The Article

The Article

The definite article in English

Both English and Spanish the definite article to refer to a particular object is used. 

The definite article is very simple, always used: the.

Articulo Definido	Significado
the	el (masculino) la (femenino) lo (neutro) los (plural) las (plural)

The car is mine
El coche es mio

The chair has 4 legs 
La silla tiene 4 patas

The cabinets are open
Los armarios están abiertos

Pronunciation 'The'

It is generally pronounced as "de"

The dog [de doj]
El perro

But if it precedes another word started with a vowel is pronounced "di".

The indefinite article in English

In English, the indefinite article to refer to an element without specifying what (as in Spanish) is used. 

The indefinite article is:

a (pronounced "a")

	Articulo Indefinido	Significado
Singular	a	un una
Plural	(se omite)	unos unas

I have a car
yo tengo un coche

He has a wife and 2 kids
Él tiene una mujer y 2 hijos

CAUTION: In English only the indefinite article is used in the singular. In plural simply omitted:

I have a dog ➜ I have dogs
Tengo un perro ➜ Tengo unos perros

Indefinite article 'an'

If the item is followed by a word beginning (his pronunciation) a vowel "an" is used instead of "a".

I ate half of an apple[ai eit jaf an apol]
Me comí la mitad de una manzana

But beware:

I am a European [ai am a yeropian]
Yo soy un europeo

Although 'European' begins with a vowel, it begins with a consonant, so "an" but simply "a" is not used.

Omission of Article in English

The uses of the articles in Spanish and English are quite equivalent, there are only a few exceptions.

In English the article is omitted:

Materials (uncountable)

Copper is a good conductor
El cobre es un buen conductor

Plural when referring to all

Children are Innocent
Los niños son inocentes (en el sentido de todos los niños)

hours

I work until 4:00 PM
Trabajo hasta las 4 de la tarde

Treatments (Mr., Mrs., earl, duke, ...)

Mr. Smith went to America in 2009
El señor Smith fue a America en el 2009

Languages

English is hard
El inglés es difícil

academic subjects

I like physics more than chemistry
Me gusta más la física que la química

sports

I play soccer
Yo juego al fútbol