This book introduces and explores a phraseological perspective on the use of articles in L2 English. It argues that the correct use of articles in English by non-native speakers is aided by cognitive processes related to the formulaic character of language processing. However, the dominant view during the last century was that articles are primarily an element of the morphosyntax of English, and that the successful learning of articles consists of mastering relevant morphosyntactic rules. As a result, pedagogical grammars and teaching materials traditionally reflect the misconception that a limited set of rules will lead to using articles correctly in English, with the exception of some idiomatic or fixed uses, which have to be memorized. The first chapters of this book give an overview of how articles are conceptualized and their usage accounted for within various descriptive frameworks and theoretical approaches. This overview not only brings home the extent of the complexity of the principles that underlie the use of articles, but it also makes it clear that articles to a great extent elude description and explanation. Most importantly, “rules” turn out to be at best collections of regularities. Attempts at providing a definitive set of rules governing article use fail to account for the wide array of possible uses in written and spoken English. This means that the task facing L2 learners is indeed challenging.

After providing this broad overview of article use in English, this book presents two studies conducted on the topic of formulaicity and article use. In the first study, Polish ESL learners were consistently more successful at using articles when they appear in word combinations that are frequent, which can be interpreted as a sign of the idiom principle at work. The two main observations that emerged from Study 1 are that the “phraseological effect” is more apparent in less advanced learners of English, and that articles remain an area of difficulty even at advanced levels of English proficiency, as was previously found in research.