BASIC GRAMMAR TUTORIALS

Transcription

1 DEFINITE ARTICLES: IN ENGLISH: A noun can be a person, a place, an object, an animal, or an idea. Often a noun is introduced by the definite article the. I went to the party with Paul. (party is a singular noun) She returned the books to Marion. (books is a plural noun) The girl ran a good race. (girl is a singular noun) I gave the boys some money for the snack. (boys is a plural noun) Just as we use the with both singular and plural nouns, we also use it both with nouns that are clearly masculine (like the word boys) and nouns that are clearly feminine (like the word girl). Most nouns in English words like table, house, or cars are neither masculine nor feminine; that is, they have no gender. A. Circle each definite article in the following English sentences and underline the noun that follows each article. 1. They bought the house next door. 2. She made a chocolate cake for the boys. 3. The businessman is wearing a funny tie. 4. She put the new tools away. 5. The ship sailed to Martinique. 6. John painted the houses in one day. 7. The girls love the cat.

2 IN FRENCH: There are four forms of the definite article: in French, le, la, l, and les. The form that is used depends on the gender (masculine or feminine) and the number (singular or plural) of the noun. While only some nouns in English have a gender, all French nouns are either masculine or feminine. Use la with feminine nouns: la pizza la glace Use le with masculine nouns: le chocolat le sport Use l with any singular noun that begins with a vowel (or a vowel sound) whether they are masculine or feminine: l école (feminine) l escargot (masculine) Use les with all plural nouns whether they are masculine or feminine: les écoles (feminine) les escargots (masculine) A. Circle each definite article in the following French sentences and underline the noun that follows each article. 1. Sophie adore la glace. 2. lls aiment bien le magasin. 3. Tu n aimes pas les hamburgers? 4. Je préfère les frites. 5. Vous aimez l anglais?

3 IN GERMAN: There are four forms of the definite article: in German, der, die, das, and die. The form that is used depends on the gender (masculine, feminine, or neuter) and the number (singular or plural) of the noun. While only some nouns in English have a gender, all German nouns are either masculine, feminine, or neuter. Use die with feminine nouns: die Pizza die Schule Use der with masculine nouns: der Bus der Sport Use das with neuter nouns: das Auto das Radio Use die with all plural nouns whether they are masculine, feminine, or neuter: die Autos die Schulen A. Circle each definite article in the following German sentences and underline the noun that follows each article. 1. Du kaufst das Haus. 2. Sie back Kuchen für die Kinder. 3. Der Mann trägt einen Anzug und eine Krawatte. 4. Ich brauche das Lineal. 5. Die Schule heisst North Garland High School. 6. Wir kennen das Mädchen. 7. Der Onkel spielt Baseball.

4 IN SPANISH: There are four forms of the definite article: in Spanish, el, la, los, and las. The form that is used depends on the gender (masculine or feminine) and the number (singular or plural) of the noun. Masculine singular nouns typically end with the letter o. While feminine singular nouns typically end with the letter a. Use el with masculine nouns: el perro el libro Use la with feminine nouns: la carpeta la silla When a noun ending in a vowel is made plural an s is added to the end of the noun. Use los with a plural masculine noun: los perros los libros Use las with a plural masculine noun: las carpetas las sillas When a noun ending in a consonant is made plural an es is added to the end of the noun. Use los with a plural masculine noun: Use las with a plural feminine noun: el cinturón (singular) à los cinturones (plural) la audición (singular) à las audiciones (plural) Singular nouns ending in z are made plural by changing the z to c and adding es. El pez à los peces El lápiz à los lápices La voz à las voces La perdiz à las perdices A. Circle each definite article in the following Spanish sentences and underline the noun that follows each article. 1. Mis amigos corren en el gimnasio. 2. Tú nadas en la piscina. 3. Este año las clases son difíciles. 4. Alberto y Arnoldo estudian para los exámenes.

5 5. Me chocan las verduras. 6. Quiero el vestido negro. 7. Me gusta mucho la escuela. 8. Los zapatos me quedan apretados. 9. Juan lee el libro durante la clase de inglés.