The Indefinite Article
This lesson will explore the indefinite article in a little more detail.
Introducing Nouns with Indefinite Articles.
Use a, an, or no article (0) to introduce a common noun when it is first mentioned. You do not actually say "no article" -- just ignore it and don't pronounce anything at all.
First Mentioned
A: What did you do last Saturday?
B: I was at a friend's wedding. What about you?
A: I had (0) friends over and made (0) dinner.
Quite often, when a common noun is introduced, it is only specific to the speaker, but not to the listener. In other words, the speaker has an idea of what the noun is, but the listener does not. Sometimes, the noun is neither specific for the speaker nor the listener.
Specific for the speaker only
Chad: I shopped for a new phone yesterday. (Chad is thinking of a specific phone, but the listener is not. Therefore, you would use the indefinite article "a," which is not specific).
Not specific for the speaker or the listener
Julia: I need new shirts. (Neither Julia nor the listener have specific shirts in mind. Therefore, Julia could say "I need a new shirt" as well.)
When singular count nouns are introduced, "a" and "an" are frequently used to express the quantity of "one." "Some" and "any" are used to express a small quantity when introducing plural count and noncount nouns.
Singular Count Nouns
Would you like a cookie?
I'd like to order a drink, please.
Plural Count and Noncount Nouns
Would you like some cookies?
I'd like to order some drinks, please.
Classifying and Describing Nouns
While the articles a, an, and no article (0) are frequently used with common nouns in sentences with "be" to classify or describe nouns, some and an are not used the same way.
His friend is a nurse. ("nurse" describes "friend")
What are these? They're pumpkin seeds. ("pumpkin seeds" describes what "they" are. It would not be correct to say "They're some pumpkin seeds.")
Exercise
Please open the exercise to continue.