No Words for A and The

Level 1

Latvian has no a or the. Māja means "a house" or "the house", so you simply use the noun.

How It Works

Where English needs a or the, Latvian uses the noun alone:

  • Māja ir liela. The house is big.
  • Tur ir māja. There is a house over there.
  • Viņš ir ārsts. He is a doctor.

So how do you know whether something is new or already known? Latvian has several tools:

  • Word order. New information tends to come last, and known information first. Stacijā ir kafejnīca introduces a café: there is a café at the station. Kafejnīca ir stacijā is about a café you already know: the café is at the station. See there is and there are and putting new information last.
  • Pointing words. šī māja (this house) and tā māja (that house) pick out one particular house. See this and that.
  • Adjective endings. An adjective can take a definite ending that works like "the": liela māja (a big house), lielā māja (the big house). See definite adjectives.
  • Context. Most of the time the situation makes the meaning clear.

Do not add viens (one) to translate "a". Viens is a number: Man ir viens brālis means I have one brother. For a job or a role, use the noun alone: Viņa ir studente (She is a student).

In casual speech you may hear tas or tā used almost like "the". In careful speech and in writing, leave it out unless you really mean "that".

Examples (6)

  1. Māja ir liela.

    The house is big.

    Word by Word: House is big.

  2. Tur ir māja.

    There's a house over there.

    Word by Word: There is house.

  3. Es gribu kafiju.

    I want a coffee.

    Word by Word: I want coffee.

    The same word covers a coffee, the coffee and just coffee.

  4. Stacijā ir kafejnīca.

    There's a café at the station.

    Word by Word: At-station is café.

    The café is new information, so it comes last.

  5. Kafejnīca ir stacijā.

    The café is at the station.

    Word by Word: Café is at-station.

    Now the café is already known, so it comes first.

  6. Viņš ir ārsts.

    He's a doctor.

    Word by Word: He is doctor.

Common Mistakes

  • Using viens as a word for "a".

    Viņš ir viens ārsts.
    Viņš ir ārsts.

    Viens means one, and it sounds wrong with a job or a role. Use the noun on its own.

  • Putting the new thing first when you mean "There is a good café in the park."

    Laba kafejnīca ir parkā.
    Parkā ir laba kafejnīca.

    Starting with the café talks about a café the listener already knows. To introduce a new one, put it at the end.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

No Words for A and TheLevel 1