Nouns, articles & quantity · CEFR A2 · Everyday
When to use no article at all in English
Plural and uncountable nouns take no article when you mean them in general. Meals, languages and most place names take none either.
The shape
no article + plural or uncountable, in general
Know when leaving it out is correct.
In Hindi
सामान्य अर्थ में बहुवचन और अगणनीय संज्ञाओं के साथ कोई article नहीं आता।
CoCap explains every structure in both languages, because a rule you understand in Hindi is a rule you can use in English.
The mistake to fix first
The sentence Indian-English speakers actually produce, and the reason it is wrong.
| Commonly said | Correct English |
|---|---|
I like the mangoes. | I like mangoes. Mangoes in general take no article — "the mangoes" means particular ones. |
When to use no article at all examples
Easiest first. Every sentence is authored, with the Hindi it comes from.
I like fruit.
मुझे फल पसंद हैं।
I like apples.
मुझे सेब पसंद हैं।
I like bananas.
मुझे केले पसंद हैं।
I like rice.
मुझे चावल पसंद है।
I like lentils.
मुझे दाल पसंद है।
I like winters.
मुझे सर्दियाँ पसंद हैं।
I do not like summers.
मुझे गर्मियाँ पसंद नहीं हैं।
I eat roti at night.
मैं रात को रोटी खा{ता|ती} हूँ।
I drink milk in the morning.
मैं सुबह दूध पी{ता|ती} हूँ।
I eat rice in the afternoon.
मैं दोपहर में चावल खा{ता|ती} हूँ।
Learn these first
These come first. The rest of this makes more sense once they are automatic.
Easy to confuse with
Close enough to be mixed up with this one. Knowing the difference is most of knowing either.
- a / an / theA1Stop dropping the little words English cannot do without
- Talking about things in generalB2Make a general statement three different ways
Questions people ask
- What is the when to use no article at all used for?
- Plural and uncountable nouns take no article when you mean them in general. Meals, languages and most place names take none either. In practice: know when leaving it out is correct.
- How do you form the when to use no article at all?
- no article + plural or uncountable, in general.
- What is the most common mistake with the when to use no article at all?
- Saying “I like the mangoes.” instead of “I like mangoes.”. Mangoes in general take no article — "the mangoes" means particular ones.
Where when to use no article at all fits
Where this structure sits in the ladder, and what surrounds it.
When to use no article at all is a CEFR A2 structure — the everyday band — and it belongs to nouns, articles & quantity. CoCap’s syllabus files every structure this way so you can learn in order instead of jumping between whatever a search happened to return.
Reading it is not the same as saying it.
CoCap turns this page into practice: Hindi sentence in, English sentence out, corrected one thing at a time. Free, no card.
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