Unit 8: Travel
Articles - a, an, the
Select a unit
- 1 Nice to meet you!
- 2 What to wear
- 3 Like this, like that
- 4 The daily grind
- 5 Christmas every day
- 6 Great achievers
- 7 The Titanic
- 8 Travel
- 9 The big wedding
- 10 Sunny's job hunt
- 11 The bucket list
- 12 Moving and migration
- 13 Welcome to BBC Broadcasting House
- 14 New Year, New Project
- 15 From Handel to Hendrix
- 16 What's the weather like?
- 17 The Digital Revolution
- 18 A detective story
- 19 A place to live
- 20 The Cult of Celebrity
- 21 Welcome to your new job
- 22 Beyond the planets
- 23 Great expectations!
- 24 Eco-tourism
- 25 Moving house
- 26 It must be love
- 27 Job hunting success... and failure
- 28 Speeding into the future
- 29 Lost arts
- 30 Tales of survival
Session 3
Our journey continues! In this session we visit two more of the world's great cities. We explore some special rules for using articles and Emma teaches us how to pronounce them correctly.
Activity 1
'The' and the zero article
A message from Dubai
Emma's travelling friends are still sending her messages. Join her as she reads a letter from Catherine, and learn when to use the zero article.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Learn how to talk about where you live
______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Watch the video
Look, it's a grey day in London and I'm stuck here whilst my friends are elsewhere having fun. Catherine sent me a letter today. Let's see where she is...
"Hi Emma, I'm taking a break in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. I had afternoon tea in the Burj Khalifa - the World's tallest building. I went shopping in a traditional spice souk. The souk had a wonderful smell - and I bought you a little present. Finally, I went skiing in the world's largest indoor snow park. Wish you were here! Catherine. PS: Would you like to go on a trip to South America next year?"
That would be wonderful. I do need a holiday... but I can't afford that... where do you think I should go to?
Explanation
When should we use the and when should we use the zero article (-) ? Read the rules carefully:
Use 'the' with…
1) Countries with plural names or with Republic or Kingdom in the name: The United Arab Emirates, The Netherlands, The United Kingdom.
2) Geographical areas in noun phrases: I live in the north-west of Egypt; in the east.
3) The names of rivers, seas, oceans and mountain ranges: The Mississippi, The Black Sea, The Atlantic, The Urals.
4) Parts of the day: In the morning/afternoon/evening.
5) Most prepositional phrases of position and place: At the top, on the left, at the office/bank/cinema.
6) Most prepositional phrases with 'of': At the end of my holiday; in the middle of the night
7) Superlative adjectives: He is the oldest son.
Use 'zero article' (-) with…
1) The names of most countries, cities and continents: (-) Saudi Arabia, (-) Argentina, (-) Warsaw, (-) Beijing, (-) Europe, (-) Asia.
2) Geographical areas in adjective phrases: I live in (-) north-west Egypt, (-) eastern France.
3) The names of single mountains and lakes: (-) Mount Kilimanjaro, (-) Lake Titicaca.
4) Exact days, months and times: on (-) Friday, in (-) March, at (-) 7 o’clock.
5) Some prepositional phrases of place: at (-) home, at (-) work, in (-) town, in (-) bed, at (-) sea.
To do
Try this activity. Have a look at the grammar notes if you get stuck.
Download
Click here to download the video (size: 28.2MB).
When to use 'the'
13 Questions
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again.Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 1 of 13
These names need 'the'
These names don’t need 'the'
Excellent! Great job! Bad luck! You scored:
When to use 'the'
13 Questions
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again.Question 1 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 2 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 3 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 4 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 5 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 6 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 7 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 8 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 9 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 10 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 11 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 12 of 13
Help
Activity
Sort the place names into ones that need the and those that don't
Hint
Read the rules again - or look at a map!Question 13 of 13
Excellent! Great job! Bad luck! You scored:
Next
How did you get on? Have you visited any of the places listed in the last activity? The BBC Learning English team is very familiar with the city we're going to look at next. Go to activity 2 to find out where it is and test what you've learnt so far about articles.
Session Grammar
Use 'the' with…
Countries with plural names or with Republic or Kingdom in the name: The United Arab Emirates, The Netherlands, The United Kingdom.
Geographical areas in noun phrases: I live in the north-west of Egypt; in the east.
The names of rivers, seas, oceans and mountain ranges: The Mississippi, The Black Sea, The Atlantic, The Urals.
Parts of the day: In the morning/afternoon/evening.
Most prepositional phrases of position and place: At the top, on the left, at the office/bank/cinema.
Superlative adjectives: He is the oldest son.
Use 'zero article' (-) with…
The names of most countries, cities and continents: (-) Saudi Arabia, (-) Beijing, (-) Europe
Geographical areas in adjective phrases: I live in (-) north-west Egypt, (-) eastern France.
The names of single mountains and lakes: (-) Mount Kilimanjaro, (-) Lake Titicaca.
Exact days, months and times: on (-) Friday, in (-) March, at (-) 7 o’clock.
Some prepositional phrases of place: at (-) home, at (-) work, in (-) town, in (-) bed, at (-) sea.
Session Vocabulary
traditional
based on past customs and beliefs by a certain group of peoplespice souk
market in an Arab town that sells spicesrepublic
country ruled by someone elected by its people rather than a king or queenkingdom
country ruled by a king or queen