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"Steve attended class." - Why don't we use any articles here?

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  • You could. You could use the if it were a specific class or a if it was nonspecific class. Without any article it just means class in a generic, mass noun sense.
    – Jason Bassford
    Jul 1, 2020 at 6:05

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"Steve" is a proper noun, and articles are used with proper nouns only if they are part of the name.

"class" is being used in its institutional sense, and in this sense it is treated as uncountable: compare "Steve went to school" or "Steve was sent to prison" or "Steve loves church".

There is variation, British English is more likely to drop the article in these context. And if we want to speak of a specific or singular non-specific class, an article could be used.

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