6. A/an and The

6. A/an and The

1. A / AN

   • USE WHEN
     • 3. When is the first time we talk about something
       • I had a sandwich and an apple for lunch. The sandwich wasn't very good, but the apple was nice.
       • 4. When it is general
         • Is there a bank near here? ; My sister is a dentist.
         • 5. When we say "once a week / three times a day / $1.50 a kilo", etc
           • How often do you go to the cinema? About once a month ; How much are those potatoes? $1.50 a kilo ; Helen works eight hours a day, six days a week
           • 6. If we say "a big lunch", "a wonderful dinner", "an early breakfast"
             • We had a very nice lunch
     • 1. Use to say what kind of thing something is, or what kind of person is somebody
       • That's A nice table ; A dog is an animal ; Jane is a relly nice person
     • 2. When you say what somebody's job is
       • Sandra is a nurse ; Would you like to be an English teacher?
   • USE IF
     • ✅You CAN use with SINGULAR COUNTABLE NOUNS ; ❌You CANNOT use with PLURAL COUNTABLE or UNCOUNTABLE NOUNS

2. THE

   • USE WHEN
     • 1. When is the second time we talk about something
       • I had a sandwich and an apple for lunch. The sandwich wasn't very good, but the apple was nice.
     • 2. When we are thinking of a specific thing
       • Tim sat down on a chair. Tim sat down on the chair nearest the door.
     • 3. When it is clear in the situation which thing or person we mean
       • the light / the floor / the ceiling / the door / the carpet /// the bank / the post office /// the doctor / the dentist
         • Can you turn off the light, please? (= the light in this room) ; I have to go to the bank and then I'm going to the post office ; Clare isn't very well. She's gone to the doctor (= her usual doctor)
     • 4. When there is only one of something
       • The... sun / moon / earth / world / universe / sky / sea / ground / environment / internet
         • Have you ever crossed the equator? Our apartment is on the tenth floor.
     • 5. Before "same"
       • Your sweater is the same colour as mine ; Are these keys the same?
     • 6. The cinema / the theatre ; we do not necessarily mean a specific cinema or theatre.
       • I go to the cinema a lot, but I haven't been to the theatre for ages
     • 7. The radio ; The television/TV = the television set
       • Can you turn off the television, please?
     • 8. buildings (exception in particular use of school / prison (or jail) / hospital / university / college / church)
       • The station ; the cinema
       • 9. School / prison (or jail) / hospital / university / college / church : in the meaning of specific place
         • Today Ellie's mother wants to speak to her daughter's teacher. So she has gone to the school to see her. She's at the school now.
         • 10. To talk about a specific type of animal, machine, musical struments etc.
           • the giraffe is the tallest of all animals ; the bycicle is an excellent means of transport ; when was the telephone invented? the dollar is the currency of the United States ; can you play the guitar?
     • 11. The + adjective = to talk about groups of people (plural in the meaning)
       • the young, the old, the elderly, the rich, the poor, the homeless, the sick, the disabled, the unemployed, the injured, the dead
     • 12. The + nationality (plural in the meaning): just those that ends in -CH, -SH and -ESE (anothers: don't use THE - ex. Italians)
       • The French , The English, but a Frenchman, an Englishwoman ; The Chinese, The Sudanese, The Japanese
     • 14. Names of oceans, seas, rivers and canals ; and deserts
       • the Atlantic (Ocean), the Indian Ocean, the Mediterranean (Sea), the Red Sea, the Channel (between France and Britain), the Amazon, the Nile, the Suez Canal ; the Sahara (Desert) , the Gobi Desert
     • 15. With plural names of people and places (people, countries, groups of islands, mountain ranges)
       • the Taylors = the Taylor family, the Johnsons, the Netherslans, the Philippines, the United States, the Canaries, the Canary Islands, the Bahamas, the Rocky Mountains, the Rockies, the Andes, the Alps
     • 16. the north of Brazil ; the south-east of Spain ; the Middle East, the Far East
   • YOU CAN USE IF
     • ✅It is a SINGULAR OR PLURAL COUNTABLE NOUNS OR UNCOUNTABLE NOUN
   • NOT USE WHEN
     • 1. "Earth", without the, when we think of its as a planet in space (like Mars, Jupiter etc)
       • Which planet is nearest Earth?
     • 2. "Space", without the, when we say 'space in the universe'
       • There are millions of stars in space
     • 3. Television / TV
       • I watch television a lot.
     • 4. Breakfast / lunch / dinner
       • What did you have for breakfast?
     • 5. Before "noun + number"
       • Platform 5 ; size 43 ; Room 126 ; page 29 ; question 3 ; Gate 10
     • 6. School / prison (or jail) / hospital / university / college / church : We do not use the when we are thinking of the general idea of these places and what they are used for.
       • Ellie is ten years old. Every day she goes to school. She's at school now. School starts at 9 and finishes at 3.
     • 7. go to bed / be in bed etc.
       • I'm going to bed now. Goodnight. ( but, I sat down on the bed - a specific piece of furniture)
     • 8. go to work / be at work / start work / finish work
       • Chris didn't go to work yesterday
     • 9. go home / come home / arrive home / get home / be at home
       • It's late. Let's go home. Will you be at home tomorrow afternoon?
     • 10. go to sea / be at sea = go/be on voyage
       • Keith works on ships. He's at sea most of the time. (but, I'd like to live near the sea. It can be dangerous to swim in the sea.)
     • Talking about things or people in general
     • 11. man = human beings in general / the human race
       • What do you know about the origins of man?
     • 12. continents, countries, states, islands, cities, towns, mountains
       • Helen, Africa, Europe, South America, France, Japan, Brazil, Texas, Sicily, Beeremuda, Tasmania, Cairo, New York, Bangkok, Everest, Etna, Kilimanjaro
       • 13. But we use the in names with REPUBLIC, KIGDOM, STATES etc.
         • the Czech Republic, the Dominician Republic, the United Kingdom (the UK), the United States of America (the USA)
     • 13. When we use Mr , Mrs , Captain , Doctor
       • Mr Johnson, Doctor Johnson, Captain Johnson, President Johnson , Uncle Robert, Saint Catherine, Princess Maria
     • 14. Mount (=mountain) and Lake
       • Mount Everest, Mount Etna, Lake Superior, Lake Victoria
     • 15. northern Brazil ; suth-eastern Spain ; North America , South Africa
     • 16. Names of most city streets, roads, squares, parks ; Names of important public buildings and institutions ex. airports, stations)
       • 17. Most other buildings: hotels, theatres, cinemas, museums, galleries, other buildings - names with of-phrase, names in plural, well-known buildings
         • the Sheraton Hotel, the Holiday Inn, the Palace Theatre, The Odeon (cinema), the Guggenheim Museum, the National Gallery, the Empire State (Building), the White House, the Eiffel Tower
         • 18. most newspapers and many organisations
           • the Washington Post, the Financial Times, the European Union, the BBC, the Red Cross
       • Union Street, Queens Road, Fifth Avenue, Broadway, Hyde Park, Times Square ; Manchester Airport, Harvard University ; Victoria Station, Buckingham Palace, Cambridge University (but, the University of Cambridge)
     • 17. Shops, restaurants, hotels, banks that are named after people, end in -'s or-s
       • Mc Donald's ; Joe's Diner ; Barclays ; Macy's ; St (Saint) John's Church ; St Patrick's Cathedral
     • 18. Names of companies, airlines
       • Fiat, Kodak, Sony, IBM, Singapore Airlines, Yale University Press