Articles

Objectives
After studying this module, you will be able to:

 become efficient in the use of articles of English grammar

 realize how these articles appear quite simple yet their usage is cumbersome
 write and speak grammatically correct sentences without any flaws in the usage of
articles
 employ ‘a’, ‘an’ and ‘the’ in your English sentences without feeling perplexed
 acquaint yourself with the general rules of using articles along with introduction to
certain exceptions

Introduction

What are Articles?

Articles fall under the category of determiners in English grammar. They are used in the
beginning of a noun phrase in a sentence.
They are further divided into two types:
(a) Definite Articles
(b) Indefinite Articles

What are the differences between indefinite and definite articles?

Indefinite Articles Definite Articles

1.They are used with singular countable 1.They are used with all nouns whether
nouns. countable or uncountable and singular
or plural.

2. They are used for a non-specific 2. They are used for specific people or
person or a thing. things.

3. They are used while talking about 3. They are used while talking about
something or someone in general. something and someone in particular.

4. ‘A’ and ‘an’ are the indefinite 4. ‘The’ is the definite article.
articles.

Rules for using ‘a’ and ‘an’ in English language

Rule 1: It is imperative to use ‘a/an’ before a singular common noun.

If you do not follow this rule, then the text written or spoken in English will be both
grammatically inaccurate and incomplete.
For example,

1. He carried a bag to the school.

2. I have a pen.
3. My friend lent me a book.
4. The child was excited to see an airplane.
5. Sarah ate an egg for breakfast.
6. The child saw a dog.
7. She is just creating an issue.
8. My room was a mess.
9. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
10. My father is an inspiration for me.

Rule 2: We use the article ‘a’ before the words that begin with a consonant sound.
What is a consonant sound?
According to the Cambridge English dictionary, it is a speech sound produced by human beings
when the breath that flows out through the mouth is blocked by the teeth, tongue, or lips.
Except for the vowels in English – a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y – all the letters are consonants.

Look at following examples.

1. She is a photographer by profession.

2. The parents gifted a toy to their child.
3. The girl carried a basket of fruits.
4. Max gave a beautiful watch to his sister.
5. Maria bought a red dress for herself.
 6. He is a good boy.
7. She is a beautiful girl.
8. I have a basket of fruits.
9. I have bought a new water bottle.
10. The child threw a stone in the pond.

Rule 3: We use the article ‘an’ before the words that begin with a vowel sound.
What is a vowel sound?
According to the Cambridge English dictionary, it is a speech sound produced by human beings
when the breath flows out through the mouth without being blocked by the teeth, tongue or lips.
The vowels in English are “a, e, i, o, u, and sometimes y.”

Look at the following examples.

1. Mary carried an umbrella to the school.

2. Her friend is an obedient woman.
3. I do not have an iota of doubt in his abilities.
4. The child was scared to see an eagle in the sky.
5. An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
6. It was an astounding revelation.
7. My sister is an amazing dancer.
8. The teacher demanded an answer from the student.
9. She put the letter in an envelope.
10. My parents played an instrumental role in my success.

Observe the following sentences:

1. The child had a box of chocolates.

2. He is an honest person.

1. Even though chocolates denote a plural noun, we have used ‘a’

because box denotes a singular noun.
2. You might say that the ‘h’ is a consonant but when you carefully
listen to the pronunciation of ‘honest’, you will hear the vowel
sound.
 Observe the following sentences:

1. He is honest.
2. She is beautiful.
3. She works efficiently.
4. He is swimming.
5. I admire him.

You might wonder as to why we have not used any articles in the previous sentences. The
reasons are as follows:

 In the 1st sentence and 2nd sentence, honest and beautiful are adjectives and not
noun phrases.
 In the 3rd sentence, ‘efficiently’ is an adverb and not a noun phrase.
 In the 4th sentence, swimming is a verb and not a noun phrase.
 In the 5th sentence, ‘him’ is a pronoun and not a noun phrase.

Hence, we use the articles ‘a’ and ‘an’ only before a noun phrase.

Rules for using ‘the’ in English language

Rule 1: We use ‘the’ when we mean something in particular.

The examples are as follows:

1. I like your garden. The flowers are beautiful.

(The flowers = the flowers in your garden, not flowers in general)

2. All the students in the class like their teacher.

(the students = the students in that particular class)

Rule 2: ‘The’ is used with the names of rivers, seas, oceans, bays, banks, hotels, musical
instruments, mountain ranges, municipal or government departments, substances in
particular sense.
The examples are as follows:

1. Rivers: The Ganges, The Amazon

2. Seas: The Red sea, The Black sea
3. Oceans: The Pacific Ocean, The Atlantic Ocean, The Indian ocean
4. Bays: The Bay of Bengal
5. Banks: The State Bank of India
 6. Hotels: The California hotel, The Leila, Mount View, Shivalik View
7. Musical Instruments: the piano, the guitar, the violin
8. Mountain Ranges: The Aravalli
9. Municipal or government departments: The Ministry of defense, The Sydney Opera
House
10. Substances in particular sense: The gold mined here is of poor quality.

Rule 3: ‘The’ is used before the superlative degree of the adjective.

The examples are as follows:

1. She is the best in her field.

2. India is the second largest country in the world.
3. Sarah scored the highest marks in the class.
4. Oscar is the tallest boy in his class.
5. My friend is one of the most intelligent students in her group.
6. She is one of the most beautiful women I have ever met.
7. My friend is the most efficient teacher in the school.
8. He cooks the most delicious lasagna.
9. He was successful in solving one of the most difficult problems.
10. He ate the smallest portion of the pizza.

Rule 4: We use ‘the’ with ordinals.

The examples are as follows:

1. Neil Armstrong was the first person to set foot on the moon.
2. We had to walk up to the sixth floor of the building as the elevator broke down.
3. He is the first doctor in his family.
4. The restaurant was on the second floor of the mall.
5. I could not reach the top floor of the hotel.

Rule 5: We use ‘the’ with words like ‘king’ or ‘queen’.

However, we do not use ‘the’ if the word ‘king’ or ‘queen’ is followed b
the name of the king or the queen.
For example,

1. The king ruled in favor of the masses.

2. Queen Victoria ruled over England for 63 years.
Rule 6: We do not use ‘the’ when we mean something or someone in general.
For example,

1. Flowers are beautiful. (flowers = not any particular group of flowers)

2. I am afraid of dogs. (dogs = not any dogs in particular)
3. Do you collect stamps? (stamps = not any stamps in particular)

Rule 7: We do not say ‘the’ with the names of continents.

For example, it is Africa and not the Africa, Europe and not the Europe,
North America and not the North America.

Rule 8: We do not usually use ‘the’ names of states and countries.

For example, France, Japan, Nigeria, Australia, India, Punjab, Haryana,
Chandigarh

However, we use ‘the’ with the names that includ , ‘kingdom’, ‘republic’,
‘states’.
For example, The Unites States of America, The United Kingdom, The
People’s Republic of China.

Rule 9: We do not use ‘the’ with the names of cities, towns or villages.
Exception: The Hague (in the Netherlands)

Rule 10 We do not use ‘the’ with the names of lakes.

For example, Lake Victoria.
Exception: Although we use ‘the’ with names of the regions, for example,
the Middle East, the Far East, but we say northern France, western
Canada.

Since the difference between ‘something in general’ and ‘something is

particular’ is not always apparent, we can observe the following examples
to understand it well.
 The examples are as follows:

1. I like working with people. (people in general)

2. I like working with people who are lively. (not all people but people who are lively is
still a very general idea)
3. I like the people I work with. (a particular group of people)
4. Do you like coffee? (coffee in general)
5. Do you like strong black coffee? (not all coffee, but strong black coffee is still a very
general idea)
6. Did you like the coffee we had after dinner? (particular coffee)

Omission of a/ an
a/an is omitted;

A. Before plural nouns, a/an has no plural form.

So, the plural of a dog is dogs, and of an egg is eggs.
B. Before uncountable nouns
C. Before names of meals, except when these are preceded by an adjective:
We have breakfast at eight. He gave us a good breakfast.
The article is also used when it is a special meal given to celebrate something or in
someone's honor:
I was invited to dinner (at their house, in the ordinary way) but I was invited to a dinner
given to welcome the new ambassador.

Omission of the
The definite article is not used:

1. Before names of places except as shown above, or before names of people.

2. Before abstract nouns except when they are used in a particular sense;
Men fear death but ‘The death’, ‘a/the’ Prime Minister left his party without a leader.

3. After a noun in the possessive case, or a possessive adjective:

 the boy's uncle = the uncle of the boy
 It is my (blue) book = The (blue) book is mine.

4. Before names of meals:

 The Scots have porridge/or breakfast but The wedding breakfast was held in her/other's
house.

5. Before names of games: He plays golf.

6. Before parts of the body and articles of clothing, as these normally prefer a possessive
adjective:

o Raise your right hand.

o Fie took off his coat.

But, notice that sentences of the type:

1. She seized the child's collar.

2. I patted his shoulder.
3. The brick hit John's face.

These very sentences could also be expressed as:

1. She seized the child by the collar.
2. I patted him on the shoulder.
3. The brick hit John in the face.

Similarly, in the passive:

1. He was hit on the head.
2. He was cut in the hand.

Note that in some European languages, the definite article is used before indefinite plural
nouns but that in English, ‘the’ is never used in this way:

1. Women are expected to like babies, (i.e. women in general)

2. Big hotels all over the world are very much the same.

If we put the before women in the first example, it would mean that we were referring to a
particular group of women.
Nature, where it means the spirit creating and motivating the world of plants and animals etc.,
is used without the: If you interfere with nature you will suffer for it.

Omission of the before home, before church, hospital, prison, school etc. and before work,
sea and town.

A home
(When home is used alone, i.e. is not preceded or followed by a descriptive word or phrase the
is omitted):

1. He is at home. home used alone can be placed directly after a verb of motion, i.e. it can
be treated as an adverb:
2. He went home.
3. I arrived home after dark.

But when home is preceded or followed by a descriptive word or phrase, it is treated like any
other noun:

1. They went to their new home.

2. We arrived at the bride's home.
3. For some years this was the home of your queen.
4. A mud hut was the only home he had ever known.

bed, church, court, hospital, prison, school/college/university

‘The’ is not used before the nouns listed above when these places are visited or used for their
primary purpose. We go:

 to bed
 to sleep
 to hospital as patients
 to church to pray
 to prison as prisoners
 to court as litigants e
 to school/college/university to study

Similarly, we can be:

 in bed,
 sleeping or resting in hospital as patients
  at church as worshippers
 at school etc. as students
 in court as witnesses
 We can be/get back (or be/get home) from school/college/university.
 We can leave school, leave hospital, be released from prison.

When these places are visited or used for other reasons the is necessary:

 I went to the church to see the stained glass.

 He goes to the prison sometimes to give lectures

sea

 We go to sea as sailors.

To be at sea = to be on a voyage (as passengers or crew).

But to go to or be at the sea = to go to or be at the seaside.

 We can also live by/near the sea.

work and office work (= place of work) is used without the:

 He's on his way to work.

 He is at work.
 He isn't back from work yet.

Note that at work can also mean 'working'; hard at work = working hard:

 He's hard at work on a new picture.

office (= place of work) needs the:

 He is at/in the office.

To be in office (without the) means to hold an official (usually political) position.

To be out of office = to be no longer in power.

town
the can be omitted when speaking of the subject's or speaker's own town:

 We go to town sometimes to buy clothes.

 We were in town last Monday.
Summary
Articles are a type of determiners in English grammar. ‘A’ and ‘An’ are called indefinite
articles and are used before singular countable nouns. ‘A’ is used before consonants. ‘An ’is
used before vowels. ‘The’ is a definite article which is widely used and has many exceptions.
‘A’ and ‘An’ are called indefinite articles and are used before singular countable nouns. ‘A’ is
used before consonants. ‘An ’is used before vowels. ‘The’ is a definite article which is widely
used and has many exceptions. More often than not, ‘the’ is used before someone or something
in particular. ‘The’ is also used to lay emphasis and give a special status.

Exercise for practice:

Fill in the suitable articles:

1. I do not want ______ gun in my house.

2. ________ gun is in his closet.

3. I am afraid of _______ guns.

4. She sent me ______ postcard from Italy.

5. It's _______ postcard that I have in my office.

6. Getting ____ postcards makes me want to travel.

7. I have _____ dog.

8. ______ dog is very friendly.

9. Dogs make ______ great pets (dogs in general).

10. Greta needs ______ furniture in her apartment.

11. She is going to select _______ furniture that she needs.

12. She hopes to find some ______ furniture this weekend.

13. We are going to see ______ Statue of Liberty this weekend.

14. ______old man wanted to see you in the morning.

15. John built _____yard for his cattle.

16. She ate only ______ orange for her breakfast.

17. My grandmother told me _____ story.

18. Mr. Nautiyal bought ______new car.

19. My son is _______M. A from Agra University.

20. Rohan is _____ intelligent son of ______poor farmer.

21. Neha lodged ______ F.I.R. against the cheat.

22. Pass me ______ slice of bread.

23. Rita has gone on ______ month’s vacation.

24. Narayanpur is ______ small village.

25. Visitors can meet the patient only twice ______day.

26. There was _______ elephant in the field.

27. Ravi made _______ error of judgement.

28. He was late by _____ hour for the meeting.

29. Suresh has _______ interest in acting.

30. Sita’s brother is ______ engineer in ______ reputed company.

31. There is ______ eucalyptus tree near my house.

32. She is ______ honorary secretary of the club.

33. We met ______ European girl in Rishikesh.

34. ______village chief has started ______utensil shop.

35. Joya’s father is ______ principal of our college.

36. ______Ganges flows from ______ Himalayas.

37. Please give me ______ copy of The Times of India.

38. _______ Dhawans are particularly interested in music.

39. _______ market will remain closed for two days.

40. She wrote ______ paper for _______ seminar.

41. Rohan bought ______ cup of coffee.

42. _______earth moves round _____sun.

43. He met with ______accident yesterday.

44. Meeta saw _____cat in ______ garden.

45. We saw ______ tiger in _____ zoo.

46. Sunil’s father is _____ advocate in _____ High court.

47. Suresh is ______tallest boy in _____class.

48. She gave me _____ call in the evening.

49. Dr. Hamid is _____Urdu teacher.

50. I met _____boy. _____boy was very polite.

51. Reading is _____good habit.

52. He is _____captain in _____army.

53. Mr. Gokhale is _____honorary president of our society.

Answer key

1. a

2. The

3. X

4. a

5. the

6. X

7. a

8. The

9. X

10. X

11. the

12. X

13. the

14. An

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18. a
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21. an

22. a

23. a

24. a

25. a

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30. an, a

31. a

32. an

33. a

34. The, a

35. the

36. The, the

37. a

38. The

39. The

40. a, the

41. a

42. The, the

43. an

44. a, the

45. a, the
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47. the, the

48. a

49. an

50. a, The

51. a

52. a, the

53. an