Appendix 8 ARTICLES – a, an and the

To use articles correctly you must know the difference between a countable noun and an
uncountable noun.

Exercise 1.

Here are some nouns. Put them into the two boxes according to whether they are
countable or uncountable. Add more words of your own. Think of any nouns that can be
both countable and uncountable depending on the meaning. Add them to the table.

energy, job, scientist, music, trees, power, cables, noise, bridge, pollution

Countable nouns Uncountable nouns

Exercise 2.

There are errors in the use of a/an in these sentences. Find and correct the error in each
sentence. The number of mistakes in each sentence is indicated within brackets.

1. A volcanoes occur around the Pacific Ocean. (1)

2. Example of volcano is Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, East Africa. (2)

3. Earthquake is very destructive just like volcano or tsunami.(2)

4. Deadly disease killed the dinosaurs so they became an extinct. (2)

5. Due to erosion a soil is sometimes carried to the bottom of lake or river. (3)

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Exercise 3.

Read the text and underline the nouns that have articles. Include the adjectives that may
come between the noun and the article. Circle the articles. There are twenty two nouns
that have articles.

Example: A German engineer

The Suspension Bridge

A bridge is a structure that is used to cross an

obstacle such as a river, a channel, a valley or a
highway. The first suspension bridge ever built was
by a German- born engineer called John Roebling.
The bridge was opened in 1883. Roebling, however,
did not live to see the bridge finished. He died of an
infection caused by an injury in an accident at the
construction site.

The main parts of a typical modern suspension bridge are piers, towers cables and a long deck
or roadway. A suspension bridge appears to be resting on the abutments and piers. However,
it is actually suspended on the towers by means of the cables.

A/an is used only with singular countable nouns. An is generally used with nouns that begin
with a vowel- a,e,i,o,u. It also depends on the pronunciation!  

Exercise 4.

a. Which type of nouns is a/an used with? ______________________________________

b. Why is a/an used with these nouns? _________________________________________

c. Is the used with both singular and plural nouns? Give two examples________________

______________________________________________________________________

d. Why is a bridge used in the first line and the bridge in the second and third lines?

______________________________________________________________________

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Exercise 5.

Complete the sentences with a/an or the.

The Big Bang Theory

One of the most widely accepted theories _______Big Bang theory, there was

about __________ origin of ___________ _________enormous explosion.

universe is ______ Big Bang theory. __________ giant star exploded and

According to Hubble, the Big Bang created released heat, energy and gaseous clouds.

light gases that later formed _________ _______ Solar System was created by this

stars. A cosmologist, Fred Hoyle, developed huge cloud of gas and dust particles.

Hubble’s theory further. According to

REVISION:

• The articles a/an and the are used with ________________.

• a/an is used with _____________ nouns but the can be used with both singular and
plural nouns.
• a/an is used only with _________________ nouns, or nouns that can be counted.
• When something is referred to the first time ______ is used, but when it is referred to
again the is used.
• Generally the refers to something specific, a refers to something less specific.
 

Exercise 6.

Read the passage. Underline the nouns and circle the article the. Find examples where
the has been used with. The numbers within brackets indicate how many examples occur
in the text.

a. plural countable nouns. (2) __________________________________________

b. a group of people from a particular country (3) _______________________________

c. uncountable nouns (3) _______________________________________________

d. a phrase denoting time (1) ______________________________________________

e. superlatives( -est words) (1) ___________________________________________

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Wind is one of the oldest forms of energy design of windmills. In recent years
harnessed by human beings. More than concerns about the environment have also
5,000 years ago, the Egyptians used the created a demand for wind power because
wind to sail ships. Later, the Romans built it causes none of the pollution that nuclear
the first windmills to grind grain. By the 14th plants do.
century, the Dutch were leading in the

• The is used before oceans, rivers, mountains, public buildings, bridges, musical
instruments, directions (the south, the east), countries which have sultanate,
kingdom, united, republic etc in their name (example: The United States of
America).

• There are many other uses of the before proper nouns. By reading more books
newspapers etc in English you will get a better understanding of its use.
 

Exercise 7.

In the sentences below, use articles wherever necessary.

1. Amazon, which is longest river in world, flows through Amazon rain forest into Pacific
Ocean.

2. Tune she played on violin was really beautiful

3. Opera house in Muscat is very beautiful building.

4. Akashi Bridge in Japan is longest suspension bridge in the world.

• The Zero article (no article) is used with names of countries, states, cities,
names of people, streets, planets (except the Earth and the Moon), languages,
games, meals such as lunch, breakfast, dinner etc.

• It is also used with uncountable nouns or plural nouns to express a general

meaning.

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Exercise 8.

Read the text below. Which nouns don’t have an articles? In the table list these nouns in
appropriate categories: singular countable nouns, plural nouns, uncountable nouns and
proper nouns. Why don’t they have articles?

Automated machines and robots are also ideal in an area that is

impossible or difficult for humans to reach. One of these areas is space
exploration. A robot called Sojourner was sent to Mars to study and
collect information and specimens, or samples, of rocks. The robot
found clues that Mars may once have been covered by water that could
have supported microscopic life.

Singular countable Plural nouns Uncountable Proper nouns

nouns nouns

Exercise 9.

Complete the text below with an article (a, an, the). If no article is needed, put .

Solar Energy

Energy from __________ sun controls the earth’s weather and climate. ______earth’s surface
absorbs ___________solar energy and becomes warm. At the same time it radiates some of
________energy back into _________space. This energy is in the form of infrared radiation.
Natural gases, mainly water vapor and carbon dioxide, trap some of ________ energy and
retain_________ heat like the glass roof of ___________greenhouse. That is why these gases
are known as __________greenhouse gases. And the process is known as _______
greenhouse effect.

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Exercise 10.
Read the text below. It contains ten errors in the use of articles. With some nouns, the
article has been left out. Correct the errors and rewrite the text.

The Date Palm

The date palm along with a camel, the falaj and the khanjar are
symbolic of the Oman’s traditional way of the life. In the past, the
date farming was one of the main sources of the food and the
income. Today, the dates are still the very important cash crop. In
recent years, the new farming methods have led to an increase in
the date production.

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

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____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________________

• Singular countable nouns always have an article (or any other determiner such as
this/that) before them.

• For plural countable nouns and uncountable nouns, the article is often not used.

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 Exercise 11.

Complete the sentences using the words and phrases given. Use a/an or the if necessary.

Richter Scale earthquakes 1970s earthquake ground scientists

Earthquakes

In 1935 _______________began measuring the

strength of_______________. They devised
______________ which records the seismic
movements under __________________. On this
scale, 6.5 or higher measures severe damage over
large areas. In ________________, another scale
known as the Moment Magnitude Scale was
developed. It measures the size of
________________by recording the amount of energy
that is released by it.

Sometimes a/an and the is used to express a general idea.

Exercise 12.

Read the sentences. Which of them refer to a group in general? Which sentences talk
about something in particular? Write ‘G’ if the reference is to something in general and
‘S’ if it refers to something specific.

1. The butterfly is an example of an insect.

2. The Arctic fox has white fur to enable it to hunt better.
3. The Arctic fox disappeared into the snow.
4. The longest suspension bridge is in Japan.
5. On the other hand, a fennec fox which lives in the desert, has sand colored fur.
6. A suspension bridge must have at least one pier.

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7. Suspension bridges have to withstand a lot of force and pressure.

Exercise 13.

Write a paragraph about suqs in Oman using the notes below. Use the articles a/an and
the as well as the zero article. Use singular and plural nouns and also uncountable nouns

Suqs of Oman

− Suq – a traditional Omani marketplace

Muttrah suq - oldest in Oman (famous for gold ornaments)

− Things sold in suq – variety of items:

ornaments (especially silver),
spices,
household goods
silver khanjar(traditional Omani dagger worn by men)
incense burners - popular with tourists
Nizwa suq - camel market
Fridays – suq more active

− In past - popular for social interaction

now - competition with supermarkets – but still popular - things
cheaper- customer can bargain.

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• Some other determiners (words used before nouns) are: some, a few, a little, a
lot of, many, much, this, that, these, and those.

• Some are used with countable nouns, some with uncountable and some with both.

• Which determiner you use depends on the noun, whether it is singular, plural, countable
or uncountable.  

Exercise 14.

Complete the sentences with the correct determiner from the box above. Include a, an
and the. More than one answer is possible.

1. I would like _________ tea.

2. _________books here cannot be borrowed as they are reference books are for
specialists.

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 3. I have collected ________bottles for recycling.

4. ____________students couldn’t find suitable sources for their report.

5. There is _________ bottle of sulfuric acid on the table.

6. _____________ building over there has been rented by the Toyota Company.

7. ___________ hours of absence in class can bring down your grade.

8. There are still ____________toys that you can distribute to the children.

9. Too _____________ information can be confusing.

10. My purse was stolen but I still had ______________ money to catch the bus home.

Exercise 15.

Write your own sentences using any five of the determiners.

1. ______________________________________________________________________

2. ______________________________________________________________________

3. ______________________________________________________________________

4. ______________________________________________________________________

5. ______________________________________________________________________

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