Article is the class of words that precedes the noun to define, limit or modify its use. The articles are divided into definite and indefinite.

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The Definite Article The is used before a noun already known by the listener or reader, and in some many special cases listed below.

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1. Nouns mentioned before, already defined by the speaker:

Peter wrote some letters and postcards. The letters were to his mother.

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2. Nouns that are unique in their kind:

 The universe (o universo),The Sun (o sol), the Moon (a lua), the sky (o céu), the planet Earth (o planeta Terra)

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3. Geographic names of rivers, seas, channels, oceans, poles, deserts, gulfs, island groups and mountains:

 The Pacif Ocean, The North Pole, The Sahara, The Gulf of Mexico, The Bahamas, The Alps, The Amazonas River, etc.

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4. Adjectives used as plural nouns:

The poor (os pobres), The powerful (os poderosos), The good (os bons), The bad (os maus)

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5. Some countries have the definite articles in their names

The United Kingdom (o Reino Unido)
The United States (os Estados Unidos)
The United Arab Emirates (os Emirados Árabes Unidos)
The Dominican Republic (a República Dominicana)

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6. With proper names to indicate the whole family or to specify the person being talked about:

The Jacksons are a famous family.
Os Jacksons são uma família famosa.

The Susan I'm talking about is the one that lives next door.
A Susan que estou falando é minha vizinha..

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7. Before names of musical instruments and rhythms / dances:

John plays the piano very well.
John toca piano muito bem.
Valéria dances the samba graciously.
Valéria dança samba graciosamente.

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8. Before names of newspapers:

The Economist, The New York Times, The Washington Post

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9. With most building names:

The Capitol, The Empire States, The Louvre, The Kremlin, The Taj Mahal, The Vatican

Exceptions: Buckingham Palace and all buildings with the word hall (Carnegie Hall, Lilly Hall).

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10. Before names of cinemas, theaters, hotels, restaurants, clubs, museums, libraries and art galleries:

There's a great film festival at the Paramount.
I saw Barbra Streisand at the Palladium in 1975.
We have a reservation at the Sharin hotel for next week.
We are going to have dinner at the Fasano restaurant.

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11. With the superlatives:

Rita is the nicest girl I know..

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12. With the comparative degree, to indicate that two things increase or decrease in the same proportion:

The more I study, the closer I get to my goal.

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13. With ordinal numbers indicating numerical emphasis:

The first time I met John, I thought he was German.

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The article  is omitted when we have.

 

1. Names of cities, states, islands, countries, continents.

Brazil, Germany, New York, Texas,etc

 

2. Proper names and possessive pronouns.

 

3. Plural nouns used in a generic sense.

Children are the future of the world.

 

4. Abstract nouns or those that indicate material.

Happiness is wished by all humans.

Gold is a precious metal

 

5. Nouns that denote sports, science, academic disciplines, colors, meals, seasons, months and days of the week.

 

6. Certain nouns such as bed, church, court, hospital, prison, college, school, market, home, society and work, when used for the purpose for which they are normally intended.

 

7. Before words that refer to languages.

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The indefinite articles A and An precede  nouns  which the speaker / reader is not yet aware.

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1) A is used before words that start with a consonant sound, the semivowel Y and the audible H:

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A book (um livro)
A house (uma casa)
A yellow car (um ano)
A university (uma universidade)

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2) AN is used before words that begin with a vowel sound and the mute / not audible H:

An egg (um ovo)
An evening (uma noite)       
An opera (uma ópera)          
An arm (um braço)

An umbrella ( um guarda-chuva)

An heir ( um herdeiro)

Attention: In English there are only four words that start with a mute / non-audible H:

heir (herdeiro)

honest (honesto)

hour (hora)

honor (honra)

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Note that the article A must also be used before words beginning with "EU", "EW" and "U", as these letters have the sound of a consonant when they appear at the beginning of words.

A European country, a uniform, a unique person

 

Be careful with the letter “W” and the word “ONE”

 

A watch, a wonderful day

A one-way trip, a one-dollar bill

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