ARTICLES

A. THEORY

1 Định nghĩa:

Mạo từ là từ dùng trước danh từ và cho biết danh từ ấy đề cập đến một đối tượng xác định hay không

xác định.

Chúng ta dùng “the” khi danh từ chỉ đối tượng được cả người nói lẫn người nghe biết rõ đối tượng nào đó.

Ngược lại, khi dùng mạo từ bất định a, an; người nói đề cập đến một đối tượng chung hoặc chưa xác định

được:

Mạo từ trong tiếng Anh chỉ gồm ba từ và được phân chia như sau:

-Mạo từ xác định (Denfinite article): the

-Maọ từ bất định (Indefinite article): a, an

-Maọ từ Zero (Zero article): thường áp dụng cho danh từ không đếm được (uncountable nouns) và danh từ

đếm được ở dạng số nhiều: coffee, tea; people, clothes

Mạo từ không phải là một loại từ riêng biệt, chúng ta có thể xem nó như một bộ phận của tính từ dùng để bổ

nghĩa – chỉ đơn vị (cái, con chiếc).

2. Mạo từ bất định (Indefinite articles)

- a, an - Dùng trước danh từ đếm được (số ít) – khi danh từ đó chưa được xác định (bất định). “an” dung

cho danh từ bắt đầu bằng nguyên âm (nhưng phụ thuộc vào cách phát âm).

Ví dụ: a book, a table

an apple, an orange

- Đặc biệt một số từ “h” được đọc như nguyên âm.

Ví dụ: an hour, an honest man

3. Mạo từ xác định (Definite article)

3.1 Cách đọc: ”the” được đọc là [di] khi đứng trước danh từ bắt đầu bằng nguyên âm (a, e, i, o, u) và đọc là

(dơ) khi đứng trước danh từ bắt đầu bằng phụ âm (trừ các nguyên âm):

The egg the chair

The umbrellae the book

The được đọc là [dơ] khi đứng trước danh từ có cách viết bắt đầu bằng nguyên âm nhưng có cách đọc bằng

một phụ âm + nguyên âm: /ju:/ và /w^n/ như:

The United Stated

The Europeans

The one-eyed man is the King of the blind.

The university

The được đọc là [di] khi đứng trước danh từ có âm h câm:

The [di] hour (giờ)

The [di] honestman

The được đọc là [di: ] khi người nói muốn nhấn mạnh hoặc khi ngập ngừng trước các danh từ bắt đầu ngay

cả bằng phụ âm:

Ví dụ: I have forgotten the [di:], er, er the [di:], er, check.

(tôi đã bỏ quên cái, à, à…, cái ngân phiếu rồi)

3.2 Một số nguyên tắc chung:

a/ The được dùng trước danh từ chỉ người , vật đã được xác định :

Mạo từ xác định “the” được dùng trước danh từ để diễn tả một ( hoặc nhiều) người , vật, sự vật nào đó đã

được xác định rồi, nghĩa là cả người nói và người nghe đều biết đối tượng được đề cập tới. Khi nói ‘ Mother

is in the garden’ (Mẹ đang ở trong vườn), cả người nói lẫn người nghe đều biết khu vườn đang được đề cập

tới là vườn nào, ở đâu. Chúng ta xem những ví dụ khác:

The Vietnamese often drink tea.

( Người Việt Nam thường uống trà nói chung)

We like the teas of Thai Nguyen.

( Chúng tôi thích các loại trà của Thái Nguyên)

(dùng the vì đang nói đến trà của Thái Nguyên)

I often have dinner early.

(bưã tối nói chung)

The dinner We had at that retaurant was awful.

(Bữa ăn tối chúng tôi đã ăn ở nhà hàng đó thật

tồi tệ)

Butter is made from cream.

(Bơ được làm từ kem) – bơ nói chung

He likes the butter of France .

( Anh ta thích bơ của Pháp) - butter được xác

định bởi từ France (nước Pháp)

Pass me a pencil, please.

(Làm ơn chuyển cho tôi 1 cây bút chì) – cây nào

cũng được.

b/ The dùng trước danh từ chỉ nghĩa chỉ chủng loại: The có thể dùng theo nghĩa biểu chủng (generic

meaning), nghĩa là dùng để chỉ một loài:

I hate the television.

( Tôi ghét chiếc tivi)

The whale is a mammal, not a fish.

(cá voi là động vật có vú, không phải là cá nói chung)

Ở đây, the television, the whale không chỉ một cái điện thoại hoặc một con cá voi cụ thể nào mà chỉ chung

cho tất cả máy điện thoại , tất cả cá voi trên trái đát này.

3.3 Những trường hợp đặc biệt:

a/ Các từ ngữ thông dụng sau đây không dùng the :

Go to church: đi lễ ở Nhà thờ

go to the church: đến nhà thờ (ví dụ: để gặp Linh mục)

Go to market: đi chợ

go to the market: đi đến chợ (ví dụ: để khảo sát giá cả thị trường)

Go to school : đi học

go to the school : đến trường (ví dụ: để gặp Ngài hiệu trưởng)

Go to bed : đi ngủ

go the bed : bước đến giường (ví dụ: để lấy quyển sách)

Go to prison : ở tù

go to the prison : đến nhà tù (ví dụ: để thăm tội phạm)

ví dụ:

We go to church on Sundays

(chúng tôi đi xem lễ vào chủ nhật)

We go to the church to see her

(chúng tôi đến nhà thờ để gặp cô ta)

We often go to school early.

(chúng tôi thường đi học sớm)

My father often goes to the school to speak to our

teachers.

(Bố tôi thường đến trường để nói chuyện với các

thầy cô giáo của chúng tôi)

Jack went to bed early.

(Jack đã đi ngủ sớm)

Jack went to the bed to get the book.

(Jack đi đến giường lấy cuốn sách)

Trong khi, các từ dưới đây luôn đi với ”the” :

cathedral (Nhà thờ lớn), office (văn phòng), cinema (rạp chiếu bóng), theatre ( rạp hát

Chú ý: Tên của lục địa, quốc gia, tiểu bang, tỉnh , thành phố, đường phố, mũi đất, hòn đảo, bán đảo ,

quần đảo , vịnh , hồ, ngọn núi không dùng mạo từ “the”

b/ Các trường hợp dùng mạo từ the

1/ use of the definite article: The + noun( noun is defined)

Ví dụ:

I want a boy and a cook the boy must be able to speak

A dog and a cat were traveling together, the cat looked black while the dog

2/ A unique thing exists (Một người, vật duy nhất tồn tại)

Ví dụ:

The earth goes around the sun.

The sun rises in the East.

3/ Khi một vật dùng tượng trưng cho cả loài

Ví dụ:

The horse is a noble animal

The dog is a faithful animal

4/ So sánh cực cấp

Ví dụ:

She is the most beautiful girl in this class

Paris is the biggest city in France

5/ Trước 1 tính từ được dung làm danh từ để chỉ 1 lớp người và thường có nghĩa số nhiều

Ví dụ:

The one-eyed man is the King of the blind.

The poor depend upon the rich.

6/ Dùng trong thành ngữ: BY THE (theo từng)

Ví dụ:

Beer is sold by the bottle.

Eggs are sold by the dozen.

7/ Trước danh từ riêng (proper noun) số nhiều để chỉ vợ chồng hay cả họ ( cả gia đình)

Ví dụ:

The Smiths always go fishing in the country on Sundays.

Do you know the Browns?

8/ Trước tên: rặng núi, song, quần đảo, vịnh, biển, đại dương , tên sách và báo chí, và tên các chiếc

tàu.

Ví dụ:

The Thai Binh river; the Philippines , the Times …

9/ Trước danh từ về dân tộc tôn phái để chỉ toàn thể

Ví dụ:

The Chinese, the Americans and the French were at war with the Germans

The Catholics and the protestants believe in Christ

The Swiss; Dutch; the Abrabs

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10/ Both, all, both, half, double + The + Noun

Notes:

All men must die (everyone)

All the men in this town are very lazy

11/ Use “the” for Musical Instruments

The guitar (I could play the guitar when I was 6.),

The piano, The violin

12/ Khi sau danh từ đó có of

The history of England is interesting.

trong khi các môn học không có “the”

I learn English; He learns history at school.

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B. EXERCISES

BEGINNER

I. Fill in a or an

1._____ English book

2.___________ apple

3.___________ baby

4.___________ ball

5.____________book

6.____________door

7.___________ egg

8.____________orange

9. _____ dog

10. ____blue notebook

11. ____ red pencil

12. ____ window

13. _____ ruler

14. _____ animal

16. _____ flower

17._______ igloo

10. _________ tomato

18._______ octopus

19. _________ eye

20._______ pencil

21. _________ ear

22._______ potato

23. _________ big nose

24._______ present

25. _________ alligator

26._______ ice cream

27. _________ old car

28.________umbrella

29. _________ iguana

30.________ fish

31. _________ box

32._______ apple tree

33. _________ parrot

II. Fill “a” or “an” in the following sentence

1. Nick has ______ big nose.

2. Can I have _____ cup of tea?

3. My new T-shirt has _____ yellow print.

4. ______cat has whiskers.

5. Andy and Tony have ____ day off.

6. Neil has ______ dog.

7. I need _____ new towel.

8. Let’s read ______ story.

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9. Let’s read _____ English story.

10. Have you got ______ exercise book?

11. My father is _____ doctor.

12. Is your father _____ doctor, too?

13. I don’t want _____ cake.

14. I have never been in _____ airplane.

15. I have got _____ big shirt.

16. She is ______ Swedish girl.

17. What ______ nice day!

18. There is _______ long queue.

19. Give me ______ piece of the cake.

20. It is ______ long time now.

21. Do you want _____ blue one or ______ grey one?

22. He is ______ good player.

23. I know ______ funny game.

24. I am tired after ______ holiday.

25. Bill is _____ good friend.

26. Are you ______ good friend?

27. _____ banana is yellow.

28. England has ______ queen.

29. I got ______ umbrella for my birthday.

30. Today is ______ hot day.

31. Doug has ______ white jersey.

32. They have ordered _____ hot dish.

33. _____ apple _____ day keeps the doctor away.

34. I am _____ proud pupil.

35. My dog is ______ German shepard.

36. Hawaii is ______ island.

37. It is Christmas once ______ year.

38. The Nile is ______ river.

39. France is ______ country.

40. The family got _____ hamburger for everybody.

41. He is ______ boy.

42. She is ______ Australian girl.

43. Mr Hanson loves _____ egg for breakfast.

44. Do you need _____ English dictionary?

45. Have you got _____ hairbrush?

46. I would like ______ fast car.

47. Give me ______hour.

48. It is ______ easy book.

49. There are _____ man and _____ woman in the car.

50. Let me show you _____ new photo.

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ELEMENTARY

I. In the following phrases, supply either a or an

1. ____ bingo game

2. ____ idiot

3. ____ good job

4. ____ rotten plum

5. ____ used fork

6. ____ uncle

7. ____ historian

8. ____ apple

9. ____ hair

10. ____ artichoke

11. ___ horrible movie

12. ____ opera

13. ____ fine opera

14. ____ television

15. ____ earthquake

16. ____ icicle

17. ____ plant

18. ____ eggplant

19. ____ honorable man

20. ____ intelligent boy

21. ____ table

22. ____ up stairway

23. ____ paper clip

24. ____ animal

25. ____ usual feeling

26. ____ interest

27. ____ alibi

28. ____ early bird

29. ____ couch

30. ____ airplane

31. ___ grade

32. ____ pair

33. ____ idea

34. ____ energy level

II. Choose the most appropriate one to fill in the blanks with appropriate articles.

1. Gold is ____________________ precious metal.

a) a

b) an

c) the

2. Honest men speak ______________________truth.

a) a

b) an

c) the

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3. He looks as stupid as ____________________ owl.

a) a

b) an

c) the

4. I would like to meet Brad Pit____________________ actor.

a) a

b) an

c) the

5. What did you do with ____________________ camera I lent you.

a) a

b) an

c) the

6. He is going out with ______________ German girl.

a) a

b) an

c) the

7. He remained ________________ bachelor all his life.

a) a

b) an

c) the

8. ‘What is that noise?’ ‘I think it is ____________________ helicopter.’

a) a

b) an

c) the

9. I waited for ____________________ hour and then I went home.

a) a

b) an

c) the

10. She showed me ____________________ one-pound coin.

a) a

b) an

c) the

III. Complete the following exercise with a / an or the articles.

1. We have ________ beautiful garden. _____E______ garden is full of roses.

2. Is fencing __________ popular sport in ________ world? No, it isn’t.

3. I'd like ________ glass of orange juice please.

4. Can you give me ___________ envelope, please?

5. Certainly. Oh! Where’s ____________ envelope?

6. Is there ___________ post office near here?

7. They’re at __________ cinema.

8. My brother is in _____________ classroom.

9. Would you like_____________ hamburger?

10. Selena has got ___________ cat.

11. What is ____________ cat’s name?

12._________ school is very cold. Hasn’t it got ___________ central heating system?

13. It has, but ___________ central heating is broken down.

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PRE - INTERMEDIATE

I. Correct the following sentences:

1. The New York is a big city.

____________________________________________________

2. A cow is the useful animal.

____________________________________________________

3. An honesty is a best policy.

____________________________________________________

4. The France is a great country.

____________________________________________________

5. Sun rises in east.

____________________________________________________

6. I saw him when he was child.

____________________________________________________

7. Who has not seen tiger?

____________________________________________________

8. The milk is very nutritious

____________________________________________________

.

9. The man is after all animal.

____________________________________________________

10. How beautiful stars are!

____________________________________________________

11. The God has created universe

____________________________________________________

12. The gold is precious metal.

____________________________________________________

13. Kalidasa is Shakespeare of India.

____________________________________________________

14. This is best book I have ever read.

____________________________________________________

15. Cat killed rat.

____________________________________________________

16. Cat is on roof.

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____________________________________________________

17. Mahatma Gandhi was great leader of India.

____________________________________________________

18. The stone hit me on head.

____________________________________________________

19. John is smallest boy in the class but Peter is biggest.

____________________________________________________

20. I would like to buy pair of stockings and couple of shirts.

____________________________________________________

21. Many flower is born to blush unseen.

____________________________________________________

22. He is Newton of his age.

____________________________________________________

23. I admire wisdom of Solomon.

____________________________________________________

24. Whole class will participate in program.

____________________________________________________

25. Himalayas protect plains of India from the cold winds of north.

____________________________________________________

II. Write a, an, the or Ø in the blanks

1. ____ chair you are sitting on is not very comfortable.

2. There is ____ pencil on the desk.

3. ____ fish is very high in protein.

4. ____ dogs and ____ cats are popular pets.

5. ____ medicine that you gave me really helped my cough.

6. ____ igloo is ____ house made of ____ ice.

7. He wants to buy ____ warm winter coat.

8. ____ children next door got dressed up last night.

9. ____ coffee isn’t very good for you.

10. She had ____ accident.

III. Insert “a” or “an” if necessary

1. My neighbor is ____ photographer; let's ask him for ____ advice about colour films.

2. We had ____ fish and ____ chips for ____ lunch. ~

That doesn't sound ____ very interesting lunch.

3. I had ____ very bad night; I didn't sleep ____ wink.

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4. He is ____ vegetarian; you won't get ____ meat at his house. He'll give you ____ nut cutlet. ~Last

time I

had ____ nut cutlet I had ____ indigestion.

5. ____ travel agent would give you ____ information about ____ hotels.

6. We'd better go by ____ taxi - if we can get ____ taxi at such ____ hour as 2 a.m.

7____. person who suffers from ____ claustrophobia has ____ dread of being confined in ____ small

space,

and would always prefer ____ stairs to ____ lift.

8. Do you take ____ sugar in ____ coffee? ~

I used to, but now I'm on ____ diet. I'm trying to lose ____ weight.

9 ____ man suffering from ____ shock should not be given anything to drink.

10. You'll get ____ shock if you touch ____ live wire with that screwdriver.

Why don't you get ____ screwdriver with ____ insulated handle?

11. It costs fifty-five and ____ half pence and I've only got ____ fifty pence piece. ~

You can pay by ____ cheque here. ~

But can I write ____ cheque for ____ fifty-five and ____ half pence?

12 ____ Mr Smith is ____ old customer and ____honest man. ~

Why do you say that? Has he been accused of ____dishonesty?

13. I'm not ____wage-earner; I'm ____self-employed man. I have ____business of my own. ~

Then you're not____ worker; you're ____capitalist!

14. When he was charged with ____murder he said he had ____ alibi.

15. ____friend of mine is expecting ____baby. If it's ____girl she's going to be called Etheldreda. ~

What ____name to give ____girl!

16. I have ____hour and ____half for lunch. ~

I only have ____half ____hour—barely ____time for ____smoke and ____ cup of coffee.

17. I hope you have ____ lovely time and ____good weather. ~

But I'm not going for ________ holiday; I'm going on ____business.

18. He looked at me with ____horror when I explained that I was ____double agent.

19. I wouldn't climb ____mountain for Ј1,000! I have ____horror of ____heights.

20. I have ____headache and ____sore throat. I think I've got ____cold. ~

I think you're getting ____flu.

21. ____Mr Jones called while you were out (neither of us knows this man). He wants to make ____

complaint about____ article in the paper. He was in ____very bad temper.

22. If you go by ____train you can have quite ____comfortable journey, but make sure you get

____express, not ____train that stops at all the stations.

23. ____few people know (hardly anyone knows) that there is ____secret passage from this house to

____old smugglers' cave in the cliffs.

24. I'm having ____few friends in to ____coffee tomorrow evening.

Would you like to come? ~

I'd love to, but I'm afraid I'm going to ____ concert.

25. It's time you had ____holiday. You haven't had ____day off for ____month.

26. He broke ____leg in____. skiing accident. It's still in ____plaster.

27. I want ____assistant with ____knowledge of French and ____experience of ____office routine.

28. I see that your house is built of ____wood. Are you insured against ____ fire?

29. The escaping prisoner camped in ____wood but he didn't light ____fire because ____smoke rising

from the wood might attract ____attention.

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30. I had____. amazing experience last night. I saw ____dinosaur eating ____meat pie in ____London

park.

You mean you had ____nightmare. Anyway, dinosaurs didn't eat ____meat.

31. I'll pay you ____hundred ____week. It's not . . . enormous salary but after all you are

____completely

unskilled man.

32. If you kept ____graph you could see at ____glance whether you were making____ profit or

____loss.

33. ____little (hardly anything) is known about the effect of this drug; yet ____chemist will sell it to you

without ____prescription.

34. I have ____little money left; let's have dinner in ____restaurant.

35. Would it be ____trouble to you to buy me ____newspaper on your way home?

36. ____man is ____reasoning animal.

INTERMEDIATE

I. Complete the following exercise with a / an or the articles. Put "x" where no article is needed.

According to_______ National Weather Service,_______ cyclones are ________areas of circulating winds

that rotate counterclockwise in _______Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in________ Southern

Hemisphere. They are generally accompanied by some kind of ________precipitation and by_________

stormy weather.____ tornadoes and _____hurricanes are ______types of cyclones, as are _____typhoons,

which are____ storms that occur in______ western Pacific Ocean._____ hurricane is ______ cyclone that

forms over _____ tropical oceans and seas and has______ winds of at least seventy-four

miles_____ hour._____ hurricane rotates in _____ shape of ______oval or _____circle._____ hurricanes

can cause_____ great environmental damage._____ Hurricane Andrew, which hit ______ coasts of

Louisiana and southern Florida in August 1992, caused ______ extreme devastation. In terms of _____

environmental damage, _____Hurricane Andrew is one of_____ most devastating hurricanes ever to hit

____ United States. Fourteen people died because of ______Andrew's effects.

II. Use a, an, the, or Ø in the blanks below. Note that street names do not take articles.

On October 12, Jim Parks, ____ Douglas College student, had ____ motorcycle accident near ____ corner

of 8th Avenue and Queens Street. At 3:00 p.m., he was driving down Queens Street by himself in ____

heavy rain. At ____ 8 th Avenue intersection with Queens Street, his motorcycle suddenly skidded on ____

wet pavement. First, he hit ____ car that was parked there. Then he knocked over two pedestrians, Gary and

Tamara Smith, who were walking on ____ sidewalk. At 3:04, ____ officers from the New Westminster

Police Department arrived. Jim Parks reported that he and Gary Smith were not injured, but Tamara told

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____ officers that her arm hurt. ____ police took Tamara to the Royal Columbian Hospital for ____

examination. Mr. Parks’ motorcycle was dented, but he was able to drive home.

III. Use the editing principles in this handout to fill in the blanks with a, an, the or Ø

According to Paul James, five members of Canada’s national soccer team took ____ fifteen thousand dollars

in ____ bribes to lose ____ tournament in 1986. During ____ card game, four of Canada’s players, David

Norman, Chris Cheuden, Hector Marinaro, and Igor Vrablic, asked James to help them lose ____ game

against North Korea. ____ game was ____ semi-final. James was surprised to learn that ____ men had

already accepted ____ bribes from bookmakers to lose ____ games in ____ competition. At ____ card table,

James agreed to help ____ other four players lose ____ game against North Korea. Before ____ game,

Vrablic distributed $1,500 to each player. After ____ loss, he distributed ____ same amount to each player

again. James accepted ____ money, but he said that later his conscience bothered him. He gave ____ money

back to ____ others and told Randy Ragan, ____ teammate, who in turn informed Bruce Wilson, ____

captain of ____ team.

IV. Insert “the” if necessary.

1. ____ youngest boy has just started going to ____school; ____eldest boy is at ____college.

2. She lives on ____top floor of an old house. When ____wind blows, all ____windows rattle.

3. ____darkness doesn't worry____ cats; ____cats can see in ____dark.

4. My little boys say that they want to be ____spacemen, but most of them will probably end up in ____

less dramatic jobs.

5. Do you know ____time? ~

Yes, ____clock in ____hall has just struck nine. ~

Then it isn't ____ time to go yet.

6. He was sent to ____prison for ____six months for ____shop-lifting.

When ____six months are over he'll be released; ____difficulty then will be to find ____work. ~

Do you go to ____prison to visit him?

7. I went to ____school to talk to ____headmistress. I persuaded her to let Ann give up ____gymnastics

and take ____ballet lessons instead.

8. ____ballet isn't much use for ____girls; it is much better to be able to play ____piano.

9. I am on____ night duty. When you go to ____bed, I go to ____work.

10. Peter's at ____office but you could get him on ____phone. There's a telephone box just round ____

corner

11. He got ____ bronchitis and was taken to ____hospital. I expect they'll send him home

at ____end of ____week. ~

Have you rung ____hospital to ask how he is?

12. Ann's habit of riding a motorcycle up and down ____road early in ________ morning annoyed ____

neighbours and in ____end they took her to ____court.

13. He first went to ____sea in a Swedish ship, so as well as learning ____navigation he had to learn ____

Swedish.

14. ____family hotels are ____hotels which welcome ____parents and ____. children.

15. On ____Sundays my father stays in ____bed till ten o'clock, reading ____Sunday papers.

16. Then he gets up, puts on ____old clothes, has ____breakfast and starts ____work in ____garden.

17. My mother goes to ____church in ____morning, and in ____afternoon goes to visit ____friends.

18. Like many women, she loves ____tea parties and ____gossip.

19. My parents have ____ cold meat and ____salad for ____supper, ____winter and ____summer.

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20. During ____meal he talks about ____garden and she tells him ____village gossip.

21. We have a very good train service from here to ____city center and most people go to ____work by

train. You can go by ____bus too, of course, but you can't get a season ticket on . . . bus.

22. ____dead no longer need ____help. We must concern ourselves with ____living. We must build ____

houses and ____schools and ____playgrounds.

23. I'd like to see ____Mr Smith please. ~

Do you mean ____Mr Smith who works in ____box office or ____other Mr Smith?

24. Did you come by ____air? ~

No, I came by ____sea. I had a lovely voyage on ____Queen Elizabeth II.

25. ____most of ____stories that ____people tell about ____Irish aren't true.

26. ____married couples with ____children often rent ____cottages by ____seaside for ____summer

holidays.

____men hire boats and go for ____trips along ____coast; ____children spend ____day on ____ beach and

____

. poor mothers spend ____most of ____time doing ____cooking and cleaning.

27. It's usually safe to walk on ____sand, but here, when ____tide is coming in, ____sand becomes

dangerously soft ____ people have been swallowed up by it.

28. When ____Titanic was crossing ____Atlantic she struck an iceberg which tore a huge hole in her

Bow ____ captain ordered ____crew to help ____passengers into ____boats.

29. Everywhere ____man has cut down ____forests in order to cultivate ____ground, or to use ____wood

as ____fuel or as ____building material.

30. But____ interference with ____nature often brings ____disaster ____ tree-felling sometimes turns ____

fertile land into a dustbowl.

31. ____people think that ____lead is ____heaviest metal, but ____gold is heavier.

32. Our air hostess said, '____rack is only for ____light articles ____ heavy things such as ____bottles

must be put on ____floor.'

33. ____windows are supposed to let in ____light; but ____windows of this house are so small that we

have to have ____electric light on all ____time.

34. There'11 always be a conflict between ____old and ____young____young people want ____change

but ____old people want ____things to stay ____same.

35. ____power tends to corrupt and ____absolute power corrupts absolutely.

36. You can fool some of ____people all ____time, and all____ people some of ____time; but you cannot

fool all ____people all ____time.

V. Insert “a, an or the” if necessary.

1. There was ____knock on ____door. I opened it and found ____small dark man in ____blue overcoat and

____woolen cap.

2. He said he was ____employee of ____gas company and had come to read ____meter.

3. But I had ____suspicion that he wasn't speaking ____truth because ____meter readers usually wear ____

peaked caps.

4. However, I took him to ____meter, which is in ____dark corner under ____stairs

(____ meters are usually in ____dark corners under ____stairs).

5. I asked if he had ____torch; he said he disliked torches and always read ____meters by ____light of ____

match.

6. I remarked that if there was ____leak in ____gas pipe there might be ____explosion while he was

15

reading ____meter.

7. He said, 'As ____matter of ____fact, there was ____explosion in ____last house I visited; and Mr Smith,

____owner of ________ house, was burnt in ____face.'

8. 'Mr Smith was holding ____lighted match at ____time of ____explosion.'

9. To prevent ____ possible repetition of this accident, I lent him ____torch.

10. He switched on ____ torch, read ____ meter and wrote ____ reading down on ____ back of ____

envelope.

11. I said in ____ surprise that ____ meter readers usually put ____ readings down in ____ book.

12. He said that he had had____ book but that it had been burnt in ____ fire in ____ Mr Smith's house.

13. By this time I had come to ____ conclusion that he wasn't . . . genuine meter reader; and . . . moment

he left house I rang . . . police.

14. Are John and Mary . . . cousins? ~

No, they aren't . . . cousins; they are . . . brother and . . . sister.

15.. . . fog was so thick that we couldn't see . . . side of . . . road. We followed . . . car in front of us

and hoped that we were going . . . right way.

16. I can't remember . . . exact date of . . . storm, but I know it was . . . Sunday because everybody was

at . . . church. On . . . Monday . . . post didn't come because . . . roads were blocked by . . . fallen

trees.

17. Peter thinks that this is quite . . . cheap restaurant.

18. There's been . . . murder here. ~

Where's body?~

There isn't . . . body. ~

Then how do you know there's been . . . murder?

19. Number . . . hundred and two, - . . house next door to us, is for sale.

It's quite . - . nice house with . . . big rooms. . . . back windows look out on . . . park.

20. I don't know what . . . price . . . owners are asking. But Dry and Rot are . . . agents. You could give

them . . . ring and make them . . . offer.

21 . . . postman's little boy says that he'd rather be . . . dentist than . . . doctor, because . . . dentists

don't get called out at . . . night.

22 Just as . . . air hostess (there was only one on the plane) was handing me . . . cup of . . . coffee . . .

plane gave . . . lurch and . . . coffee went all over . . . person on . . . other side of . . . gangway.

23 There was . . . collision between . . . car and . . . cyclist at . . . crossroads near . . . my house early

in . . . morning. . . . cyclist was taken to . . . hospital with . . . concussion. . . . driver of . . . car was

treated for . . . shock. . . . witnesses say that . . . car was going at . . . seventy miles . . . hour.

24 Professor Jones, . . . man who discovered . . . new drug that everyone is talking about, refused to give . . .

press conference.

25 Peter Piper, . . . student in . . . professor's college, asked him why he refused to talk

to . . . press.

26 We're going to . . . tea with . . . Smiths today, aren't we? Shall we take . . . car? ~

We can go by . . . car if you wash . . . car first. We can't go to . . . Mrs Smith's in . . .

car all covered with . . . mud.

27 He got . . . job in . . . south and spent . . . next two years doing . . . work he really enjoyed.

28 It is . . . pleasure to do . . . business with such . . . efficient organization.

29 . . . day after . . . day passed without . . . news, and we began to lose ... hope.

30 Would you like to hear . . . story about . . . Englishman, . . . Irishman and . . . Scotsman? ~

No. I've heard . . . stories about . . . Englishmen, . . . Irishmen and . . . Scotsmen before

16

and they are all . . . same.

31 But mine is not . . . typical story. In my story . . . Scotsman is generous, . . . Irishman is logical and

. . . Englishman is romantic. ~

Oh, if it's . . . fantastic story I'll listen with . . . pleasure.

32 My aunt lived on . . . ground floor of . . . old house on . . . River Thames. She was very much

afraid of . . . burglars and always locked up . . . house very carefully before she went to . . . bed.

She also took . . . precaution of looking under . . . bed to see if . . .

burglar was hiding there.

33 '. . . modern burglars don't hide under . . . beds,' said her daughter.

I'll go on looking just . . . same,' said my aunt.

34 One morning she rang her daughter in . . . triumph. 1 found . . . burglar under . . . bed . . . last

night,' she said, 'and he was quite . . . young man.'

35 . . . apples are sold by . . . pound. These are forty pence . . . pound.

36 It was . . . windy morning but they hired . . . boat and went for . . . sail along . . . coast. In . . -

afternoon . . . wind increased and they soon found themselves in . . . difficulties.

VI. Complete the following exercise using a/an/the/0 (no article) in the underlined spaces

where appropriate

Ms Parrot, (1) ___ most famous lady detective of (2) ___ twenty-first century, was born in

(3) ___ United Kingdom in (4) ___ 1960s. Since then, she has been to many countries, including (5)

___ Portugal, Singapore and Australia, and has lived in (6) ___ northern hemisphere and (7) ___

southern hemisphere, as well as on (8) ___ equator. She has never been to (9) ___ Philippines or

(10) ___ United States, but she speaks (11) English, French and Portuguese. Like Sherlock Holmes,

(12) ___ famous detective, she plays (13) ___ violin, and sometimes practises up to five times (14)

___ day. She is also (15) ___ only person in (16) ___ world to have performed Tchaikovsky’s 1812

overture [a long piece of music] in one breath on (17) ___ recorder.

She has been (18) ___ detective for thirty years and claims that although many people

think that being (19) ___ detective is (20) ___ piece of cake, detectives generally work very hard

and it’s not all fun and games. (21) ___ detective is someone who solves mysteries, and (22) ___

people who contact Ms Parrot have some very unusual problems. Little information is available

about some of (23) ___ cases she has solved, but quite (24) ___ few of her most famous cases

have attracted worldwide attention and she has been offered up to (25) ___ thousand dollars (26)

___ hour to help solve mysteries such as (27) ___ case of (28) ___ Australian owl in (29) ___

uniform. (30) ___ bird laid (31) ___ egg in (32) ___ European nest in less than (33) ___ hour after

its arrival. What (34) ___ strange problem!

With great (35) ___ modesty, she has either declined such (36) ___ fee or donated (37) ___

money to (38) ___ poor, or to (39) ___ Grammar Survival Fund, believing that (40) ___ detective

should use their skills for (41) ___ common good.

VII. Exercise based on the opening text in Thanks a Million. This exercise is very difficult because no

gaps are indicated. Can you add articles (a/an/the) where necessary in the following text? Change

capital letters to lower case letters at the beginning of a sentence if necessary.

Ms Parrot, most famous lady detective of twenty-first century, was born in United Kingdom in

1960s. Since then, she has been to many countries, including Portugal, Singapore and Australia,

17

and has lived in northern hemisphere and southern hemisphere, as well as on equator. She has

never been to Philippines or United States, but she speaks English, French and Portuguese. Like

Sherlock Holmes, famous detective, she plays violin, and sometimes practises up to five times day.

She is also only person in world to have performed Tchaikovsky’s 1812 overture in one breath on

recorder.

She has been detective for thirty years and claims that although many people think that being

detective is piece of cake, detectives generally work very hard and it’s not all fun and games.

detective is someone who solves mysteries, and people who contact Ms Parrot have some very

unusual problems. Little information is available about some of cases she has solved, but quite few

of her most famous cases have attracted worldwide attention and she has been offered up to

thousand dollars hour to help solve mysteries such as case of Australian owl in uniform. bird laid

egg in European nest in less than hour after its arrival. What strange problem!

With great modesty, she has either declined such fee or donated money to poor, or to Grammar

Survival Fund, believing that detective should use their skills for common good.

VIII. Please complete the following exercise using a/an/the/0 (no article) in the underlined spaces

where appropriate. (Some articles have been included for you, but others are missing.) Changecapital

letters to lower case letters at the beginning of a sentence if necessary.

There has never been (1) ___ more exciting time to produce (2) ___ new dictionary. Everything is

changing and expanding: the English language itself, the technology that helps us to describe it,

and (3) ___ needs and goals of those learning and teaching (4) ___ English. (5) ___ 1980s saw the

development of (6) ___ first large corpora (special collections) of English text.

(7) ___ Another of the Macmillan English Dictionary’s innovations is that two similar but separate

editions have been created from (8) ___ same database: one for learners whose main target

variety is (9) ___ American English, (10) ___ other for learners of British English. The differences

are small but significant.

The Macmillan English Dictionary is the product of good linguistic data and high-quality people. It

has been (11) ___ privilege to work with such (12) ___ talented and creative team, and I would like

to thank (13) ___ team for producing such (14) ___ excellent book. I hope you enjoy (15) ___

results of our hard work and find the dictionary (16) ___ pleasure to use.

UPPER – INTERMEDIATE

I. Put "an", "a", "the" and nothing.

1. My birthday is _____ Sunday afternoon.

2. It doesn't often snow here at _____ Christmas. We haven't had _____ White Christmas for

many years.

3. We came here in _____ summer of _____ 1969.

4. _____ Thanks giving is in _____ November. The Church of England dates from _____

year 1534. I like driving at _____ night. The roads are quite. Oh, I don't like driving in

_____ park. I'd rather travel during _____ day.

5. - Are you doing anything at _____ weekend?

- I don't think so.

- Well, come over on _____ Sunday.

18

6. _____ meals we had weren't very good. We had _____ breakfast in the hotel and that

wasn't too bad. We usually went out for _____ lunch because _____ lunch they served in

the hotel was always the same _____ dinner we had in our first evening was pretty a few,

so we tried a few restaurants. On our last evening we had _____ marvelous dinner in a

Chinese restaurant, but that was an exception.

7. Rita plays _____ violin and her sister plays _____ guitar.

8. On our trip to _____ Spain, we crossed _____ Atlantic Ocean.

9. David attended _____ Princeton University.

10. _____ Florida State University is smaller than _____ University of Florida.

11. _____ chair that you are sitting in is broken.

12. _____ Civil War was fought in _____ United States between 1861 and 1865.

13. _____ big books on _____ table are for my history class.

II. Write a or an in the space

1. _____ unreasonable decision

2. _____ universal problem

3. _____ unit of work.

4. _____ eucalyptus tree

5. _____ honorable man.

6. _____ X- ray

7. _____ UFO.

8. _____ T shirt

9. _____ happy girl

10. _____ H-bomb

11. _____ elephant

12. _____ hospital

13. _____ BBC programme

14. _____ UNESCO worker

III. Put in a, an or some or leave a space.

1. Have you got _____ camera?

2. Would you like to be _____ actor.

3. Bill's got _____ big feet.

4. Do you collect _____ stamps?

5. Tom always gives Ann _____ flowers on her birthday.

6. Those are _____ really nice trousers. Where did you get them?

7. What _____ beautiful garden!

8. What _____ lovely children!

9. _____ birds, for example the penguin, cannot fly.

10. Jack has got _____ very long legs, so he's _____ fast runner.

11. You need _____ visa to visit _____ foreign countries, but not all of them .

12. I'm going shopping. I'm going to get _____ new clothes.

13. Jane is _____ teacher. Her parents were _____ teachers too.

14. When we reached the city centre, _____ shops were still open but most of them were

already closed.

19

15. Do you enjoy going to _____ concerts?

16. When I was _____ child, I used to be very shy.

IV. Put suitable articles into blanks.

1. John is _____ teacher. He's teaching in _____ school in London.

Every morning, he gets up at 7 o'clock, has _____ breakfast and _____ cup of _____

coffee. Then he goes to work by bus. He has _____ lunch at _____ restaurant (near

_____ school). In the afternoon he works until 5 or 5.30 and then goes _____ home. He

doesn't work on _____ Saturday or Sunday. He goes to _____ cinema or theatre. John has

_____ sister in Oxford and _____ brother in _____ London.

2. There are millions of stars in _____ space.

3. I'm going away at _____ end of this month.

4. The sun is _____ star.

5. What did you have for _____ breakfast?

6. Have you got _____ car?

7. How much are those potatoes? 1.20 _____ kilo.

8. Can you think _____ rich should pay more taxes to help _____ poor?

V. Put suitable articles into blanks.

1. He is _____ honest person.

2. My father went out to _____ sea when he was 14.

3. When do you hope to go to _____ university?

4. There's a strike at _____ hospital.

5. He is_____ one-eyed man.

6. There's _____ onion left in the fridge.

7. This is_____ useful method of learning English.

8. I've got _____ uncle.

9. Your shoes are under_____ bed.

10. There's a splendid view of_____ Lake Geneva from his hotel.

VI. Choose the correct answer.

1. The British Prime Minister live in Downing Street/the Downing Street.

2. One of the nicest parks in London is St. James's Park/the St. James's Park, which is very

near Buckingham Palace/the Buckingham Palace.

3. Frank is a student at Liverpool University/the Liverpool University.

4. Mr. Jenkins reads Daily Telegraph/the Daily Telegraph but his wife reads Times/the

Times.

5. We flew from London to Orly Airpot/the Orly Airpot in Paris.

6. Mary and Peter got married in St. Matthew's Church/the Matthew's Church.

7. Some children hate school/the school.

8. After leaving school/the school, Nora worked as a cleaner in hospital /at the hospital

9. All over the world, people are in prison/the prison because of their political beliefs.

10. The other day the fire-brigade had to go to prison/the prison to put out a fire.

11. On the way to London we passed through a small village with an old church. We stopped

to visit church/the church. It was a beautiful building.

12. John's mother is a regular churchgoer. She goes to church/the church every Sunday. John

20

himself doesn't go to church/the church.

13. Apples/the apples are good for you.

14. Women/the women are often better teachers then men/the men.

15. In Britain coffee/the coffee is more expensive than tea/the tea.

16. Most people/the most people still believe that marriage/the marriage and family life/the

family life are the basic of our society.

17. Life/the life would be very difficult without electricity/the electricity.

18. Skiing/the skiing is my favourite sport but I also like swimming/the swimming.

19. Second World War/the Second World Ward ended in 1945.

20. Don't stay in that hotel. Beds/the beds are very uncomfortable.

VII. Put suitable articles into blanks if necessary.

1. After _______ lunch, we went for _______ wall by _______ sea.

2. Don't sit on _______ ground. It's wet.

3. On _______ Sunday my father stay in _______ bed till ten o'clock reading _______

Sunday paper.

4. He's got _______ job in _______ South and spent _______ next two years doing _______

work he really enjoyed.

5. My mother goes to _______ church in _______ morning and in _______ afternoon goes to

visit _______ friends.

6. _______ post man's little boy says that he'd rather be _______ dentist than _______ doctor

because _______ dentists don't get called out at _______ night.

7. This morning I bought _______ newspaper and _______ magazine _______ newspaper is

in my bag, but I don't know where _______ magazine is.

8. My parents have _______ cat and _______ dog. _______ dog never bites _______ cat, but

_______ cat often scratched _______ dog.

9. We live in _______ old house in _______ middle of town. There is _______ garden behind

_______ house. _______ roof of _______ house is in bad condition.

VIII. Which is correct or more likely, a/an or one? If both a/an and one are

possible, write them both.

1. It weights over _______ hundred kilos.

2. I only asked for _______ pizza - I didn't want three of them.

3. I wouldn't allow _______ child of mine to be treated in that way.

4. It only took us _______ week to drive to Greece.

5. I've always wanted to own _______ silver - coloured car.

6. _______ sandwich isn't enough. I usually eat four or five

7. Policies differ from _______ state to another.

8. Less than three quarters of _______ hour later, she was home.

9. All of the competitors completed the race, with just _______ exception.

10. She left home late ______ morning and hasn't been seen since.

11. The best way to learn______ musical instrument is to find ______ enthusiastic teacher.

12. Somewhere in the distance, ______ bell rang.