Cuarta lección de nuestro curso de inglés en su nivel intermedio. En esta ocación vamos a aprender de qué manera artículos en inglés como "a" y "the" son usados comúnmente en frases que hablan de visitas a lugares turísticos y también sobre los días festivos.

Upper intermediate - sightseeing

Study points

In this lesson we will look at how articles like "a" and "the" are used in common phrases in places names and for holidays. For example "I had a great time traveling in the U.S.", "I had the time of my life in Australia".

Watch

You´re now going to watch a movie where two friends discuss cultures in different countries. After the movie you´ll have a quick lesson and you will have the chance to practice the articles "the" and "a".

Learn

Now let´s look more closely at some of the words and phrases where articles like "a" and "the" are used.

"In the West", "the time of my life", in these phrases we always use the definite article "the".

With the word "few", we often use the indefinite article "a". "A few days".

And there are some words and phrases were we never use an article at all. We don´t use any article before most countries name and holidays. For example you can say: "We celebrate Christmas at my house".  "I love going to France". 

Try

It is easy to remember with a little practice. Give it a try:

"Where does the sun set?" "The sun sets in the West".
How do you say you had a really excellent time? "I had the time of my life"
What do you know about these places? (Brazil and Egypt) Brazil: "My favorite coffee comes from Brazil". Egypt: "Everyone knows the famous pyramids are in Egypt".
What do you know about these celebrations? (Easter and Halloween) Easter: "Easter is celebrated in the spring". Halloween:" Halloween is very popular in the U.S." We do not use any articles before most countries name and holidays.

Now, just when you thought it was clear, be careful, there are a few exceptions. Sometimes we need "the" before a country name. Can you guess why? When the name includes "United", "Union" or "Republic", you use the definite article "the".

Review points

Today we´ve talked about how to use the articles "a" and "the". We use "a" and "the" in common phrases such as: "in the west", "I had the time of my life". We don´t use any article before most country name and holidays: "My favorite coffee comes from Brazil". We also talked about exceptions such as "the United States of America". Watch the movie again, for more examples using "a" and "the".

NOTA: Con este capítulo hemos llegado al final de nuestro curso.