Navigate a, an, the and zero article — one of the trickiest areas for non-native English speakers.
⏱ Average time
1 to 3 min
🎯 Difficulty
Single level — 8 questions per round.
🧠 Skills exercised
English grammar · Articles · Definiteness
How to play
Choose the right article (a, an, the or no article) to complete each sentence.
Example
"___ Amazon is the longest river in South America." — the answer is The, because unique geographical features take the definite article.
Tips & strategies
- 1.a/an = indefinite: first mention, or any member of a class. an before vowel sounds (an hour, an honest person).
- 2.the = definite: specific or unique things, second mention, superlatives, names of rivers/mountain ranges/oceans.
- 3.No article (—): general uncountable nouns (love, music), plural generics (dogs are friendly), names of mountains/cities/countries (Mount Everest, London).
💡 Did you know?
English is unusual in having both a zero article and a definite article. Many world languages (Russian, Japanese, Swahili) have no articles at all — which makes English articles invisible to speakers of those languages at first.
Frequently asked questions
What about an vs a before "h" words?
Use an before a silent h (an hour, an honor) and a before a spoken h (a hat, a hero). The rule is about sound, not spelling.
Is there a time limit?
No — read each sentence carefully.