Which articles should I put? [duplicate]

Question

This question already has an answer here:

• Articles: When do I use “a”, “the”, or “__”? 2 answers

Articles confuse me very much. Please, can anyone tell me which articles should I put in these sentences and why:

__ horse in this photo is beautiful. Is that __ girl or __ boy on its back?

__ castle on that hill is very old. Is that __ bird or __ plane up there (above the castle in the sky)?

In these sentences, I think, "The" article should be in front of 'horse' and 'castle' but which articles should I put in front of the other two words in each sentence?

Answer 1

Yes, horse and castle will have "the" in front of them. This is because a specific horse/castle is being referred to, and they are not being referred to in a general sense.

The other blanks will be filled with "a". This is because the questions are asking about whether it is one general object (girl/boy/bird/plane), of many, rather than a specific object (a specific person, bird, or plane).

Examples where this would be reversed:

• Is that the girl you are friends with or the boy I met on its back?
• Is that the bird I saw or the plane you own up there?

When deciding which to use, ask yourself whether the object is a general term, like bird or plane, or whether you are referring to something specific, like something you own.