ARTICLES: THE, A, AN, ZERO ARTICLE.

What Are Articles? from www.grammarly.com

Articles are words that define a noun as specific or unspecific. Consider the following examples: 

After the long day, the cup of tea tasted particularly good.

By using the article the, we’ve shown that it was one specific day that was long and one specific cup of tea that tasted good. 

After a long day, a cup of tea tastes particularly good.

By using the article a, we’ve created a general statement, implying that any cup of tea would taste good after any long day.

English has two types of articles: definite and indefinite. Let’s discuss them now in more detail.

The Definite Article

The definite article is the word the. It limits the meaning of a noun to one particular thing. For example, your friend might ask, “Are you going to the party this weekend?” The definite article tells you that your friend is referring to a specific party that both of you know about. The definite article can be used with singular, plural, or uncountable nouns. Below are some examples of the definite article the used in context: 

Please give me the hammer.

Please give me the red hammer; the blue one is too small.

Please give me the nail.

Please give me the large nail; it’s the only one strong enough to hold this painting.

Please give me the hammer and the nail.

The Indefinite Article

The indefinite article takes two forms. It’s the word a when it precedes a word that begins with a consonant. It’s the word an when it precedes a word that begins with a vowel. The indefinite article indicates that a noun refers to a general idea rather than a particular thing. For example, you might ask your friend, “Should I bring a gift to the party?” Your friend will understand that you are not asking about a specific type of gift or a specific item. “I am going to bring an apple pie,” your friend tells you. Again, the indefinite article indicates that she is not talking about a specific apple pie. Your friend probably doesn’t even have any pie yet. The indefinite article only appears with singular nouns. Consider the following examples of indefinite articles used in context: 

Please hand me a book; any book will do.

Please hand me an autobiography; any autobiography will do.

Exceptions: Choosing A or An

There are a few exceptions to the general rule of using a before words that start with consonants and an before words that begin with vowels. The first letter of the word honor, for example, is a consonant, but it’s unpronounced. In spite of its spelling, the word honor begins with a vowel sound. Therefore, we use an. Consider the example sentence below for an illustration of this concept.

incorrect: My mother is a honest woman.

correct: My mother is an honest woman.

Similarly, when the first letter of a word is a vowel but is pronounced with a consonant sound, use a, as in the sample sentence below:

incorrect: She is an United States senator.

correct: She is a United States senator.

This holds true with acronyms and initialisms, too: an LCD display, a UK-based company, an HR department, a URL.

Article Before an Adjective

Sometimes an article modifies a noun that is also modified by an adjective. The usual word order is article + adjective + noun. If the article is indefinite, choose a or an based on the word that immediately follows it. Consider the following examples for reference:

Eliza will bring a small gift to Sophie’s party.

I heard an interesting story yesterday.

Indefinite Articles with Uncountable Nouns

Uncountable nouns are nouns that are either difficult or impossible to count. Uncountable nouns include intangible things (e.g., information, air), liquids (e.g., milk, wine), and things that are too large or numerous to count (e.g., equipment, sand, wood). Because these things can’t be counted, you should never use a or an with them—remember, the indefinite article is only for singular nouns. Uncountable nouns can be modified by words like some, however. Consider the examples below for reference: 

incorrect: Please give me a water.

Water is an uncountable noun and should not be used with the indefinite article.

correct: Please give me some water.

However, if you describe the water in terms of countable units (like bottles), you can use the indefinite article.

correct: Please give me a bottle of water.

incorrect: Please give me an ice.

correct: Please give me an ice cube.

correct: Please give me some ice.

Note that depending on the context, some nouns can be countable or uncountable (e.g., hair, noise, time): 

We need a light in this room.

We need some light in this room.

Using Articles with Pronouns

Possessive pronouns can help identify whether you’re talking about specific or nonspecific items. As we’ve seen, articles also indicate specificity. But if you use both a possessive pronoun and an article at the same time, readers will become confused. Possessive pronouns are words like his, my, our, its, her, and their. Articles should not be used with pronouns. Consider the examples below. 

incorrect: Why are you reading the my book?

The and my should not be used together since they are both meant to modify the same noun. Instead, you should use one or the other, depending on the intended meaning:

correct: Why are you reading the book?

correct: Why are you reading my book?

Omission of Articles

Occasionally, articles are omitted altogether before certain nouns. In these cases, the article is implied but not actually present. This implied article is sometimes called a “zero article.” Often, the article is omitted before nouns that refer to abstract ideas. Look at the following examples: 

incorrect: Let’s go out for a dinner tonight.

correct: Let’s go out for dinner tonight.

incorrect: The creativity is a valuable quality in children.

correct: Creativity is a valuable quality in children.

Many languages and nationalities are not preceded by an article. Consider the example below: 

incorrecet: I studied the French in high school for four years.

correct: I studied French in high school for four years.

Sports and academic subjects do not require articles. See the sentences below for reference: 

incorrect:I like to play the baseball.

correct: I like to play baseball.

incorrect: My sister was always good at the math.

correct: My sister was always good at math.

EXERCISE ONE

EXERCISE TWO

CAN, COULD, BE ABLE TO

Can

Is used to talk about possibility. e.g. ‘Can you meet me at 5?’
Is used to talk about ability. e.g. ‘I can ride a bike’.
Is used to make informal requests and orders. e.g. ‘Can you bring me my jumper?’
Has two negative forms,. can’t and cannot.

Could

Is used to talk about past abilities. e.g. ‘When I was a child I could do handstands’.
Is used to make formal requests. e.g. ‘Could you fax me that document by Tuesday?’
In the negative form, is couldn’t.

Be able to

Is sometimes used instead of can or could.
Can be used with all tenses. e.g. ‘I will be able to see you next week’.
Is used to talk about ability. e.g. ‘Are you able to write formal letters?’

 In the present:
“Can” and “able to” are the same in the present tense:

Yes, I can take on this project.
Yes, I‘m able to take on this project.

The negative forms are can’t and am not / is not / are not able to.

In the past:

We use “could/couldn’t” or “was/wasn’t able to.”
In general, both are used in the negative form:

I wasn’t able to finish all my homework yesterday.
I couldn’t finish all my homework yesterday.

But in the positive form, “was able to” is more common than “could”:

I was able to leave work a little early yesterday.

Don’t say didn’t can in the past – it doesn’t exist, and it’s a common error in English!

In the future:

In the future, there is only one form: “will be able to”:

I have some free time tomorrow, so I‘ll be able to work on this project.
Sorry, I won’t be able to go to the party on Thursday. I have school the next day.

Don’t say “will can” or “won’t can” – it’s another common error in English!

When asking someone to do something:

When you are asking someone to do something, use “could” (more formal) or “can” (more informal):

Could you bring me a glass of water, please?
Can you bring me a glass of water, please?

When asking about someone’s abilities:

In this case, you can use either CAN or ABLE TO:

Can you run a mile in less than 10 minutes?
Are you able to run a mile in less than 10 minutes?

Can is probably more common in spoken English, simply because it’s shorter.


EXERCISE 1
EXERCISE 2
EXERCISE 3

QUESTION FORMATION (I)

Simple Present Questions:

QUESTION WORD	AUXILIARY VERB	SUBJECT	MAIN VERB
Where	do	you	work?
What	does	Martha	think	about the project?
How	do	you	like	your new apartment?
How many kids	does	Bob	have?

Simple Past Questions:

QUESTION WORD	AUXILIARY VERB	SUBJECT	MAIN VERB
How	did	they	learn	English so fast?
When	did	you	get home	from work yesterday?
What	did	the manager	think	about your idea?
Where	did	you	buy	that T-shirt?

Present Continuous Questions:

QUESTION WORD	AUXILIARY VERB	SUBJECT	MAIN VERB
What	are	you	doing	at the moment?
Why	is	he	ignoring	me?
What time	are	we	meeting up	for dinner?
Who	is	she	dating	now?

Past Continuous Questions:

QUESTION WORD	AUXILIARY VERB	SUBJECT	MAIN VERB
Who	were	you	talking	to on the phone?
What	was	Jim	doing	when you called?
Why	were	the children	eating	candy before dinner?
How	was	he	feeling	after the surgery?

Present Perfect Questions:

QUESTION WORD	AUXILIARY VERB	SUBJECT	MAIN VERB
How much money	have	you	spent	on clothes this month?
How long	has	your teacher	worked	at this school?
What	have	they	been doing	all day?
How long	has	the client	been waiting	for their order?

Future Questions:

QUESTION WORD	AUXILIARY VERB	SUBJECT	MAIN VERB
Who	will	you	invite	to the party?
What	will	your parents	think	about your plan?
When	are	you	going	to clean your room?
Why	is	she	going	to quit her job?

Modal Questions:

QUESTION WORD	AUXILIARY VERB	SUBJECT	MAIN VERB
What	would	you	do	if you had a million dollars?
How	could	we	improve	our English?
Where	should	I	go	on my next vacation?

EXERCISE ONE
EXERCISE TWO
EXERCISE THREE

Exceptions:

Yes/No questions do not use a question word…
…but they still follow ASM (Auxiliary verb – Subject – Main verb)

• Do you like bananas?
• Did you enjoy the movie?
• Are you studying English?
• Were you sleeping when I called you last night?
• Have you finished your homework?
• Will you call me when you get home?
• Are you going to accept the job offer?
• Should we take the early morning flight?

Questions where the main verb is “be” also don’t follow the pattern:

• Are you thirsty?
• Is she a teacher?
• Were your parents angry when you failed the test?
• Was her ex-boyfriend a basketball player?

PERSONALITY & STRONG ADJECTIVES.

EXERCISE ONE
EXERCISE TWO

PREPOSITIONS. AT, ON, IN.

Prepositions: In, On, and At (with specific times and places):

The prepositions in, on, and at can be used to indicate time and place. Notice how they are used in the following situations: Preposition Time Place In Year, Month, In 1999, In December Country, State, City In Japan, In Utah, InTaipei On Day, Date On Saturday, On May 1 Street On Main Street, On 1st Ave. At Time At 8:00, At 7:30 Address At 815 East Main Street In many languages, there is only one preposition for the above situations. In English there are three. Just remember that in usually indicates the "largest" time or place, and at usually indicates the "smallest" time or place. Examples: A: Where's your office? B: In Taipei, Taiwan. A: Really? What part of Taipei? B: It's on Chung Shan North Road. A: I know that area. Where exactly is it? B: It's at 105 Chung Shan North Road, next to the bookstore. C: When is the wedding? D: It's in June. C: What day? D: It's on Saturday, the 25th. C: What time? D: It starts at 6:00.

Prepositions with articles and locations

When talking about locations, use at to indicate the general vicinity or area, and in to indicate inside the building, enclosed area, etc. For example: 

at the swimming pool (on site)		in the swimming pool (in the pool itself i.e. in the water)
at the post office/bank (general)		in the post office/bank (inside the building)
at the zoo (visitors, general area)		in the zoo (animals in their cages)
at school		in the classroom

Sample sentences:

I met my wife at the theater. (while watching a movie)
I spilled my drink in the theater (on the floor of the building)
She works at the library on Wednesdays.
She found a rare coin in the library (building).
Dr. Jones works at the hospital every day.
John was in the hospital for a week with a broken leg.
For school, prison, and church, the is used to indicate the building. No article indicates the general situation. Note the following: 

"practice"/situation		building
in school (studying, listening to teacher, etc.)		in the school (building)
in jail/prison (staying there as a criminal)		in the jail/prison (temporary)
in church (praying, listening to a sermon, etc.)		in the church (building)

Where's Dad?

in church (attending services)		in the church (fixing the windows)
at church		at the church
in prison (He committed a crime.) EXERCISE ONE EXERCISE TWO EXERCISE THREE		at the prison (visiting his friend)

VERB TENSES REVIEW.

SENTENCES CHANGE THEIR MEANING WITH A DIFFERENT VERBAL TENSE.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE TABLE OF ENGLISH TENSES.

One sentence is put into different tenses. You can see how the meaning changes.

The words in green are signal words. They tell you which tense you have to use.

Tense	Example	Explanation
Simple Present	I play football every week.	Here you want to say that it happens regularly.
Present Progressive	I'm playing football now.	Here you want to say that it is happening at the moment.
Simple Past	I played football yesterday.	You did it yesterday, it happened in the past.
Past Progressive	I was playing football the whole evening.	You were doing it in the past. It's not sure whether the action was finished or not.
Present Perfect	I have just played football.	You have just finished it. So it has a connection to the present. Maybe your clothes are dirty.
Present Perfect Progressive	I have been playing football for 2 hours.	You want to say how long you have been doing it. (You started in the past and it continues up to the present.
Past Perfect	I had played football before Susan came.	The two actions are related to each other: you had finished to play football and after that the girl arrived.
Past Perfect Progressive	I had been playing football for two hours when Susan came.	Here you want to point out how long you had been doing it before the girl came.
will-future	I will/shall play football next week.	This is a prediction, you can probably do something else.
going to-future	I'm going to play football this afternoon.	This is a plan you've made.
Future Progressive	I will/shall be playing football next Sunday.	You do it every Sunday (as usual)
Future Perfect	I will/shall have played football by tomorrow.	You will have done it before tomorrow.
Conditional Simple	I would play football.	You'll probably do it.
Conditional Progressive	I would be playing football.	You'll probably do it. Here you concentrate more on the progress of the action.
Conditional Perfect	I would have played football.	You'll probably have finished playing football at a special time in the future. Here you concentrate on the fact (football).
Conditional Perfect Progressive	I would have been playing football.	You'll probably have finished playing football at a special time in the future. Here you concentrate on the progress of playing (football).

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