Indefinite and definite articles

Question

Grammar: Help Please!

When do you use indefinite and definite articles in a sentence and when not to use them?

I can answer this in a simple way: - ericthemaddog, Oct 29, 2013

Answer 1

Hola y bienvenidos!

Yes, the use of definite articles in Spanish is a little different than in English. Check this out for a resource:

Definite Articles in Spanish

and this:

Singular Indefinite Articles

and this:

Indefinite and Definite Articles

Suerte!

Thank you!!! Very helpful! - MsLoopyfist, Aug 3, 2011

Answer 2

The answer requires more than 30 pages, I'm afraid, and the same goes for English. You'll have to ask something more specific, because the rules for articles are very complex. Fortunately, these rules are not that different in Spanish and English. One mayor exception is that Spanish requires the definite article in the subject for generic references, e.g. "El agua es un líquido".

Hmmm...I misunderstood. I thought she was asking for examples of each. Oh, well. - --Mariana--, Aug 2, 2011

Answer 3

There are 4 definite articles in spanish that all mean "the": el, la, los, las. They must match in gender and number with the noun they precede. For example, Tengo el libro = I have THE book. Use definite articles when referring to a specific/particular (definite, get it?) thing.

There are also 4 indefinite articles in spanish that can mean "a, an or some": un, una, unos, unas. They must match in gender and number to the noun they precede as well. For example, Tengo unos libros = I have SOME books. Use indefinite articles when referring to any, nonspecific thing.

Answer 4

HI and welcome to the forum.

An apple = una manzana (indefinite article)

The apple = la manzana (definite article)

Is that helpful?

Answer 5

To answer this question about Definite and Indefinate articles, Here is a simple way to distinguish the two

First of all, I'll list out the definite articles:

El, Lo, La, Los, Las

Second of all, the Indefinite articles:

Un, Unos, Una, Unas

Here is how to distinguish the differences between the two

First, we have masculine articles such as El or Lo, Los, Un and Unos Second, we have Feminine articles such as La, Las, Una and Unas

Keep in mind, that all nouns will have a gender and a number. This does not mean that they are male or female, but that it indicates whether a word is masculine or if it is feminine.

Normally, lets say you have words that end in "O" "N" and "L" such as Cuaderno, Avion and Papel etc etc...Words that end with an "O" "N" and "L" tend to be more masculine than feminine. So, in this case lets work out the noun Cuaderno meaning notebook in its Definite and Indefinite, as well as figuring out its singular and plural articles.

Also, before we do this, you must understand this as it is critical in the learning the articles and nouns. To form the plural noun, If the noun ends in a vowel, you add "s" in the end, and if the noun ends in a consonant, you add "es"

Definite Singular: El Cuaderno. Definite Plural: Los Cuadernos Indefinite Singular: Un Cuaderno Indefinite Plural: Unos Cuadernos

Now, when working with Feminine words, the noun of the word will have endings such as "a" "d" "zon" and "cion" with the articles such as Definite: La, Las, and Indefinite: Una and Unas.

For example, the word Chicas

Definite Singular: La Chica Definite Plural: Las Chicas Indefinite Singular: Una Chica Indefinite Plural: Unas Chicas

Notice how the endings of the articles and the nouns end in "a" or "as"? These are indications of it being feminine. And, also notice how the endings of the articles and nouns end in "o" or "os"? These are indications of it being feminine.

There is so much involved with Definite and Indefinite articles, but this is pretty much the gist of it all. Anything else, let me know and I can help you with it.