IDIOMA I (INGLS)

UNIT 1. THE DEFINITIVE ARTICLE. THEORY AND EXERCISES.

Definite article: the

The definite article is invariable. That is, it does not change according to the gender or
the number of the noun it refers to, e.g., the boy, the woman, the children.

The definite article is used:

- to refer to something which has already been mentioned.

An elephant and a mouse fell in love.
The mouse loved the elephant's long trunk, and the elephant loved the
mouse's tiny nose.
Envisat is a fully-equipped observation satellite. The satellite was launched in 2002.

- when both the speaker and listener know what is being talked about, even if it has not
been mentioned before.
Where's the bathroom? It's on the first floor.
The house plant died.
The goldfish lost its colour.
The telephone bill came today.

- in sentences or clauses where we define or identify a particular person or object:

The man who wrote this book is famous.
Which car did you scratch? The red one.
My house is the one with a blue door.

- to refer to objects or people we regard as unique: the sun, the moon, the world,
the sky, the equator, the earth, the Prime Minister, etc.

- before superlatives and ordinal numbers: the highest building, the first page, the
last chapter.

- with adjectives to talk about groups of people: the Japanese, the old or the
elderly, the young, the rich, the poor, the homeless, the blind, the deaf, the

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 1

 unemployed, the disabled. We can also use the + nationality adjectives: the
French, the Spanish, the Chinese.

- with names of geographical areas, oceans, seas, rivers or canals, deserts, mountain
group, island group or lakes: the Caribbean, the Sahara, the Atlantic, the Suez
Canal, the Thames, The Nile, the Seychelles, the Maldives, the Alps, the Himalayas,
the Black Sea, the Mediterranean, the Pacific, etc.

- with the name of most hotels, restaurants, pubs, cinemas, theatres, museums or art
galleries: the Hilton, the British Museum, the Playhouse .

- with phrases with of or with famous/historical buildings: the Great Wall of China,
the Tower of London, the Bank of England, the University of Cambridge, the
White House, the Eiffel Tower, the House of Parliament, the cathedral of Salamanca.
Exception: we say: Buckingham Palace, Big Ben or Cambridge University.

- with names of newspapers and many organizations: The Daily Mirror, The Times,
The Sun, the European Union, the Red Cross, the BBC (British Broadcasting
Corporation), etc.
Note: The names of magazines do not always have the: New Scientist, Hello, etc.

- with decades, or groups of years:

She grew up in the seventies.

- with musical instrument: play the piano, play the guitar.

- in some fixed expressions: at the beginning, at the end, the right, the left, at the
top, at the bottom, in the middle, in the evening, in the morning, in the
afternoon, in the evening, tell the time, the same, the north/the south/the
east/the west (+ of) but we say northern Brazil, south-eastern Spain.
Note: we say: at night

Exceptions to use the definite article:

There is no definite article:

- when we talk about things in general.

I like apples.
House plants like shade.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 2

 Goldfish often lose their colour.
Luckily, telephone bills dont come every day.
Mr Smith is reading the book you gave him about gardens.

- with names of countries, continents, states or counties.

Germany is an important economic power.
He's just returned from Zimbabwe.
Exception: We usually use the with countries whose name contains a common noun
like Republic, State Kingdom or Union, or with plural names of countries (the Canary
Islands, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, the United States of America).
I'm visiting the United States next week.

- with the names of languages or academic subjects.

French is spoken in Tahiti.
English uses many words of Latin origin.
Indonesian is a relatively new language.

- with the names of meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner.

Lunch is at midday.
Dinner is in the evening.
Breakfast is the first meal of the day.

- with people's names (if singular).

John's coming to the party.
George King is my uncle.
(But: we're having lunch with the Morgans tomorrow.)

- with titles and names (Mr/Mrs/Captain/Doctor or Dr./President//saint/Princess).

Prince Charles is Queen Elizabeth's son.
President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas.
Dr. Watson was Sherlock Holmes' friend.
(But: the Queen of England, the Pope.)

- after the 's possessive case.

His brother's car.
Peter's house.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 3

- with professions:
Engineering is a useful career.
He'll probably go into medicine.

- with sports or games: football, tennis, etc.

- with names of shops.

I'll get the card at Smith's.
Can you go to Boots for me?

- with years, days of the week, months, names of holidays (Christmas, Easter), special
times of the year (New Years Day, Thanksgiving),
1948 was a wonderful year.
Do you remember 1995?

- a noun + a number:
Our train leaves from platform 5.
(in a shop) Have you got size 38?
Note: in the same way we say: room 126 (in a hotel), page 29 (of a book), question 3
(in a exam), gate 10 (at an airport), etc.

- with plural or uncountable nouns to talk generally about things:

Rice is the main food in Asia.
Milk is often added to tea in England.
War is destructive.
It will deliver information about our changing environment.
It offers everything that scientists could wish for. (scientists in general not a
specific group of scientists)

- with the names of individual mountains, lakes and islands.

Mount McKinley is the highest mountain in Alaska.
She lives near Lake Windermere.
Have you visited Long Island?

- with companies: Microsoft, Sony, etc.

- with most names of cities, towns, streets, roads, squares, parks, stations and airports,
or with name of place + airport/station/university/castle, etc.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 4

 Victoria Station is in the centre of London.
Can you direct me to Bond Street?
She lives in Florence.
They're flying from Heathrow airport.

- in some fixed expressions, for example:

by car
by train
by air
on holiday
on air (in broadcasting)

go home/arrive home/come home/ go to work/be at work/start

be at home/leave home/stay at work/ /finish work
home, but in the house, to the go into town/in town/leave town
house, in the house take to hospital/go to hospital/
go to bed/be in bed, but to sit on be in hospital.
the bed/make the bed watch television
go to sea/be at sea when the leave by car
meaning is go/be on a voyage, but next/last + month, summer,
on the sea, by the sea, at/to the year, Monday, etc.
seaside, on/to the coast/live near run away to sea
the sea or to swim in the sea.

We do not use the when we are thinking of the general idea of a school, university,
college, prison, hospital or church and what they are used for. However, we can use the
when we go these places for other reasons. We talk about them as particular places or
buildings.

go to church/ be at church/in church.

Sallys father goes to church every Sunday. (to a religious service)
Some workmen went to the church to repair the roof. (not for a religious service)
go to school, stay at school /be at school/start school/leave school.
Alison is ten years old. Every day she goes to school.
Alisons mother wants to speaks to her daughters teacher. She has to go to the
school.
go to university/study at university/be at university.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 5

 go to college/study at college/be at college.
When I leave school, I want to go to university/college.
Excuse me where is the university, please? (= the university buildings)
go to hospital/be at hospital.
Joe had an accident last week. He was taken to hospital. He is still in hospital. (as a
patient)
Jane has gone to the hospital to visit Joe. Shes at the hospital now. (as a visitor)
go to prison/send to prison /be in prison.
Kens brother is in prison for robbery. (He is a prisoner)
Ken went to the prison to visit his brother.

Note:
go to the cinema/ the theatre/the bank/the post office.
go to the doctor, the dentist
go to the station, the airport, the city centre.
listen to the radio.

EXERCISES

1. Which of the nouns in these sentences are specific, and need the? Which are
general, and do not take the?

1. Put ______ kettle on.

2. Switch ______ light on.

3. ______ light is needed to read by.

4. Im going to ______ library.

5. Please pass ______ mustard.

6. I like ______ mustard on ______ sausages.

7. ______ doctor gave me this medicine.

8. ______ cat has fleas.

9. ______ cats kill ______ birds.

10. ______ central heating has broken down.

11. In the tropics, you do not need ______ central heating.

12. He was late at ______ office again.

13. The President was in ______ office for four years.

14. ______ weather is depressing.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 6

 15. Some countries have ______ climate; England has ______ weather.

16. ______ marmalade is on ______ table next to _______ cornflakes.

17. ______ marmalade is not put on ______ cornflakes.

18. ______ fridge is empty. Ill have to go to ______ supermarket.

19. I prefer ______ open-air markets to _______ supermarkets.

20. _______ car must go to _______ garage.

2. Complete with the, where needed.

1. ______ little boy fell off ______ bicycle.

2. ______ children like ______ sweets.

3. I have lost ______ book I took out of ______ library.

4. ______ cats love ______ fish.

5. Smoking ______ cigarettes is unhealthy.

6. Mr and Mrs Jones go to ______ church on ______ Sunday.

7. They go to _______ church round ______ corner.

8. ______ students read ______ books.

9. ______ student was reading ______ book you gave him.

10. _______ world is coming to an end on _______ Friday.

11. He goes to _______ work while Mrs Jones stays at _______ home.

12. _______ children go to _______ school.

13. Mr Jones goes to _______ office while Mrs Jones stays at _______ home.

14. They live in _______ house on _______ corner of _______ street.

15. _______ children go to _______ school over there.

16. _______ dogs bark, ________ birds cheep, and ________ cats mew.

17. _______ cat screeched when ________ dog bit it.

18. _______ bird flew away when ________ cat jumped.

19. _______ dog is called Dudu; but not all _______ dogs have _______ names.

20. _______ dogs are not allowed in _______ park.

21. Were you able to get ________ books you needed from ________ library?

22. _______ Prime Minister likes to watch _______ cricket, but the burdens of

_______ office prevent him doing so.

23. Take _______ Piccadilly bus on _______ other side of ________ street.

24. _______ men and women have to face many problems in ________ living with
each other.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 7

 25. What was _______ name of _______ shop that advertised _______ discounts?

26. ______ wind in summer blows from _______ west.

27. Vegetarians suffer from _______ wind.

28. ______ Amazon flows from ______ Andes to ______ Atlantic.

29. ______ Queen will speak on ______ Christmas Day.

30. Mary wants to learn _______ French before she goes to _______ Continent.

3. Complete with the, where needed.

1. In Paris, we stayed at ______ George V Hotel, ate at _______ Maxims, and

visited ______ Louvre.

2. _______ Smiths were supposed to come to _______ lunch we gave at _______

Ritz, but ______ Mrs Smith phoned to say they had to take _______ young one

to _______ hospital.

3. Some buildings are world-famous: _______ Acropolis, _______ Big Ben, White

House _______ Taj Mahal _______ St Peters _______ Pyramids, _______

Lenins Tomb.
4. Experts were appointed to investigate ________ causes of ________ disease,

known as ________ yellow fever, which broke out among ________ American

troops after ________ Spanish-American War.

5. ________ brevity is ________ soul of ________ lingerie.

4. In some of these sentences there is a mistake with articles. Underline each

mistake and write the correction.

1. My father likes the classical music and listens to it all the time.
2. I saw a man sitting in a restaurant. A woman came and joined him, but the man
got up and left without speaking with her.
3. Sun was shining and it was a lovely day.
4. I can play piano.
5. I come from United Arab Emirates.
6. Ive applied to study at the University of Edinburgh.
7. Sorry, Im late. Car wouldnt start this morning.
8. Im going to take a cruise down river Nile.
9. My husband collects the antiques. Hes always going to auctions.
10. I usually go to work by the bus.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 8

5. Complete the sentences with the or nothing (-).

1. I go to __________ school at 8.00. The school is in __________ centre of

__________ town.
2. My dads at __________ work. He teaches __________ children and adults.
3. Im going __________ home now. Im tired. Ill be at __________ home tomorrow.
4. Good night. Im going to __________ bed now Janes in __________ bed already.
5. My brothers studying __________ Maths at __________ Manchester University.
My sisters at __________ University of Bonn.
6. Were staying in __________ Carlton Hotel in __________ Queen Street.
7. We can see __________ River Thames, __________ St Pauls Cathedral, and
__________Buckingham Palace from our room.
8. Were going to eat in __________ Palm Tree Restaurant. We used to go to
__________Guidos Restaurant until it closed down.
9. I want to see __________ London Zoo, __________ Tate Modern, and
__________ St Pancras Station.
10. Last year we had a holiday on __________ Mediterranean. We met people from
__________ United States, __________ Japan, and __________ Middle East.
11. What did you have for __________ lunch?
12. Where shall we have __________ dinner?
13. What time do you want __________ breakfast?
14. I usually go to work by __________ bus, but this morning __________ bus was
late, so I missed my meeting.
15. I go everywhere by __________ train. I never travel by __________ plane.
__________ last plane I took was in 2003.
16. __________ Italian people have great style.
17. __________ Mexicans are proud of their heritage.

6. Complete the conversations. Put in the nouns and decide if you need the.

Tom: Did you see the football (football) on television last night?
Melanie: No, I hate football (football). I was watching the news (news) on the other
channel.
1. Rachel: Did your family have a dog when you were younger?
Vicky: No, thank goodness. I'm afraid of _________________ (dogs). I didn't

like _________________ (dogs) that were running around in the park

yesterday. I was afraid they were going to attack me.
2. Melanie: You shouldn't drive so much, Mark. You know that _________________

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 9

 (cars) cause _________________ (pollution), don't you?

Mark: Yes, but _________________ (cars) these days are cleaner than they

used to be. Isn't it _________________ (aeroplanes) that are mainly

responsible for _________________ (pollution) of the atmosphere?

3. Melanie: I've put some bread out in the garden for _________________ (birds).

Tom: You like _________________ (birds), don't you?

Melanie: Yes, I do. I love _________________ (wildlife), in fact. I'd much rather
live in the country if I could.
4. Laura: You're always reading books about ____________ (history), aren't you?
Harriet: It was always my favourite subject. Do you know anything about
_________________ (history) of this area?
Laura: No, but if you like looking round _________________ (museums)

and _________________ (old buildings), we could find out about it

together.

7. Complete the sentences with the word given (school, university, etc.). Use
the where necessary.

1. (school)
a. Every term parents are invited to the school to meet the teachers.
b. Why arent your children at ________ today? Are they ill?
c. When he was younger, Ted hated ________.
d. What time does ________ usually start in the mornings in your country?
e. A: How do your children get home from ________? By bus?
B: No, they walk. ________ isnt very far.
f. What sort of job does Jenny want to do when she leaves ________?
g. There were some people waiting outside ________ to meet their children.
2. (university)
a. In your country do many people go to ________?
b. If you want to get a degree, you normally have to study at ________.
c. This is only a small town, but ________ is one of the biggest in the country.
3. (hospital)
a. My brother has always been very healthy. Hes never been in ________.
b. When Ann was ill, I went to ________ to visit her. When I was there, I met Lisa
who is a nurse at ________.
c. Peter was injured in an accident and was kept in ________ for a few days.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 10

 4. (church)
a. John mother is a regular churchgoer. She goes to ________ every Sunday.
b. John himself doesnt go to ________.
c. John went to ________ to take some photographs of the building.
5. (prison)
a. In some places people are in ________ because of their political beliefs.
b. A few days ago the fire brigade were called to ________ to put out a fire.
c. The judge decided to fine the man 500 instead of sending him to ________.

6. (home/work/bed)
a. I like to read in ________ before I go to sleep.
b. Its nice to travel around, but theres no place like ________!
c. Shall we meet after ________ tomorrow evening?
d. If Im feeling tired, I go to ________ early.
e. What time do you usually start ________ in the morning?
f. The economic situation was very bad. Many people were out of ________.

8. Choose the correct form, with or without the.

1. Im afraid of dogs/the dogs

2. Can you pass salt/the salt, please?
3. Apples/the apples are good for you.
4. Look at apples/the apples on that tree! Theyre very big.
5. Women/the women live longer than men/the men.
6. I dont drink tea/the tea. I dont like it.
7. We had a very good meal. Vegetables/the vegetables were especially good.
8. Life/the life is strange sometimes. Some very strange things happen.
9. I like skiing/the skiing, but Im not very good at it.
10. Who are people/the people in this photograph?
11. What makes people/the people violent?
12. All books/all the books on the top shelf belong to me.
13. Dont stay in that hotel. Its very noisy and beds/the beds are very uncomfortable.
14. A pacifist is somebody who is against war/the war.
15. First World War/the First World War lasted from 1914 until 1018.
16. Id like to go to Egypt and see Pyramids/the Pyramids.
17. Someone gave me a book about history/the history of modern art/the modern art.
18. Ron and Brenda got married, but marriage/the marriage didnt last very long.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 11

 19. Most people/the most people believe that marriage/the marriage and family
life/the family life are the basis of society/the society.

UNIT 1. DEFINITE AND INDEFINITE ARTICLES: THEORY AND EXERCISES 12