'a' and 'an' are indefinite articles used with singular count nouns, with 'a' preceding consonant sounds and 'an' preceding vowel sounds. They are utilized for first-time mentions of persons or things, and after linking verbs for descriptions of jobs or qualities. They cannot be used with uncount nouns or plural count nouns, which can instead use determiners like 'any' or 'some'.

1. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’

2. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Y ou only use ‘a’ or ‘an’ with singular count nouns. ‘ A ’ and ‘an’ are called the indefinite article. I got a postcard from Susan. He was eating an apple .

3. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Y ou use ‘a’ in front of a word that starts with a consonant sound even when the first letter is a vowel. a piece a university a European language

4. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Y ou use ‘an’ in front of a word that begins with a vowel sound even when the first letter is a consonant. an exercise an idea an honest man

5. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Y ou use ‘a’ or ‘an’ when you are talking about a person or a thing for the first time. He picked up a book . After weeks of looking, we eventually bought a house . A colleague and I got some money to do research on rats.

6. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ T he second time you refer to the same person or thing, you use ‘the’. She picked up a book … … The book was lying on the table. After weeks of looking we finally bought a house … … The house was in a small village.

7. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ A fter the verb ‘be’ or another link verb you can use ‘a’ or ‘an’ with an adjective and a noun to give more information about someone or something. His brother was a sensitive child . He seemed a worried man . It was a really beautiful house .

8. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Y ou can also use ‘a’ or ‘an’ with a noun followed by a qualifier, such as a prepositional phrase or a relative clause, when you want to give more information about someone or something. The information was contained in an article on biology . I chose a picture that reminded me of home .

9. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Y ou use ‘a ‘ and ‘an’ after the verb ‘be’ or another link verb when you are saying what someone is or what job they have. He became a school teacher . She is a model and an artist .

10. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Y ou use ‘a ‘ and ‘an’ to mean ‘one’ with some numbers. Y ou can use ‘a’ or ‘an’ with nouns that refer to whole numbers, fractions, money, weights or measures. a hundred a quarter a pound a kilo a thousand a half a dollar a liter

11. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Y ou do not use ‘a ‘ and ‘an’ with uncount nouns or plural count nouns. Y ou do not need to use a determiner at all with plural count nouns. Y ou can use the determiners ‘any’, ‘a few’, ‘many’, ‘several’, or ‘some’. I love dogs . Do you have any dogs ?

12. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Note: If you do not use a determiner with a plural count noun, you are often making a general statement about people or things of that type. I love dogs. (You love all dogs.) There are eggs in the kitchen. (There are some eggs.)

13. ‘ A ’ and ‘ A n’ Note: I f you do use a determiner, you mean a number of people or things but not all of them, without saying exactly how many. I have some friends coming for dinner. He has bought some plants for the house. I have some important things to tell them.

14. Q uestions? For more slide presentations visit: