Articles

A - AN:

Aandanareindefinite articlesused to refer to a singular countable noun.
Anindefinitearticle means that we do not know which one, or it is not important
to know it.

Which one to use: 'a' or 'an'?

The rule states that “a” should be used before words that begin with consonants
(b, c ,d etc.) while “an” should be used before words that begin with vowels (a,e,i, etc.).
It should be noted, however, that the usage is determined by the pronunciation and
not by the spelling, and this includes abbreviations and acronyms.
To simplify, one uses 'a' before a word that begins with a consonant SOUND,
and 'an' before a word that begins with a vowel SOUND.

Ais used before :

• a consonant (b, c, d, f, g, etc.)
acar/ahotel
• a vowel that is pronounced like "yu" aEuropean/auniversity
• the vowel 'o' when it has a "w" soundaone-way street

Anis used before :

• a vowel (a, e, i, etc.) : ananimal/anelevator
• an unaspirated 'h':anhour/anhonest man
• abbreviations starting with a vowelsound:anMBA('em' sound)

THE:

Theis adefinite articleused to talk about somethingspecific.

• Thetownwhere Julie livesis very big.
• What book is Julie reading? She's readingthebookTom gave her.

Theis also used to refer to:

• Rivers, seas, oceans :
  • theMississippi river,theMediterranean sea,theAtlantic ocean
• Nationalities :
  • theBritish,theAmericans,theJapanese,theChinese, etc.

NO ARTICLE:

No articleis used ingeneralisations:

• I like music
• Caviar is expensive.

Exceptions :

• I watch television but I listen totheradio and I go tothecinema.
• I don't play tennis but I playthepiano,theguitar, etc.

No articleis used forplace names(towns, countries, mountains) :

• London, Spain, Mount Everest

Except if plural :

• TheGreek islands,TheUnited States,TheAlps,TheHimalayas