ZERO Article

"—"

Sometimes it is possible to have a noun phrase with NO article—the so-called "ZERO article".

I need a bowl of rice. ← indefinite article

I like the rice in this restaurant. ← definite article

I eat rice every day. ← ZERO article

The ZERO article usually occurs in the following cases:

ZERO Article with Plural and Uncountable Nouns

General meaning

• cars, people
• life, water

Abstract nouns

• education, happiness, music

ZERO Article with Singular Countable Nouns

Names

People: Mary, Bill, Josef
Places: Jupiter, Russia, Bangkok, Heathrow Airport, Cambridge University, Waterloo Station
Streets: Oxford Street, Wall Street, Picadilly Circus
Languages: English, Russian
Academic subjects: History, Law, Physics
Days, months: Monday, November

Games and Sports

• football, chess

Meals

• breakfast, lunch, dinner

Noun + Number

• platform 3, room 7, page 44

Routine Places

• in bed, at home, to school, to work

Movement or Transport

• on foot, by car, by bus, by air

Newspaper Headlines, Notices, User Guides

• Plane Crashes On House, Keep Area Clean, Insert battery

Example Sentences

Here are some example sentences showing the ZERO article in context.

• Cars can be dangerous.
• We seldom see courage like that.
• I could see clouds in the sky.
• There was milk on the doorstep.
• I gave it to Mary.
• She arrived in Bangkok yesterday.
• Do you speak French?
• He is good at tennis.
• People will travel to Mars soon.
• He is in room 45.
• Please turn to page 67.
• She's in bed.
• Are you at home?
• They took her to hospital.
• I'm leaving town tomorrow by car.
• I go to school by bus.
• We usually meet on Monday.
• November is quite cold.

The ZERO Article is sometimes also called the ZERO Determiner.