Definite and Indefinite Articles Part 3

In previous posts (here and here), we’ve looked at when to use definite and indefinite articles and when we don’t need to use any article.

We said that:

• The definite article is “the”.
• The indefinite article is “a” or “an”.
• We use “the” when we’re referring to something that is definite or specific.
• We use “a” or “an” when we’re referring to something that is indefinite or general.

In this post we’ll explain how to pronounce the “the” and “a”

There are two ways to pronounce “the”: with a short sound (“thuh”) or a long sound (“thee”). We normally say “thuh” in front of a consonant and “thee” in front of a vowel:

• Thuh computer.
• Thuh table.
• Thee actor
• Thee orange.

We also say “thee” when we want to emphasise something:

• This is thuh car that we were talking about.
• This is thee car. (Perhaps meaning the best car ever made)

And you probably won’t be surprised to hear that there are two ways of pronouncing “a”. Most of the time we say “uh”, but when we want to add emphasis we say “ay” (rhymes with “say”):

• I said I want ay biscuit, but you’ve brought a whole plate full.

If you want to know more about definite and indefinite articles, here is a useful guide.

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^{Posted by Graham}