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Activities: “When to use the definite article with proper nouns in English?”

By: Erin Kuester
Associated Articles

These activities are part of our English Grammar series. The skills we are practicing here are covered in our article:

Activity 1: Article or no article?

Do the proper nouns below require the the or no article? Review the chart on which proper nouns require the, and then check out the pictures to determine if they need the definite article or not.

Hint:
If you are not sure, it is okay to look up the answer!

  • AirPods

    A photo of a set of Apple headphones.

  • Bahamas

    A photo of a tropical beach on a sunny day.

  • Mount Everest

    A photograph of a very tall snowy mountain peak.

  • Mississippi River

    A photo of a large river in the autumn, taken from a bluff high above.

  • Millers

    A photograph of a family of three stands in a garden with their thumbs up. A woman is in front, a man stands behind her, and a little girl is on the man's shoulders.

  • University of Chicago

    A photo of a a gothic-style university building in the fall. Red ivy climbs up the facade.

  • Harry Potter

    A photo of a bubbling cauldron, open spell books, and faux candles. In the background someone dressed in a Harry Potter outfit pokes the cauldron with a wand.

  • Gobi Desert

    A photo of three Bactrian camels walking through desert sand.

Activity 2 - Postcard from a Friend

Take a look at this postcard from Emily to her friend Zoe. Emily has made a few mistakes with common and proper nouns. Can you see the mistakes she made? How do you know these are errors with common and proper nouns? Fix them by typing the correct forms in the bow below.

A photo of the Empire State Building and the Manhattan skyline at sunset.

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