We use the articles – a, an, the – with common nouns. The article the can be used with all common nouns. Use the article an in front of nouns that begin with a vowel: a, e, i, o, u
Use the article a in front of nouns that begin with a consonant (every letter that is not a vowel.)
a dog, the dog
an apple, the apple.
I drove the car to work.
Mom packed a lunch for me.
She put an orange in my lunch.
Dad read the newspaper this morning.
Common nouns are usually preceded by an article – a, an, or the.
▶ It’s your turn. Find the common noun and its article in this sentence: I found a spider in my bedroom. Did you find the article a and the noun right after it? Good for you!