HANOI PEDAGOGICAL UNIVERSITY N
o
2
FOREIGN LANGUAGE FACULTY

TRAN THI MAI

COMMON ERRORS IN THE USE OF THE INDEFINITE
ARTICLES MADE BY THE STUDENTS IN
GRADE ELEVEN AT MY LOC HIGH SCHOOL (GRADUATION PAPER SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT
OF THE DEGREE OF BACHELOR OF ARTS IN ENGLISH)
Supervisor: PHI THI THO, B.A
HANOI-2014

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ABSTRACT

The indefinite articles “a/an” is a basic category in English grammar. It
is considered as a part of speech (adjective) as it modifies a noun. However,
not everybody can use the indefinite articles “a/an” in a correct way. In
addition, the uses of the indefinite articles have not been dealt with in full
and sometimes cause confusion to learners of English.
As a result, students of English often make errors when they use the
indefinite articles. Hence, it is necessary to investigate the uses of the
indefinite articles so that students can avoid making errors in using the
indefinite articles and propose solutions to the problem.
Based on material analysis, results of conducting a survey and error
analysis, the types of errors and causes have been found. Solutions to the
problem have been suggested.
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Abstract ii
Statement of authorship iii
Table of contents iv
PART ONE
INTRODUCTION
I. Rationale 1
II. Research presupposition 1
III. Research objectives 2
IV. Research scope 2
V. Research tasks 2
VI. Research methods 2
VII. Significance of the research work 3
VIII. Design of the research work 3
PART TWO
DEVELOPMENT
CHAPTER ONE: THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
I.1 Literature review in brief 4
I.2 The articles 5
I.2.1 Definition 5
I.2.2 Classification 5
I.2.2.1 Definite article 5
I.2.2.2 Indefinite articles 5
I.3 The indefinite articles “a, an” 5
I.3.1 Definition 5
I.3.2 Functions 6
I.3.2.1 As an adjective 6
I.3.2.2 As a quantifier 6
I.3.2.3 As a determiner 6
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CHAPTER THREE
THE RESULT
III.1 Results of the survey 15
III.2 Common errors and analysis 16
III.2.1 Errors in the use of the indefinite articles “a/an” and the definite “the” 16
III.2.2 Errors in the use of the indefinite articles and uncountable noun 17
III.2.3 Errors in the use of indefinite articles and zero article 18
III.2.4 Errors in the use of indefinite articles “a” and “an” 18
III.2.5 Errors in the use of indefinite articles and fixed expression 19
III.2.6 Errors in the use of indefinite articles in describing people and things 19
III.3 Suggested solutions and suggested exercise 20
III.3.1 Suggested solutions 20
III.3.2 Suggested exercises 21
PART THREE
CONCLUSION
Conclusion 25
Limitations and suggestions for further study 26
References 28
Survey questionnaire 29
Suggested exercises 34

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PART ONE
INTRODUCTION

III. Research objectives
The study is aimed at the following goals:
1. To find out the main errors in the use of the indefinite articles made by
the students in grade 11 at My Loc High School in the academic year of
2013/2014.
2. To find out the causes of the errors in the use of the indefinite articles
by the students in grade 11 at My Loc High School in the academic year of
2013/2014.
3. To offer some suggestions to minimize the errors made by the students
in grade 11 at My Loc High School in the academic year of 2013/2014 through a
survey.
IV. Research scope
The general research area of this study is grammar.
The phenomenon is focused on the errors in using the indefinite
articles made by the students in grade 11 at My Loc High School in the
academic year of 2013/2014.
The population involved in the study is 100 students at My Loc High
School in the academic year of 2013/2014.
V. Research tasks
The study involves the following tasks:
1. Studying the definition of the indefinite articles in English
2. Studying the functions and uses of the indefinite articles in English
3. Conducting a survey to find out error types and causes of the uses of
the indefinite articles in English
4. Suggesting some solutions to minimize the students‟ errors
VI. Research methods
To achieve the objectives of the study, the following methods have
been applied:
1. Collecting, reading and analyzing documents listed in the references
2. Consulting the supervisor, experienced teachers and students
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PART TWO
DEVELOPMENT

CHAPTER ONE
THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
I.1 Literature review in brief.
The indefinite articles is a small part in English Grammar. It has been
researched by grammarians like Thomson and Martinet (1989), Alexander
(1988), Hewings (1999), Baugh (1993) and so on. They each have their own
ways to describe the indefinite articles. It is visible that their contributions
are so great. Generally, they often focus their attention on the definition,
functions, classification and the uses of the indefinite articles.
In the book Longman English Grammar, Alexander (1988) studied the
uses of the indefinite articles and distinguished between the indefinite articles
and “one”.
Swan (1984) in the book Basic English Usage paid much attention to
some cases in which we do not use the indefinite articles. He also focused on
the differences between the indefinite articles and the definite article.
In the book Oxford Practice Grammar, Eastwood (1992) gave the uses
of the indefinite articles. Moreover, he showed some exceptions in using the
indefinite articles and differences between the indefinite articles and “some”
and “one”.
Hewings (1999) in the book Cambridge English Advanced Grammar
in Use discussed the definition as well as the classification of and the uses of
the indefinite articles.
In short, much research has been done on the indefinite articles but

used to mean one.
Bob has a book on his desk.
I’m hungry. I would like an apple.
(Azar, 1995: 185)
Alexander (1990) in Longman English Grammar for Intermediate
notices: A and an have exactly the same meaning. We use a in front of
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consonant sounds (a man, a year) and an in front of vowel sounds (an
umbrella, an eye, an hour).
Thomson and Martinet (1989) in A Practical English Grammar
describe: the form a is used before a word beginning with a consonant, or a
vowel with a consonant sound: a university, a European, a man; the form an
is used before words beginning with a vowel (a, e, i, o, u) or words beginning
with a mute h or individual letter spoken with a vowel sound: an uncle, an
hour, an egg, an MP, an SOS (p.9).
I.3.2 Functions
I.3.2.1 As an adjective
In the book Longman Dictionary of Grammar and Usage, Kam Chuan
Aik mentions that “the words a, an and the are articles. As a part of speech,
articles are considered adjectives because they modify nouns”. Therefore, the
articles have the same function as adjectives. For example:
There is a boy in class.
An angry person
I.3.2.2 As a quantifier
The plural of a/an is some or any when we refer to “quantity”.
Moreover, some and any are most frequently used as quantifiers; the
indefinite articles have function as quantifier. For instance:
There’s a sandwich on the plate.
There are some sandwiches on plate.

music
A mercy/pity/shame/wonder can be used with that-clause introduced
by it: It’s a pity you weren’t here
A fear/fears, a hope/hopes, a suspicion/suspicions: These can be
used with that-clauses introduced by there. For example:
There is a fear/There are fears that he has been murdered.
I.3.3.1.1 To describe people and things with “a/an” + noun
 We use some words as adjectives or nouns when we want to describe
people. When we use them as countable nouns, we always put a/an in front of
them, e.g.
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- Nationality: She‟s American. (adjective) or: She‟s an American. (noun)
- Religion: She‟s Anglican. (adjective) or: She‟s an Anglican
- Politics: He‟s Conservative. (adjective) or: He‟s a Conservative (noun)
 We use some words only as countable nouns (people and things) and
we always put a/an in front of them. For example: He‟s a doctor (Not “He’s
doctor”); we can also use adjective + noun: She‟s a good girl (Not “She’s good
girl).
 We can use a/an in front of proper nouns (names spelt with a capital
letter) for:
- Members of a family: He‟s a Forsyte. (= a member of the Forsyte family)
- Literature and art: It‟s a Dickens novel, It‟s a Brecht play
I.3.3.1.2 To represent for a class or thing as whole
The indefinite articles is used before singular countable noun which is
used as an example of a class of things:
A car must be insured = All cars/Any car must be insured.
A child needs love = All children need/Any child needs love.
I.3.3.2 Using indefinite article in numbers, quantity and others
The indefinite articles can be used with certain numbers: a hundred; before

catch (a) cold, have (a/an) backache/earache/stomach-ache/toothache
I.3.3.4.3 Using in the structure: so/as/too/such + adjective + a/an + singular
noun
We can use the indefinite articles in the structures:
So
+ adjective + a/an + singular noun
As
Too
Such
For example: It’s such a long way to the beach
She is so pretty a girl!
She is as pretty a girl as her sister.
This is too heavy a suitcase to carry.
Vick got such a nice welcome that she almost cried.

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I.3.3.4.4 Using after quite, such, many, before very, fairly, really
After quite, such, and many we can use a phrase with a/an:
Many a man thinks so
It is quite an old house
I have had such a busy day!
A/an go before very, fairly, really:
I made a really stupid mistake.
It is a fairly long walk.
educational level is impossible. Therefore, this thesis is only focus on
common errors in the use of the indefinite articles made by the students of
English in grade 11 at My Loc High School. To find out the errors made by
those students, a survey questionnaire was conducted.
Survey questionnaire is chosen because it is believed to be simple way
to gather data from a large number of respondents. Additionally, it is
relatively easy to summarize and report as all the informants answer the same
question. Last but not least, one of the most important to choose this tool is
that the students taking part in the survey have opportunity to express their
opinions and needs without worries either to be embarrassed or to be
punished.
II.1.1 Purpose of the survey
The overall objectives of the survey questionnaire are to test students‟
understanding of the indefinite articles and find out common errors in the use
of the indefinite articles “a and an” made by the eleventh-grade students at
My Loc High School in the academic year of 2013-2014.
II.1.2 Population of the survey
The number of student participating in the survey questionnaire is one
hundred students in grade 11 at My Loc High School. English is one of the
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compulsory subjects. They have been learning English for five to seven
years. Naturally, they have been taught some of the indefinite articles uses.
Some of them are really good at grammar but some of them are bad at
grammar in general and the indefinite articles in particular.
II.1.3 Type of the survey
The questionnaire is the form of a test, which has the following types
of exercises: filling in the blanks and choosing the correct answers. In short,
there are 60 sentences in the questionnaire. The time limit is 45 minutes.
II.1.4 Construction of the survey

1. The questions on the use of the indefinite articles “a, an” and the
definite article “the” are in numbers 12, 16, 21,25, 37, 54, 55, 56, 57 and 60.
2. The questions on the use of the indefinite articles and uncountable noun
are in numbers 14, 17, 20, 23, 26, 29, 31, 34, 44 and 49.
3. The questions on the use of the indefinite articles and zero article are in
numbers 13, 18, 22, 24, 36, 41, 51, 52, 53 and 58.
4. The questions on the use of the indefinite article “a” and “an” are in
numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10.
5. The questions on the use of the indefinite articles and fixed expression
are in numbers 11, 15, 19, 27, 28, 30, 39, 43, 46 and 50.
6. The questions on the use of the indefinite articles in describe someone‟s
profession are in numbers 32, 33, 35, 38, 40, 42, 45, 47, 48 and 59.
II.1.6 Administration of the try-out
II.1.6.1 Preparation of the try-out
The teachers in charge of the two classes, the students of which were
intended to do the survey questionnaire, were asked for permission before the
try-out was carried out.
II.1.6.2 Try-out
Try-out was conducted on March, 2014. One hundred students were
politely asked to do the questionnaire as well as possible in compliance with
their own ability. They were instructed carefully before answering the
questionnaire. Importantly, they were reminded that the result of the
questionnaire was to serve the research and it had no influence on their study
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results. Hence, they made their real effort to do questionnaire without
copying from the others. The allocated time for sixty questions was forty-
five minutes.
II.1.7 Method of data analysis
After collecting the data from survey questionnaires, the average

Errors in the use of the indefinite articles and the definite article
69
2
Errors in the use of the indefinite articles and fixed expression
59
3
Errors in the use of the indefinite articles and the zero article
53
4
Errors in the use of the indefinite articles and uncountable noun
46
5
Errors in the use of the indefinite articles “a” and “an”
42
6
Errors in the use of the indefinite articles in describe people and
things
39
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The specific percentage of these errors is given in the following chart:

The bar chart indicates the common errors in the uses of the indefinite
articles “a/an” made by the eleventh-grade students at My Loc High School.
It can be seen from the chart, the highest percentage of errors is the one
in the use of the indefinite articles and the definite articles, which accounted
for 69%. The lowest percentage of errors is one in the use of the indefinite
articles in describing people and things, only 39%. Hence, the percentage of
students who made errors in the use of the indefinite and the definite article
nearly doubled the percentage of students who made errors in the use of the

been mentioned again.
However, we can use “the” before singular countable noun to make
general statements about animals and about inventions and discoveries and
also use “the” with musical instruments. Therefore, it makes the students
confused. For example:
The fly is a common insect.
Who invented the camera?
Natasha can play the piano.
III.2.2 Errors in the use of the indefinite articles and uncountable nouns
46% of the errors involve using the indefinite articles and uncountable
nouns. Looking at the following example:
Circle the correct answer:
I have information about bees.
A. a B. an C. some D. one
Wrong answer: B. an
Correct answer: C. some
This type is mainly caused by the mistakenness about the use of the
indefinite articles with countable and uncountable noun. The indefinite
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articles are only used with the singular countable noun. We do not use the
indefinite articles with plural and uncountable noun.
However, many of the uncountable nouns can be used in a particular
sense and are then countable and can take “a/an” in the singular and some
uncountable nouns are often preceded by some, any, no, a little etc. or by
nouns as bit, peace, slice + of. For instance:
He had an exciting experience/ some exciting experiences last week.
A peace/ bit of information (also an item of information)
A bit of news, a sheet of paper
III.2.3 Errors in the use of the indefinite articles and zero article