Definite and Indefinite articles

Definite and Indefinite articles 

  1. could you lend me a pen?

  2. I saw an airplane crashing. 

  3. The bus is so packed.

• As you can see from the examples above, in the English language (a, an and the) are the definite and indefinite articles.

First: INDEFINITE ARTICLE

The grammatical name of the words (a, an) is the Indefinite article.

these two words (a, an) are used to indicate to unspecified thing.

what does that mean?

• well, in the first example:  

(could you lend me a pen?) 

I'm not asking for a pen in particular; I just need a pen, any pen.

and you don't know what pen I'm talking about because I have not mentioned it before.

How to use them:

in order to use the indefinite article correctly you have to follow these rules.

1. put (a or an) before a SINGULAR noun.

• Example:

 Pass me a fork, please.

pass me a forks, please. (wrong)

you can not put (a) before a plural noun.

2. you should put (a or an) before a COUNTABLE noun.

• Example:

I buy a SUGAR from the supermarket. (wrong)

You can not put ( a or an) before an uncountable noun.

3. (a) is used before a noun that starts with a consonant.

• Example:

 I have a Laptop.

she bought a Smartphone.

but in this sentence:

we bring a Umbrella with us in the winter. (wrong)

because  the word (UMBRELLA) starts with a vowel not a consonant.

4. you finally use the article (an) before a word that starts with a vowel sound, even if that word starts with a consonant letter.

  The vowel letters are ( a, e, i, o, u).

• Example:

an Elephant

an Egg

an Apple 

an Umbrella

an Identification card.

They all start with a vowel, but there are also some words that begin with a consonant however,  you put the indefinite article (an).

• Example:

 an Hour

an Honor

The letter (h) is not pronounced and the first sound is vowel so we use (an).

Second: DEFINITE ARTICLE

(the) is much more easier.

• This determiner is used before singular and plural, countable and non countable nouns

to indicate to things or people the listener or reader knows exactly what particular things are being indicated because they have been mentioned before in the dialogue or the content.

Let's make it easier for you.

1. The players are very skilled.

(players) countable noun.

2. the water looks clear and pure

(water) non countable noun. you can not count water, can you?

3. the teacher is so funny.

(teacher) singular

4. the girls are beautiful.

(girls) plural.

Here is a short story to Explain the use of definite and indefinite articles.

• I was walking down the street and there was a man; the man was frightened and shaking, he had a knife in his hands, the knife looked dirty and full of blood, I saw a police man approaching 

the police man stopped  that guy and took him to the police station.

Notice that when I talked about (a man, a knife and a police man) for the first time I used the indefinite article (a), but when I mentioned them later I used the definite article (the).