Articles of Speech
THE, A, AN
There are three articles of speech and they modify nouns.
There are three articles of speech: "the," "a," and "an." Like adjectives, they modify nouns and come before the noun or adjective modifying the noun, e.g. the blue moon.
There are two categories of articles: definite and indefinite.
A definite article identifies a specific noun, e.g. The math teacher said to complete and turn in homework before the end of school the following day. In this case, the teacher is one specific teacher, who assigned homework in math. It was not any teacher, but a specific teacher. Hence the definite article is used.
An indefinite article modifies a non-specific noun, e.g. A teacher is one who gives homework to students. In this case it is not a specific teacher but can be any teacher. Hence the indefinite article is used.
When should one capitalize articles?
Articles are capitalized:
at the beginning of sentences, The grey fox jumped over the fence.
at the beginning of Titles, The Dream of the Rood
and in some cases within titles, when all words in the title are capitalized, The Dream Of The Rood.
Rule of thumb:
Be consistent.
Check with your editor, teacher or supervisor which preference s/he has.
There is a difference between Chicago Manual of Style and Associated Press rules, so it can vary depending on which is prefered..
There are two categories of articles: definite and indefinite.
A definite article identifies a specific noun, e.g. The math teacher said to complete and turn in homework before the end of school the following day. In this case, the teacher is one specific teacher, who assigned homework in math. It was not any teacher, but a specific teacher. Hence the definite article is used.
An indefinite article modifies a non-specific noun, e.g. A teacher is one who gives homework to students. In this case it is not a specific teacher but can be any teacher. Hence the indefinite article is used.
When should one capitalize articles?
Articles are capitalized:
at the beginning of sentences, The grey fox jumped over the fence.
at the beginning of Titles, The Dream of the Rood
and in some cases within titles, when all words in the title are capitalized, The Dream Of The Rood.
Rule of thumb:
Be consistent.
Check with your editor, teacher or supervisor which preference s/he has.
There is a difference between Chicago Manual of Style and Associated Press rules, so it can vary depending on which is prefered..