What you'll learn
By the end of this lesson, you'll be able to leave out the article where English demands it.
When do I use it?
Use NO article (the zero article) with:
- Plural nouns in general: "Cats are independent." (all cats)
- Uncountable nouns in general: "I love music." "Water is essential."
- Meals: "We had breakfast at eight."
- Transport: "I go to work by bus." "She travels by train."
- Institutions: "go to school / hospital / church / prison" (their main purpose)
- Countries, cities, languages: "I live in Spain. I speak Spanish."
- Fixed expressions: "at home", "at work", "in bed", "on time".
How do I form it?
(no article) + plural / uncountable noun (no article) + meal, transport, institution, place name
- Dogs need daily exercise.
- We had dinner at nine.
- He goes to work by metro.
- She was sent to hospital.
- They moved to Barcelona last year.
Common mistakes for Spanish speakers
Spanish uses "los/las" for general statements ("los gatos son independientes"), which speakers carry into English as "the cats are independent" — wrong when meaning cats in general. The zero article is also needed for "by bus" (not "by the bus"), "at work/home" (not "at the work"), "go to school" (not "to the school" unless a specific building), and "in bed". Only use "the" when referring to something specific.
General plural/uncountable, meals, transport, institutions, countries → no article.
Practice
Multiple Choice
B2Which sentence is correct?
Fill in the Blank
B2I go to work bus every morning.
Hint: Transport takes 'by' with no article: 'by bus'.
Sentence Transformation
B2Task: Rewrite about dogs in general, without the article
Hint: A general plural statement takes the zero article.
Multiple Choice
B2Which is correct?
Practice Speaking
Apply what you've learned in a real conversation with AI feedback.
Level: B2