The indefinite article

 The indefinite article is generally used before a singular countable noun when it has not
been mentioned before and does not represent a unique thing or person:

A man  and  a woman  came in.

 When the noun is mentioned again, the definite article the is used:

A man and a woman came in.  The man  was about 40 years old.

 A is used before a word beginning with a consonant sound, but if the following word
starts with a vowel sound, we use an:

Regina was wearing  a dark  skirt and  an orange  blouse.

My uncle is  a university  lecturer. (university starts with the vowel u but the consonant
sound /j/)
He is  an honest  man. (honest starts with the consonant h but it is silent here)

 The indefinite article is used before a noun when it refers to any member of a class of
things:

A real friend  is always by your side.  (Real friends are always by your side.)

 The indefinite article is used in certain expressions of quantity:

I'm having  a lot of problems  with Michael.

I think  a  great many people  will agree with me on that.

 The indefinite article is used with certain numbers and fractions:

a/one hundred, a/one thousand, a/one million

one and a half kilos / a kilo and a half
a/one third
a/one quarter
a dozen
a quarter of an hour
half a minute

 In expressions of measurement, the indefinite article can replace the more formal per:

He was driving at  80 miles an hour  when the car skidded.

"How much are those tomatoes?" "Three euros a kilo."
I go to the sauna  twice a month.

 The indefinite article is used before a noun which describes or classifies something:

That was  a lovely dinner!

Mary is  a teacher.
The koala is  a marsupial.
 The indefinite article is used with names of certain illnesses:

Is it  a cold  or just  an allergy?

I have  a splitting headache.

But:

The flu  is a virus that can make you sick for a week or longer.
(The) measles  is best known for its characteristic skin rash.

 The indefinite article can be used with a proper name to express uncertainty about the
person's identity or that the speaker does not know the person:

A Mr Smith  was looking for you this morning. (Someone called Mr Smith was looking for you
this morning.)

 The indefinite article can also be used before a proper name to refer to the
characteristic features of the person:

He was  an Einstein  of his time.

 A proper name with an indefinite article can refer to a work of art created by the
person:

He bought  a Picasso  at Sotheby's in 1970. (He bought a painting by Picasso.)

The definite article (THE)

The definite article is generally used before a noun which has a clear reference. This means
that it is clear who or what we are talking about because:

 the noun represents a unique thing or person in the context:

The president has resigned. (there is only one president in the country)

The earth  is growing warmer and warmer. (there is only one planet Earth)

 the noun has been mentioned before:

A man and a woman came in.  The man  was about 50 years old.

 a phrase or a clause after the noun makes it clear:

Do you know  the boy talking to Sally?

This is  the book that I told you about last week.
The photo on the left  was taken by my father.

The definite article is used before a noun when it represents a whole class of things:

The computer  has made text editing easier.

The polar bear  is threatened with extinction.

In less formal styles, the + noun can be replaced by a plural form without an article:

Computers  have made text editing easier.

Polar bears  are threatened with extinction.

The indefinite article is not possible in this sense as it would refer to one or any member of
the class but not the class as a whole:

A polar bear is threatened with extinction.

A computer has made text editing easier.

Man or mankind can be used to represent the human race and has no article:

Man  will eventually destroy himself.

However, the more gender-neutral term humankind is preferable to man or mankind:

Humankind  will eventually destroy itself.

The definite article is used before ordinal numbers and superlative adjectives:

This is  the first  time I've ridden a horse.

The 20th  century has seen  the bloodiest  wars in the history of humankind.
Jill is  the most intelligent  girl in the class.

Most has meanings which do not take the definite article the:

That was  most kind  of you. (very kind)

Most people  who lose weight regain it in a very short time. (the majority of people)

The definite article is also used before only, next, last, same, right and wrong + noun:

You are  the only person  I can tell.

When is  the next train  to Cambridge?
They have  the same surname, but they are not relatives.
What is  the right answer?

The definite article can be used before an adjective to refer to all the people
described by it. If the + adjective is followed by a verb, it will take a plural form:

The rich  get rich, and  the poor  stay poor.

Only  the brave  are free.

Many adjectives that describe a nationality behave in the same way unless they end
in -an:

The English  are famous for being very polite.

The French  eat a lot of cheese.

But:

Canadians  play a lot of hockey.

The definite article is used with certain geographical names:

Countries
Names of countries which are collective, plural or modified by an adjective or an of-
construction take the definite article the:
the Czech Republic
the Netherlands
the People's Republic of China
the Philippines
the United Kingdom (UK)
the United States of America (USA)

Bodies of water
the Amazon
the Ganges
the (English) Channel
the Panama Canal
the Atlantic (Ocean)
the Pacific (Ocean)

Deserts
the Gobi (Desert)
the Kalahari Desert
the Mojave Desert
the Patagonian Desert
the Sahara (Desert)

Mountain ranges
the Alps
the Andes
the Appalachians
the Great Dividing Range
the Himalayas

Points of the compass

the North
the South
the East
the West
the South Pole
the North Pole
the south of Italy
the Far East

But:

North  America
We were travelling  west.

Some constellations and other heavenly bodies

the Big Dipper (AmE) / the Plough (BrE) 
the Pleiades
the Cigar Galaxy
the Crab Nebula

But:

Orion
Cassiopeia

The definite article is often used with historical references:

The Iraq War  has divided the international public.

The Renaissance  started in Italy and slowly spread throughout Europe.

But:

This course surveys the second wave of  English Romanticism.