Academic English for International Exams

Course Book

  • Theory
  • A1
  • A2
  • A3
  • B
  • C
  • D

All singular countable nouns must have an article. The indefinite article is used when the noun that it describes hasn’t been mentioned before, or the listener doesn’t know which thing they are talking about. They always go before every adjective we use together with a noun.

Remember: It is better to have too many articles than not enough articles.

Indefinite Article - A/An

  • when you don't know which item you are talking about
    For example: There is a man at the door.
  • when you don't mean one specific thing, but mean any one in a group
    For example: He wants a puppy.
  • when you introduce something for the first time
    For example: They have a puppy.

If you are not sure which article to use, use the indefinite article ‘a’ (or ‘an’ if the following word starts with a vowel sound).

The indefinite article is easy to understand if you think that it means ‘one’.

For example: I want one chair. = I want a chair.

If you remember about ‘one’, you’ll never use ‘a’ with a non-count noun or a plural count noun.

Definite Article - The

  • when you have information about which particular item (most commonly an adjective clause/phrase or a key preposition phrase)
    For example: The movie that they saw was funny.
  • when you mean the closest item
    For example: Please turn on the light (in this room).
  • when there is only one of something
    For example: Would you like to go to the Moon?
  • when you mean something that you have already mentioned
    For example: The song that we just talked about came on the radio.
  • when you describe a geographical area
    For example: I would not want to live in the west.
  • when you use the superlative form
    For example: This is the best city in the world.
  • when you talk about rivers, mountains, forests, and oceans
    For example: The St.Lawrence River, The Black Forest

Zero Article

  • when you discuss non-count nouns
    For example: They don't have _coffee.
  • when you discuss abstract ideas
    For example: That country has beautiful__traditions
  • when you discuss meals - however, if you describe the meal, use an indefinite article
    For example: My favorite meal is__lunch. - Today, I just had a quick lunch.
  • when you describe transportation
    For example: He came by__bike.
  • when you talk about lakes
    For example: __Lake Baikal

There are some nouns which change meaning if you use them with an article, or without:
school; church; jail; university; hospital; court; college; bed; sea; prison

If you don't use an article with these nouns, you use the nouns in the ‘proper’ way.

For example: I go to__school because I am a student.

I fell from my bicycle, so I went to__hospital.

However, when you do not use these things in the ‘proper’ way, use an article.

For example: The voting station is in the school across the street. (You do not study at the school, you vote)

The roofers went to the church to fix the roof. (They will not pray, they will repair the building)

Choose the most appropriate articles in the following passage.
Options: the, a, an, - (for zero article).

Most scholars have concluded that there was no close personal tie between 1. individual Egyptian and 2. gods, that 3. gods remained aloof, that their relationship to humans was communicated by means of 4. king. There was no established book or set of teachings. Humans were guided essentially by human wisdom and trusted in their belief in 5. goodness of 6. gods and of their divine son, the king. An important concept in Egyptian life was 7. idea of 8. justice. Although 9. Egyptians were entirely subservient to 10. state, 11. king had 12. duty of translating 13. will of 14. gods, 15. universe had been created by bringing 16. order and 17. justice to replace 18. chaos, and could only survive through 19. continuance of 20. order and 21. justice. 22. law of nature, of society, and of 23. gods was 24. organic whole, and it was 25. duty of 26. king to administer that law. As Egypt flourished, so did 27. cult of 28. pharaohs.

Choose the most appropriate articles in the following passage.
Options: the, a, an, - (for zero article).

1. Egyptian attitude to 2. afterlife is unique in that 3. they view 4. deceased as beginning 5. journey outward. In 6. their tombs, devoted to aid 7. departed on 8. his journey, we are able to reconstruct aspects of 9. daily life and 10. food of Egypt. 11. mummification preserved 12. deceased, and as long as 13. mummy existed, it was given its portion of 14. furniture, statues, paintings and food for its "eternal home". 15. pottery vessels were used for food offerings which were sealed into 16. tombs, preserving 17. foods. 18. tombs were filled with 19. hieroglyphics and with 20. drawings that often represent 21. agricultural practices, butchering methods, any aspect of 22. daily life.

Choose the most appropriate articles in the following passages. Options: the, a, an, - (for zero article)

Because 1. Egypt was very dry, and relied mostly on 2. Nile River to water 3. crops. 4. Egyptians could only grow certain kinds of 5. food. Mainly they grew 6. wheat and 7. barley. 8. Egyptians made 9. wheat into 10. bread and into soup and 11. porridge, and they also added 12. hops to make 13. barley into 14. beer. In fact, some people think 15. real reason that 16. Egyptians first began growing 17. grain was to make 18. beer.

19. Book of 20. Dead is 21. term used to describe 22. text used in 23. funerals and placed in tombs. It is usually inscribed on 24. papyrus and includes about 25. two hundred spells which were thought to aid and protect 26. dead in 27. afterlife. 28. individual Book of 29. Dead would contain 30. selection of 31. these spells.

Add the appropriate article where necessary. If no article is necessary in the blank, put ‘x’.

1. He has loved dogs ever since he was little boy, and now he wants puppy.
2. She is very excited because she has never seen Pacific Ocean before.
3. I didn't have time to eat full breakfast, so I can't skip lunch.
4. Computer that they bought yesterday has latest software installed.
5. My apartment has great view of Lake Pontchaitrain.
6. Capital city of New York State is not New York City, it is Albany.
7. Coffee is generally considered stimulant.

Decide whether the nouns with blanks need an article in these cases.
Options: the, a, an, - (for zero article).

1. If the pain doesn't stop by tomorrow, you should go to hospital.
2. Bob's been at sea for five weeks - his mission will finish soon.
3. They were very happy, because their daughter was accepted to university.
4. Because he was seen by many people committing the crime, he was sent to jail for 14 years.
5. His mother goes to jail to visit him every week.

Choose the most appropriate articles in the following passage. Options: the, a, an, - (for zero article).

Lightning

For as long as there have been 1. people, 2. humanity has been fascinated and awed by 3. natural spectacle which is 4. lightning. 5. religions have celebrated it, gods have controlled it, and scientists are intrigued by it. Even today, with all of 6. technology created throughout history at their disposal, 7. climatologists are still baffled by some aspects of it.

Some things, however, we do know. Lightning is 8. purest form of 9. electricity in nature. It is caused by 10. jumping of 11. electrons from 12. negatively charged thunder cloud to 13. positively charged earth, and vice-versa. We know also that lightning moves not only from 14. clouds to 15. earth, but also from 16. earth to 17. clouds.

Although 18. lightning carries thousands of volts of 19. electricity, most of 20. energy is actually expended in 21. form of 22. light and 23. heat. Because 24. lightning moves so quickly and dissipates so quietly, it is estimated that 25. amount of 26. electricity in a lightning bolt would only be enough to power 27. light bulb for 28. few weeks.

To many people, lightning appears to be 29. untapped source of 30. free electrical energy. However, even though 31. amounts of energy in 32. bolts are incredible, 33. bolts themselves are so brief, and most of 34. power is spent on 35. light and 36. heat, that 37. harnessing of 38. electricity lightning produces is currently impractical.