1. What are articles?

Articles are small words that are often used at the beginning of noun phrases. There are two: the (the 'definite article') and a/an (the 'indefinite article'). They belong to a group of words called 'determiners'.

2. What are articles used for?

Articles can show whether we are talking about things that are known both to the speaker/writer and to the listener/reader (‘definite'), or that are not known to them both ('indefinite').

3. How much do articles matter?

The correct use of the articles is one of the most difficult points in English grammar. Fortunately, most article mistakes do not matter too much. Even if we leave all the articles out of a sentence, it can usually be understood.

Please can you lend me pound of butter till end of week?

However, it is better to use the articles correctly if possible.

4. Speakers of Western European languages

Most languages of Western European origin, and one or two others, have article systems quite like English. However, there are some differences in the way articles are used in English and these other languages. Students should read this first if they speak one of the following languages perfectly or very well: French, German, Dutch, Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, Icelandic, Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Portuguese, Greek, Romanian.