This inspires a more general question (and thus a change ... dictionaries claim that they are variants of the same word. "Thy" and "thigh". "Either" and "ether". Those are the canonical two pairs that you

My grammar book says that "articles usually function as adjectives". ... What part of speech do you consider them to be? Determiners (a word class that includes certain pronouns, too). Next! Just how many parts of speech isn't my

Thus spake Adam Entous: Are they? Who says? It's perfectly possible to live without articles - ask any Russian. My grammar book says that "articles usually function as adjectives". It doesn't specifically say they are adjectives.

Why are articles considered adjectives? They do not describe the property or condition of a subject, noun, or object. If they weren't grammatically significant I would think they are interjections. They are *not* considered adjectives, except