There are three articles in the English language: a. an, the
Articles are “noun markers.” When you see the words a, an, or the, you know that a noun will immediately follow.
Use the article a in front of nouns that begin with a consonant.
a dog, a cat, a house, a horse, a mouse, a car, a train, a letter, a park, a school
Use the article an in front of nouns that begin with a vowel.
an apple, an open door, an olive, an orange, an octopus, an instrument, an organ
Mom gave me a book.
I ate an apple.
We rode the train.
The words a and an are indefinite articles. They refer to any noun.
The word the is a definite article because it refers to a specific noun.
The articles a, an, the are noun markers because they are used just before a noun in a sentence.
It’s your turn. Which article works best in this sentence? I saw ____ alligator in the swamp last week. Did you figure it out? Good for you!