1. Sri Lanka Institute of
Skills Development
Diploma Course in
Teaching English as a Second Language

2. The Articles
a / an, the

3. There are two articles in English
Definite Indefinite
THE A/AN
Definite : ksYaÑ;
Indefinite :
wúksYaÑ;

4. A & AN are NOT two different
articles but are two FORMS of the
INDEFINITE article
A iy AN hkq tlsfklg fjkia articles
folla fkdj wúksYaÑ;Ndjh y`.jk
indefinite article ys iajrEm folls'

5. “A” is used before consonant sounds.
“AN” is used before vowel sounds.
Consider only the SOUND, not the spellings
Eg:- Umbrella.
“U” is a vowel in English. Here it sounds like “w”
an umbrella
University.
“U” is a vowel. But here it gives “hq” sound.
a university. NOT “an university.”

6. Definite or Indefinite?
We say „a noun is definite‟, when both the speaker and the
hearer are certain about it. That is, when they both know what
is exactly meant by that noun.
uu mqia;ld,hg hkjd
I am going to THE library
Both the speaker and the hearer have a certain idea about
“which library”.

7. Definite or Indefinite?
We say „a noun is indefinite‟, when both the speaker and the
hearer are NOT certain about it. That is, when they both do not
know what is exactly meant by that noun.
uu mqia;ld,hlg hkjd
I am going to A library
Both the speaker and the hearer do not have a common idea
about “which library”. It can mean ANY library.

8. Definite or Indefinite?
When we first introduce someone/something we normally use
the indefinite article (a/an). But, when we proceed, we can use
“THE” to refer to the same person or thing.
uu fï ojiaj, bx.%Sis mka;shlg hkjd'
I go to an English class these days.
^ta& mka;sh f.dvla fyd`ohs'
The class is very good.

9. Whenever you see a noun…
See whether an article has to be used or not;
See whether the noun is definite or indefinite;
If the noun is definite, use "the"; If it is
indefinite, use "a/an".

10. Sunimal and Anil are two students of University of Peradeniya.
Both are following art degrees. One day, Sunimal met Anil.
Anil : Hey Sunimal, where are you going?
Sunimal : Hi Anil, I am going to THE library.
Why did Sunimal use “the” instead of “a library”?
Because
They normally go to the same library, so, they both know
which library it is even when the name of the library is not
mentioned.

11. f.dvla w;ßka ^´kEu& tlla .ek
l;d lrk úg 'a/an' fhfoa
Wod(- uu fmd;la lsfhõjd
^fmd;a f.dvla w;ßka ´kEu
fmd;la hkak ñka woyia fõ&‘
I read a book.

12. TIP
Try to say the noun in Sinhala (Eg:- book - zfmd;Z')
If the Sinhala noun ends with zwZ" zwdZ sound, generally, it
refers to a definite noun. Use "the".
If the last sound of the noun is something like zwlaZ" ztlaZ"
ztllaZ" the noun is indefinite. Use "a/an".
fïih Wv fmd;la ;sfhkjd' (a book) : fmd + ;a + wla =
fmd;la
fodr wßkak (the door): fod + ¾ + w = fodr
ld¾ tl leä,d (the car) ld¾ tlla (a car)

13. Articles are not used when we use a
word which indicates an ownership
(my, his, her, their, our, Nimal's, my
father's etc) and number (two, three etc)
I have two mobile phones
This is my car
That is our main library