A, An, The — Three Tiny Gates
First time you mention it, a or an opens the door. The comes when everyone knows which one. Three questions decide every article — here is the tree.
Which Article?
Three questions, one answer
You never guess an article — you ask three questions in order. First mention? Known to the listener? General? Walk the tree.
a or an?
It is the sound, not the letter
Choose a or an by the sound the next word makes, not by its spelling. An comes before vowel sounds; a before consonant sounds.
Consonant sound → a
look at the sound, not the lettera dog · a car
Vowel sound → an
a, e, i, o, u soundsan apple · an egg
Silent h → an
the h is not pronouncedan hour · an honest man
"yu" sound → a
spelled u, pronounced yua university · a useful idea
⚠️ Say it out loud: an hour (sounds like "an our"), a university (sounds like "a yuniversity").
Common Mistakes
Five traps to escape
The letter vs the sound — that is the whole game. These five pairs cover the traps most learners fall into.
I ate a apple.
I ate an apple.
💡 Apple starts with a vowel sound → an.
She studies at an university.
She studies at a university.
💡 University sounds like "yu" → a.
It takes a hour.
It takes an hour.
💡 The h in hour is silent → an.
We crossed an one-way street.
We crossed a one-way street.
💡 One-way starts with a "w" sound → a.
I saw a sun in the sky.
I saw the sun in the sky.
💡 There is only one sun → the.
Quick Quiz
Test what you just learned
Three minutes, five questions — check what stuck. No essay questions, we promise.
I have ___ idea!
💡 Info supplémentaire2 sections
a or an — Practice Pairs
Match the word with its article
Train the sound rule: read each word out loud, then match it with the article it takes. Cover the right side and test yourself.
⚠️ Spelling can lie — the sound never does.
The + Unique Things
Only one exists — so it takes the
Some things exist exactly once, so they always take the: the sun, the sky, the world. Nobody asks which one — there is only one.
Nature, up there
the sun, the moon, the sky, the stars
The sun rises in the east.
The world around you
the world, the sea, the ground, the internet
The internet is fast here.
Famous groups
the Beatles, the Alps, the USA
The Alps are in Europe.
⚠️ Unique things and named groups always take the.