1) When talking in general about people or things we don’t use the with plural nouns or uncountable nouns.
eg Planes transport people huge distances in short periods of time. (not specific planes but planes in general) eg Pilots have to do recurrent training every year. (not specific pilots but pilots in general)
2) When talking about jobs or types of things, use a / an with a singular noun to say what job a person has, what group something belongs to or what we use something for.
eg He’s a dispatcher. eg We have a checklist to remind us of everything we need to check.
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There are four basic rules to follow when using articles; ‘a’, ‘an’ and ‘the’.
Don’t use a / an with plurals.
a cars / an eggs = INCORRECT
a car / an egg = CORRECT
Don’t use ‘the’ to make general statements about things / people.
The trees are good for the environment = INCORRECT
Trees are good for the environment = CORRECT
Don’t use a / an / the with other words that make something definite or that indicate quantity.
Look at the my car! = INCORRECT (my already makes ‘car’ definite, this sounds strange to most people too)
Look at my car! = CORRECT
The some people on board the plane didn’t feel well = INCORRECT
Some people on board the plane didn’t feel well = CORRECT
Countable singular nouns always need an article or determiner.
Plane is on its stand = INCORRECT
The / my / his / her / our / your / their / this / that etc…. plane is on its stand = CORRECT (note: this sentences can only have ONE article or determiner)
Check out the diagram below to see a summary of the rules and try to create some of your own examples.
How to use a, an & the.
Tip: It can be difficult to learn these rules and ‘use’ them when speaking. As you read and listen more in English you will naturally start to have an idea when we use a / an / the. In some situations when you’re not sure it can be useful to check the rules, but you’ll correctly use these rules unconsciously as you read and listen to more English so don’t be concerned if they seem difficult.
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