Articles and Article Usage Linguistics 140 Winter, 2014 Dr. Jan FrodesenArticles Key considerations • Every time we use a noun, we need to decide whether that noun requires an article or not, and if it does, which one. Whether or not to use an article also depends on shared knowledge and context. • There are many exceptions in English (fixed expressions; idioms) which seem to contradict the general rules. Definition • Articles belong to the wider class of determiners (word/phrases that signal whether information is new or given, or inform us about quantity). • definite article: the • indefinite article: a, anArticles Basic rules, shared knowledge, and context • We use a/an to indicate that something is not common ground, to introduce something new, unexpected, or something that the listener is unaware of • We use the to signal to our listener what they know/will soon know • Referring backwards I saw a couple with two little girls and a boy. I knew the parents but didn’t recognize the children at all. • Referring forwards Take prizes for the children who win. • External reference She took pictures of the children.Articles Basic rules, shared knowledge, and context • We leave out articles before plural and uncountable nouns when we refer to something general: I usually have sandwiches for lunch. English parsley has curly leaves. Some rules of thumb • a/an with there: There’s a beer in the fridge. • a/an with first mentions: Guess what, I met a circus clown. • a/an for naming things: That’s an otter. a/an with occupations: I’m a teacherArticles Some rules of thumb • the with subsequent mentions: I bought a cake. The cake was bad • the with unique things: the moon • the with defining relative clauses: Shoot the wolf who killed the sheep • the with of-prepositional phrases: They are enjoying the benefits of early retirement • the with superlatives: New York is the greatest city in the USA • the in comparatives with same: The same as usual, please • the with certain adjectives: the first, the next, the lastArticles Other rules: • a/an with expressions of time and quantity: forty times an hour, thirty dirhams a kilo (= per) • the with leisure activities: I went to the movies • the in travel/transport contexts: I arrived at the airport • the with musical instruments: I play the piano • the with proper nouns (rivers, mountain ranges, oceans and seas, deserts, groups of islands, hotels, cinemas, political bodies, countries whose names include political terms or plural nouns, newspapers): the Ganges, the Hilton, the United Kingdom, … • no article to express association with certain institutions (church, school, prison, college)Articles Other rules • No article with meals: She came to lunch • No article with most expressions of time: on Sunday, in May • No article after verbs of motion combined with work, home, or bed: She left work, She got home, He went to bed • No article with most people and place names • Idioms: a bit of, in a hurry, make a start, have a drink, do a turn, on the coast, in the pink, off the record, through the nose, go to the wall, play the blues, in debt, on loan, out of action, …Articles Article positions • Articles can be left out (often called zero-article) • before plural noun Dreams often come true. • uncountable nouns Give me money! • With singular nouns, we can leave an article out before a singular noun if we replace it with another determiner • possessive determiner her brother (also called possessive adjective) • demonstrative determiner that book (also called demonstrative adjective) • quantifiers any occasion, each dayArticles English learner problems with articles • Many languages do not have articles; others have different rules What languages don’t have articles? Do you know an article usage rule for a language other than English that is different? • Learners often don’t know or haven’t internalized the rules-there are many! • Learners may transfer article usage rules from their native language to English Example: She is computer programmer. • Learners who have acquired English “by ear” often do not hear the articles in speech because they are