1 – Do NOT Use A/An With Plural Or Uncountable Nouns
🔹a fact = ✅
(singular)
🔹a facts = ❌
(plural)
🔹an information = ❌
(uncountable)
🔹an advice = ❌
(uncountable)
🔹a piece of advice = ✅
(“piece” is countable)
🔹a pants / a glasses / a scissors = ❌
(plural)
🔹a pair of pants/glasses/scissors = ✅
(“pair” is countable)
🔹a rice = ❌
(uncountable)
🔹a grain of rice = ✅
(“grain” is countable)
🔹a work = ❌
(uncountable)
🔹a job / a task / a project = ✅
(countable)
2 – A/An Follows The SOUND, Not The LETTER
🔹a university
(pronounced like ▶️you – ni – ver – si – ty)
🔹an umbrella
(pronounced like ▶️um – brel – la)
🔹a hat
(h is not silent)
🔹an hour
(h is silent)
🔹an X-ray
(pronounced like ex – ray)
🔹an NGO
(pronounced like en – gee – oh)
🔹a non-governmental organization
(when we say the full words, they start with the N sound)
3 – Do NOT Use A/An Without A Noun Following It
🔹I am a Japanese. = INCORRECT
(“Japanese” is an adjective, not a noun)
🔹I am Japanese. = OK
🔹He is an intelligent. = INCORRECT
(“intelligent” is an adjective, not a noun)
🔹He is intelligent. = OK
🔹He is an intelligent man. = OK
(now it’s OK because we have the noun “man” after “an intelligent”)
4 – THE Can Be Used For Singular/Plural, And For Countable/Uncountable Nouns, When Talking About Something Specific (Not General)
🔹I love pasta.
(general)
🔹I love the pasta at that restaurant.
(specific)
🔹That store sells furniture.
(general)
🔹The furniture in my living room is all new.
(specific)
🔹Vegetables are good for you.
(general)
🔹The vegetables at the market are always fresh.
(specific)
🔹I need advice.
(general)
🔹The advice you gave me was very helpful.
(specific)
5 – Do NOT Use THE For Proper Nouns:NAMES OF CONTINENTS/COUNTRIES*/STATES/CITIES/STREETS:
🔹We’re traveling around Asia for three months.
🔹I’d like to visit Russia.
🔹Paris is my favorite city in Europe.
🔹Have you ever been to California?
🔹They live on Rosewood Avenue.
Exceptions: 👉the United States (the U.S.), the United Kingdom (the U.K.), the Philippines, the Czech Republic, the Central African Republic, the Marshall Islands
COMPANIES & UNIVERSITIES
🔹My uncle works at Samsung.
🔹Microsoft reported high profits this quarter.
🔹She graduated from Harvard.
🔹New York University is very large.
Exceptions: 👉If the university’s name BEGINS with “university,” then use “the”:
the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Miami
LANGUAGES & HOLIDAYS
🔹I’m studying Spanish.
🔹He speaks Italian.
🔹My whole family gets together at Diwali.
🔹The office will be closed on New Year’s Day.
With Other Places, THE Is Sometimes Used:
DO NOT USE THE WITH INDIVIDUAL LAKES OR MOUNTAINS:
🔹Mount Everest is the highest mountain the world.
🔹We went sailing on Lake Ontario.
USE THE WITH OCEANS, RIVERS, VALLEYS, DESERTS, MOUNTAIN RANGES, POINTS ON GLOBE:
the Pacific Ocean
the Amazon River
the San Fernando Valley
the Sahara Desert
the Swiss Alps, the Rocky Mountains
the North/South Pole, the Equator
DO NOT USE THE WITH THE FOLLOWING PLACES:
🔹I’m going home.
🔹She’s at work.
🔹He’s in jail.
🔹We attend church.
🔹My kids went to bed.
🔹My brother’s in high school.
🔹My sister’s in college.
USE THE WITH THE FOLLOWING PLACES:
🔹I went to the bank.
🔹Let’s go to the movies.
🔹He gets home from the office around 7.
🔹My grandfather’s in the hospital.
🔹I’ll stop by the post office after lunch.
🔹I caught a taxi to the airport.
🔹I’ll pick you up at the train station.
🔹We’re waiting at the bus stop.
🔹We took my son to the doctor.
🔹I’m going to the dentist this afternoon.
(in this case, “the doctor” and “the dentist” are short for “the doctor’s office” and “the dentist’s office”)