05
Articles & Demonstratives
When to use a, an, the, this, and that.
Visual Explanation
Article / Demonstrative + Noun
a / an / the / this / that+noun
Examples
Can I have a glass of water?
The hotel is next to the park.
This seat is free. That one is taken.
When to Use
- a / an
- Use with singular nouns mentioned for the first time: 'I saw a cat in the garden.'
- the
- Use when both people know which thing you mean: 'The cat was sleeping.'
- this / that
- 'This' for things near you, 'that' for things far away: 'This pen here. That pen over there.'
Tip
Use 'an' before vowel sounds, not just vowel letters. Say 'an hour' (silent H) but 'a university' (the U sounds like 'yoo').