Articles: Jeopardy!

Choose the right article

100

"______ cats that you brought over yesterday were very cute!"

"The"

^{The cats are known to both speaker and hearer.}

200

"I wouldn't mind _____ cup of coffee for my early class tomorrow!"

"A"

^{There is not a specific cup of coffee being referred to.}

300

"I bought a dog yesterday. _____ dog is very friendly!"

"The"

^{The dog is already mentioned in the first sentence, so it becomes unique.}

400

"Many people believe that ______ knowledge is power,"

Ø

^{"knowledge" is an abstract noun!}

500

"There is a popular saying: 'Dogs are _____ man's best friends',"

"A"

^{This idiom uses a nonspecific, singular man.}

Count vs non count

100

I want to drink Milk

Non-count

^{This noun is a substance}

200

This cost 10 Dollars

Count

^{Dollars may be counted individually.}

300

How many Songs has that artist recorded?

Count

^{Songs may be counted individually.}

400

Do you listen to Music?

Non-count

^{Can not be counted individually.}

500

Let's write down our Thoughts about this topic.

Count

^{Can be counted individually.}

Generic vs Non-generic

100

I bought a new dog, but the dog bites people.

Specific

200

The cat purrs when I give him treats.

Specific

300

Dogs bark.

Generic.

^{Refers to dogs in general.}

400

A bee sting can't hurt that much.

Generic

^{Refers to bee stings in general.}

500

The hyena is a species native to Africa.

Generic.

^{Refers to hyenas generally.}

Explain the different meaning

100

A cat was sleeping on the porch.

The cat was sleeping on the porch.

S2 indicates that it was a specific cat known to the speaker and hearer.

200

She wants to be a teacher.

She wants to be the teacher.

"A teacher" only implies the profession she wants. "The teacher" refers to a specific position.

300

Children need special care.

The children need special care.

S1 speaks about children generally. S2 refers to specific children.

400

Freedom is essential for creativity.

The Freedom of speech is essential for creativity.

S2 implies specific freedom, where it is only implied generally in S1.

500

Beauty has inspired people.

The beauty of this statue has inspired people.

S2 refers to the beauty of something in particular, where it is an abstract noun in S1.

Fix the mistake

100

She adopted a cat and a dog from shelter.

"the" shelter

200

I need an advice about this problem.

Get rid of "an"

Advice is not countable

300

He is a best player on the team.

Use "the", not "he"

"Best" means that the player is unique

400

She believes the honesty is always the best policy.

No article for "honesty".

Non-count because it is abstract. (slide 40)

500

He wants a truth about what really happened.

Use "the", not "a".

Truth is non-generic, and singular (slide 31)