Welcome to the first edition of English Times, the newsletter of 51pigai. Our newsletter will be sent you every two weeks and we are sure that you find the contents interesting and beneficial to your English writing and speaking. Each edition will contain our standard features which include our Question and Answer section, Grammar Lab and our crossword to assist vocabulary development. Try the exercises to test your knowledge of the grammar rule which has been outlined in the newsletter. Feel free to submit to your questions about your exam preparation to editor@51pigi.com. Our newsletter is aimed at assisting our readers to prepare for their examinations and we welcome any suggestions that our readers may offer for inclusion in future editions.

Ask any question related to your exam preparation, and receive our expert comments in the next issue. If your Question is selected and published in English Times, you will receive a complimentary Basic Grading of an essay of your choice.

“I have sat for my TOEFL twice. Each time I cannot complete my essay even though I know the topic well. I have to sit for my exam again in two months, what should I do because now my score is not good enough?” from Maggie1004

Maggie,
The important thing to remember in preparing for your exam is the ability to plan your time. Although you may know the topic very well, you only have limited time in which to write your ideas. Do not try to show the examiner how much you know, but be aware of what you can do within the time allowed. It is essential, that at least one month before you sit for your exam, that you practice writing your essays under exam conditions, that is within the time allowed, without dictionaries and without spell checkers.

Grammar is an important part of your essay. Your essay may be well planned and address the topic, but many good essays are spoilt with poor grammar. In each issue of English Times, we will provide a brief grammar review of key grammatical rules which need to be followed.

“The article”
Indefinite articles - “a” and “an” (determiners)
“A” and “an” are the indefinite articles. They refer to something not specifically known to the person you are communicating with.
“A” and “an” are used before nouns that introduce something or someone you have not mentioned before.

The definite article:
You use “the” when you know that the listener or reader knows or can work out what particular person/thing you are talking about.
"The apple you ate was rotten."
"Did you lock the car?"
You should also use “the” when you have already mentioned the thing you are talking about.
We use “the” to talk about geographical points on the globe.
• the North Pole, the equator
We use “the” to talk about rivers, oceans and seas
• the Nile, the Pacific, the English channel
We also use “the” before certain nouns when we know there is only one of a particular thing.
• the rain, the sun, the wind, the world, the earth, the White House etc..
However if you want to describe a particular instance of these you should use a/an.
• "I could hear the wind." / "There's a cold wind blowing."
“The” is also used to say that a particular person or thing being mentioned is the best, most famous, etc. In this use, 'the' is usually given strong pronunciation:
• "Harry's Bar is the place to go."
• "The books are expensive." = (Not all books are expensive, just the ones I'm talking about.)
• "Books are expensive." = (All books are expensive.)

No article:
We usually use no article to talk about things in general:-
“Inflation is rising”.
“People are worried about rising crime”. (Note! People generally, so no article)
You do not use an article when talking about sports.
• My son plays football.
• Tennis is expensive.
You do not use an article before uncountable nouns when talking about them generally.
• Information is important to any organization.
• Coffee is bad for you.