
"Camels can survive for long
periods in the desert without water."
"Many rare animals live deep in the jungle." 13:
We are almost done this list. We’re on number 13.
Specific seas and oceans:
"The Pacific," "the Mediterranean Sea,"
"the Atlantic," "the Indian Ocean."
"We sailed across the Pacific last summer."
"Many ancient civilizations settled along the
Mediterranean Sea." 14: Countries
with plural or group names.
What? Plural or group names? Normally, countries
do not have an article. We say "France," "Costa
Rica," "Egypt." Common mistake:
"I grew up in the Spain."
"I grew up in Spain." But if there’s
this idea of a group, we need "the":
"the United States," "the Philippines," "the
Netherlands." You can see with "Philippines"
and "Netherlands" we have a plural form.
"The Republic of Ireland,"
"the UAE," "the Czech Republic."
"The United States is made up of 50 states."
"Tourists visit beaches in the
Philippines every year." Mountain ranges.
What’s a mountain range? You know, a mountain
is one mountain. A mountain range is a long
stretch of mountains, like a group: "the Alps,"
"the Himalayas," "the Rockies," "the Andes."
"Skiing is popular in the Alps during
winter." Notice how "the" is optional with
"winter." "During the winter" is also okay.
"The Andes stretch along the western coast
of South America." Single mountains usually don’t
take "the": "Mount Everest," "Mount Fuji." Rivers:
"The Nile," "the Amazon," "the
Thames," "the Mississippi."
"Ancient Egypt thrived along the Nile."
"Russia’s largest river is the Volga." And
"thrive"—thrive is such a great verb. It means
to do really well, be successful. 17: Deserts.
"The Sahara," "the Gobi," "the Kalahari," "the
Mojave." You can see this isn’t just an article
lesson; it’s also a geography lesson.
"The Atacama is one of the
driest places on Earth."
"Scientists study ancient
fossils in the Gobi." Notice the first sentence:
we have an earlier rule—"the" plus superlative:
"the driest." Last but not least, number
18: Many famous hotels and museums.
"The Hilton," "the Ritz,"
"the Marriott," "the Louvre."
"Dennis booked a room at
the Ritz for the weekend."
"Conferences are often held at the Marriott."
"We spent the afternoon exploring the
Metropolitan Museum of Art." Number 18. Done.
How are you feeling? Have you thought of any of
your own example sentences? Definitely let me know
in the comments below. It might feel like there
are so many rules. It’s so confusing. Um, students
might even think, "Are articles even important?
Everybody understands me if I don’t use articles."
You know, if you don’t use the right article, it
really isn’t a big deal. But we want to get things
right. We want to sound natural. One of the best
things you can do is try to analyze articles you
see. Next time you’re reading something or you’re
watching something and you hear an article, you
can think, "Oh, 'the' plus consonant, plural noun,
uncountable noun. What about this? Why is it used?
Why is it used there?" And just try to analyze:
why is that article being used? I really hope
today’s lesson helped you, and I can’t wait to
make another video. Thank you so much for
watching, and I’ll see you next time. Bye.
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