CHAPTER 12

THE ARTICLE
12.1. The Adjectives a (or an) and the are usually called Articles.
They are really Demonstrative Adjectives. Thus there are two types of
Articles: a (or an) and the.
A (or an) is the weakened form of one, and is called Indefinite Article
because it does not point out any definite or particular person or thing.
The is called the Definite Article because it points out some definite or
particular person or thing.
 THE ARtICLE
As a general rule, an article is placed bofore a 6onion iut ii ttie
singular number; as,
This is a pen. Here is an urmbrella.
Isaw a jackal in the field. The boy foll dead.
'A' OR 'AN' USED ACCORDING TO S0UND
12.2. Whether to use a or an will depend on ths sound
before which it is placed.
of thes wnd
An is used :
(a) before a word beginning with a vowol sound; as, an ass, an
apple; an orange; an umbrella; an uncle.
(0) before a word beginning with hwhich is not pronouncsd and
therefore the beginning sound of the word becornes a vowsl
sound; as, an hour; an honest man, an heir.
(c) before a word beginning with h when the accent is on the
second syllable; as,
an historical novel; an heroic deed; an hotel.

Note -This rule is now becoming obsolete. It is more usual to

write
will
a hotel; a heroic deed, a historical novel, though the use of an
not be wrong.
(d) before individual letters spoken wíth a vowel sound; as, an M.A.,
an M.P., an S.P., an S.D.0. (M sounds as 'ern, S as 'es But
before B.A., P.M., G.M., a is used).
A is used:
(a) before a word beginning with a consonant sound; as, a wornan;
a yard; a horse; a man.
(b) before a word beginning with the consonant sound of 'yu'; though
it may begin with a vowel letter, as.
a university, a union, a usage, a useful thing, a European, a
ewe, a eulogy.
(c) before a word with the sound of wu'. even though it may begin
with a vowel letter; as,
a one-rupee note; aone-eyed giant.
(d) before a word beginning with a sounded h; as,
a horse; a hero; a holiday.
USE OF 'A' OR 'AN' ACCORDING TO CONTEXT
12.3. The Indefinite Article a (or an) is used in the sense of:
(a)numerical one : Give me a mango (one mango).
(b)a certain person : Isaw a beggar.
(c)a class : A dog is a useful animal. (representing the whole
class of dogs).
(d)the same : Two of a trade seldom agree. (the same
trade).
(e) any:A child generally likes to play. (any child).
(f) When a proper noun is used in the sense of a common
noun:
A Daniel (a very wise judge) comes to judgement.
(g) certain quantity : a lot of; a great deal of; a great
many; a
couple; a dozen.
*A vowel sound is produced when air is allowed to pass
through the mouth
without any obstruction by the tongue, teeth or lips. You will notice that
its variations : a, aa, ae/ea la, e, i) and 0-0, oh, ou, ow 'a' sound in all
as in European or 'un' as in union, university or 'wu' as inare vowel sounds, but not 'eu,'
umbrella are 'a' sounds and therefore vowel sounds. one. Un in uncle and um in
6 ACOMPREHENSIVE GRAMMAR OF CURRENr ENGLISH

(h)certain numbers : a hundred, a million.

(i) before 'half' : one and a half kilos or a kilo and a halt (b
kilo); a half-holiday; a half-share.
() price, speed, ratio : Rs 10 a dozen; 60 kilormetres an
four times a day. hou;
(k) exclamation : What a long queue What a pretty girl ! Such .
selfish man What a fine day !
USE OF 'THE' ACcORDING TO CONTEXT
12.4. The Definte Article the is used:
la) when we speak of a particular person or thing, or one already
mentioned or one well-known to us; as,
Shut the box. Call the boy.
He promised to use the medicine I gave him.
A girl entered a house. In the house lived a man who loved the air
(b) when a singluar noun or an Adjective of Quality is rneant to
represent a whole class; as.
The lion is the king of beasts.
The rich are not always happy.
(c) before the names of rivers, seas, oceans, mountain ranges,
groups of islands, gulfs, canals, plains, deserts, winds, seasons:
as, the Ganga; the Arabian Sea; the Atlantic Ocean; the
Himalayas; the Lakshadweep Islands; the Persian Gulf; the
Upper Jhelum Canal; the Indo-Gangetic Plain; the Sahara; the
monsoon; the winter; the west wind.
(d) before certain geographical names; as,
the Punjab; the Deccan; the Highlands; the United States.
(e) before the names of certain books and scriptures; as,
the Vedas; the Puranas; the Ramayana; the Koran; the
Gulistan; the Bible; the Gita, the Guru Granth Sahib.
But we say
Firdausi's Shahnama; Valmiki's Ramayana.
(f) before the names of ships, aeroplanes,
and newspapers; as, well-known buildings
the Vikrant; the Red Fort; the Taj Mahal; the
the Hindustan Times. Indian Express;
(g) before superlatives; as,
He is the oldest man in our
(h) before names of things unique neighbourhood.
of their
the sun; the m0on; the earth; the sky; the kind: as,
equator; the sea; the
Ocean; the King; the Governor; the Prime Minister; the Principal.
Note :-The is also used before other similar
titles: as. the
press; the army; the navy; the public; the bar.
() before the names of important events; as,
the Reformation; the Mutiny; the French
War, the Indo-Pak War (1971). Revolution; the Great
() before an epithet attached to a
personal proper name; as,
Alexander the Great; George the Fifth; Edward the Eighth.
(k) before an adverb with Comparative, as,
The nearer the bone, the sweeter the meat.
I am not a bit the worse for my defeat.
 THE ARTICLE 57

(Similarly we say--All the best).

() in place of Possessive Adjectives before
the names of parts of the body; as,
Istruck him on the head. (not his).
(m) before anoun when special emphasis is needed; as,
Now is the time to escape.
He is the authority on the Vedas.
This is just the thing Iwanted.
(n) before the name of anation and sometimes before the narne
of a community or a class of peope; as,
the Hindus; the English; the French: the Sikhs; the Jains, the
Muslims; the Buddhists.
(o) before the names of directions when such nouns are preceded
by prepositions (to, in, on, at, etc.); as,
the north; the south, the east; the west.
Captain Cook went to the east. [Or, Captain Cook went east.]
(p) before an adjective used to denote an abstract quaity; as,
We should always love the beautiful.
lq) before an adjective in the Comparative degree when not more
than two persons or things are being compared; as,
John is the wiser of the two.
(r) to make a Proper Noun Common; as,
Kalidas is the Shakespeare of India.
Mumbai is the London of the East.
(s) before a Common Noun to give it the meaning of an Abstract
Noun; as,
At last the father (the fatherly love) in him was stirred.
(t) with the names of things typical of their class; as,
The pen is mightier than the sword.
Don't play the fool, man.
(u) before numeral adjectives showing order; as,
All the students of the fifth class were absent.
(v) before aProper Noun preceded by a more or less permanent adjective; as.
The late Mr Gokhale; the lovely Helen.
(w) before same and after both, all and half; as,
This is the same building.
Both the students belong to the same class.
All the world knows this.
Half the apples are rotten.
(x) in many fixed phrases; as.
On the one hand; on the other hand; on the defensive; in the
long run; on the march; in the way; in the wrong; all the same;
all the more; to the utmost; to the contrary; on the way.
A hard-working man is sure to succeed in the long run.
children are always in the way.
OMISSION OF THE ARTICLE
12.5. The article is omitted:
(a) before Proper, Material and Abstract Nouns (used in a general
 GRAMMAR OF CURRENT ENGLISH
A COMPREHENSIVE

sense); as,
London, gold, honesty, virtue.
widest sense; as,
(0) before a noun used in its tender-hearted,
mortal, WNoman is woman is man's mt.
Man is
(c) in certain phrases consisting of a preposition followed by its
object; as, On foot; in jail; underground; to school; at schonl
from head to foot; from top to bottom; at home; in hand: in bed;
at noon; at sight: i
by day; by train; by car; in debt; on earth; daybreak; at best: t
town; at tea; on board; in jest; at sunset; at
Worst.
bed.
He is in debt. Mohan is at school. Rama is still in
You are at fault. Isaid it in fun.
by its
(d) in certain phrases consisting of a Transitive Verb tollowed
object; as,
Give ear, set sail, take heart, bring word, give battle, send word.
catch fire, take offence, leave office, leave school, cast anchor.
strike root, leave home, lay siege, keep house.
Don't take offence at my words. Ileave office at four o'clock.
(e) before nouns used as complements; as,
They made him prisoner. He became king. He is appointed
teacher.
(f) before the names of single mountains or single islands; as,
Everest, Sri Lanka.
(g) before the names of continents, countries, capes, cities, towns,
days, months, arts, languages, sciences, diseases and objects;
as, January is a cold month. English is spoken by a very large
number of people.
(h) before a common noun in the Vocative case; as,
Come here, boy.
(i) before common nouns when they go in pairs; as.
Both husband and wife received serious injuries.
(i) before plural nouns used to denote a class; as,
Boys go to school every day at nine o'clock.
Camels are useful animals.
Historians love to study old books.
Warm clothes are necessary in cold climates.
But it is correct to say:
The boys who go to school every day at 9 o'clock return at 3.
The canmels of Arabia are very strong.
Here particular 'boys' and 'camels' are meant.
(k) before the nouns following kind of; as,
What kind of flower is it? (Not, kind of a flower).
() before meal-time (like dinner, supper, breakfast).
He was at dinner. Breaktast was served at
eight.
SOME SPECIAL POINTS
12.6. The articles are used before Proper, Abstract and Material
Nouns when they are used in a particular sense.
Dara Singh is known as the Hercules of India.
He is a second Edison,.
The Mr, Bose who was killed in the Second World
uncle. War was my
 The India of today is different from that of fifty years ago.
The wisdom of Solomon is proverbial.
The courage of the girl is appreciated by all.
The cotton of Kathiawar is the best in India.
The sugar of India is superior to that of Germany.
Note the use of the in the following sentences:
(a) Cloth is sold by the metre.
(b) Malayalam is the language of Kerala.
(c) My birthday falls on the third of September.
(d) Ihope to return by the 3 o'clock train.
(e) The late Field Marshal Manekshaw was a man of repute.
REPETITION OF THE ARTICLE
12.7. Distinguish between the following sentences:
(a) | have a black and white cow. (one cow)
Ihave a black and a white cow. (two cows)
(b) The secretary and accountant is present. (one person)
persons)
The secretary and the accountant are present. (two
(one person,
(c) He was the poet and the statesman of his age.
but the article is repeated for emphasis only).
(d) He is a better soldier than a scholar. (That is, he is more
person).
successful as a soldier than as a scholar -the same
12.8. We may say either:
The fifth and the sixth chapter.
[or] The fifth and sixth chapters.
POSITION OF THE ARTICLE

12.9. (i) The article is generally placed before a noun; as,

aboy; a pen; a table. article is placed just
(ii) If the noun is qualified by an adjective, the
before the adjective; as.
a good boy: a pretty flower. article is placed
(ii) If the adjective is modified by an adverb, the
before the adverb; as,
noun).
avery good boy. (a + adverb + adjective +adjective, a or an
(iv) When so, how, too, as are placed before an
is placed between the adjective and the noun; as,picture; too
So large a tree; so nice a carpet; how fine a
difficult a sum; as cheap a horse.
(v) when both, all, half and double are used before a noun the is
placed immediately before the noun; as,
all the boys; both the brothers; half the army; double the amount.
(vil Note the position of the article in the following sentences :
What a pleasant day ! Such a selfish man !
The whole class is absent today.
12.10. Common errors in the use of Articles
Incorrect Correct
1. The father and son were absent. The father and the son were
absent.
2. A white and black cow were Awhite and a black cow were
grazing grazing.
3. | feel pain in my head. | feel a pain in the head.