T1-a Select the correct article to use with a count noun.
- Use a or an with nonspecific singular count nouns.
- Use no article with nonspecific plural count nouns.
- Use the with specific singular and plural count nouns.
Note: The article a is used before a consonant and an before a vowel; exceptions include words beginning with a long u, such as unit.
Use a or an before a singular count noun when it refers to one thing among many or something that has not been specifically identified.
Use the before a singular or plural count noun when it refers to one or more specific things.
After you have used a or an with a count noun, subsequent references to the noun become specific and are marked by the.
- When I walked into the office, a woman in her midforties was waiting to be called. As I sat down, I looked at the woman.
Exceptions include a second reference to one among many.
- I was guided to a classroom. It was a bright room, filled with warm rays of Hawaiian sunlight.
In most situations, use the with a count noun modified by a superlative adjective.
| the most frightening moment | the smallest person |
Nouns such as sun generally refer to unique things. Nouns such as house and yard often refer to things that people own. In most situations, both types of nouns can be preceded by the definite article the.
- Don’t look directly at the sun. [Only one sun could be meant.]
- I spent Saturday cleaning the house. [The reader will infer that the writer is referring to his or her own house.]
You can also introduce count nouns referring to specific entities with possessive nouns or pronouns (Maya’s friends) or demonstrative pronouns (these friends). Indefinite count and noncount nouns can also be introduced by words that indicate amount (few friends, some sand).
| COUNT NOUN | She starred in a reality show with her eight children. |
| NONCOUNT NOUN | Her family wanted some happiness. |
Delete any article before a nonspecific plural count noun.
