May 17, 2012

Hi guys! Today we're going to look at some rules with the/a.

I'll give you the rules then soon I'll give you a quiz which you can take.

Let's see how you do.

1. Geographical things

No the with:

countries, except republics, kingdoms and plurals (like the U.S.A)

continents

islands

mountains

lakes

towns, cities, e.t.c.

the with:

oceans

rivers

deserts

mountain ranges

groups of islands

waterfalls

Remember:the north of Brazil but northern brazil

2. Names of places

No the with:

streets, roads, avenues, e.t.c.

squares, parks,

universities, airports, cathedrals, castles, palaces, but The Royal Palace

the with:

hotels, restaurants, pubs,

theatres, cinemas,

museums, art galleries,

many other famous buildings e.g.- The Eiffel Tower

The Taj Mahal

But when the building is named after somebody and has –s or –s’: Lloyds’ banks

Andrew’s restaurant

3. nouns+ numbers don’t need the e.g. page 26

street 34



4. Always the same.

5. Always the internet.

6. On the radio, but on television.   the television = the television set

7. the (or another determiner like my, that, e.t.c.) before superlatives e.g. the biggest

8. the (or another determiner) before ordinal numbers e.g. the first

the twenty-first

9. No a/the before meals except when there is an adjective

e.g.-  I’m having breakfast. I had a fantastic breakfast.

10. Organizations often have the e.g. the BBC, the world bank

But brand names or businesses don’t have the e.g. IBM

Microsoft

Ok, guys. The quiz will follow.

See you soon, and good luck with your English.

Click here to enrol in English courses in London.

Add Pingback

Please add a comment