Articles - 1

 Articles are part of adjectives. There are two types of articles - 

. Indefinite Article - A & An

. Definite Article    - The

Let's discuss Indefinite articles  (A & An) - 

A & An are derived from Any which means any object or thing or person  etc. 

A & An are used for singular noun.  

Usage of A & An -  

A is used with words (singular)  starting with consonant sound.  

Example  - a book, a banana, a table, a boy, a City, a union, a hotel  etc. 

An is used with words (singular)  starting with vowel sound.  

Example - an orange,  an honest person,  an old man,  an hour, an apple etc. 

Note - Use of A & An depends on first sound of the words, not on the spelling. 

Exercise  - 

1. I met ... old man in the market. (a/an)

2. .... apple a day, keeps the doctor away. (a/an)

3. He lives in. .. flat. (a/an)

4. He is .... honest person. (a/an)

5. I have been waiting for... . (a/an)

6. The boys are taking part in .... competition. (a/an)

7. He is eating ... apple. (a/an)

8. The woodcutter had ... axe. (a/an)

9. The thirsty crow saw .... pitcher of water. (a/an)

10. I bought ... kilo of sugar. (a/an)

11. He reads in ... university. (a/an)

12. His brother is .... M. A. (a/an)

Use of Definite Article  THE - 

The is used With both  Singular and Plural nouns. 

. "The' is used with Specific Noun.  

Example - 

1. He lives in the flat which he bought last year.

2. Give me the pen lying on the table.  

3. The book in my bag is very costly. 

4. The boy in the class is very gentle.  

5. I lost the pen my mother gave me on my birthday.  

Note -  It should be noted that - a/an are used only with singular countable nouns.  

Example - a toy, an apple,  a fighter, an umbrella  etc. 

 - 'the' is used With Singular Nouns,  plural nouns & also with Uncountable Nouns.  

More uses of  'the' - 

- With names of  mountains,  monuments,  books, seas, oceans, planets, rivers, Newspapers, magazines, race, ships, pol. parties, train etc.  

Example - 

1. He reads the Ramayana everyday. 

2. The Red Fort is in New Delhi.  

3. The Ganges is a holy river of the Hindus.   

4. I read the Times of India daily. 

5. The Himalyas are the highest mountains of the world.  

- With superlative  degree (3rd degree of Adjective)  - 

Example - 

1. He is the tallest boy in my class.  

2. Honesty is the best policy.

3. Who was the most powerful king of India.  

4. You are the biggest boy. 

5. He is the fattest boy in the Class.  

Exercise - Fill in the blanks with correct articles-

 1. Raghu has ..... bull. (a, an, the) 

2. He is eating. .... apple. (a, an, the) 

3.  She bought. .... costly book. (a, an, the)

4. ..... Taj Mahal  is a famous monument. (a,an, the)

5. .... honest man is loved by all. (a, an, the)

6. Do you have. ....... new dress? (a, an, the)

7. .... man in the office is our Principal. (a, an, the)

8. Bring ..... book that is lying on the table. (a, an, the)

9. It is .... biggest animal on the Earth. (a, an, the)

10. Sahdev is ..... intelligent boy. (a, an, the)

More rules of 'the' -

- with common noun - 

1. The/A dog is a faithful animal. 

2. The/A  lion is the king of animals. 

3. The/An elephant is the biggest animal of the world. 

4. The/A tiger runs faster than lion. 

Note -  

A/ An or the - can be used with common noun.

Remember  - 

Articles are not used with following nouns - 

- languages

- months of the year

- week days 

- person names 

- city, village,  nation, town names 

- subjects 

- peaks, summit

Example - 

1. I know French and English. 

2. Do you read Chemistry? 

3. January is the first month of the year. 

4. Mr. Sidharth is the headman of the village. 

5. Mumbai is a famous city of India.

6. America is the most powerful nation of the world.  

7. Sunday is always a holiday.  

8. History is often disliked.  

9. Sohna ia a town in Haryana. 

10. Mount Everest is the highest peak in the world. . 

Some Common rules for articles (a, an & the) -  

- an Adjective becomes 'plural noun' when  'the' is used - 

Example - 

1. We should help the poor. (the poor means poor people) .

2. The uneducated need more attention. (the uneducated means uneducated People) .

3. The minister addressed the blind. (the blind means blind People) .

4. The NGO works for the deprived. (the deprived means deprived people) .

-'the' is used when a noun is repeated in a para or article. 

Example  -

1. There was a man in a village. The man was very poor. 

2. I have a cow. The cow is very gentle.  

- 'the' is used With family names- 

Example  - 

1. The Sharmas have shifted to Mumbai.  

2. Do you know the Virmanis? 

- 'the' is used with 2 comparative adjectives in the same clause - 

Example  - 

1. The cooler we feel, the higher we go.

2. The bigger you get ; the better it will be. 

- 'the' shows nationality when used With a language- 

Example  -

1. He can Speak French.  (Language) 

The French are very brave. (People of France).

2. Chinese is a tough language.  (language) 

The chinese are clever people.   (People of China)

Note - articles (a, an & the) are not used with nouns in general sense - 

Example -

1. Water is essential for life. (general sense)

The water of this lake is very cool. (specific sense)

2. Gold is a precious metal.  (general sense)

The gold of this ring is superior. (specific sense)

- Look at following sentences  - 

1. He goes to school daily. (for study purpose)  

    He goes to the school to see the principal.  (for other purpose) 

- same rule is applied with following nouns- 

  2.  to market.             - for shopping 

       to the market       - for other purpose 

3.    to hospital            - for treatment 

       to the hospital     - for other purpose 

4.    to prison.              - for punishment 

       to the prison.       - for other purpose 

5.    to bed.                    - for sleeping 

        to the bed.            - for other purpose 

Examples  - 

1. I go to bed at 9:00 pm.  

    I went to the bed and watched TV.

2. He went to the prison to see the jailor. 

     The thief was taken to prison. 

Note - Exception - 'the' is used with following  country names - 

- the USA

- the UK

- the Punjab 

- the Netherlands 

Note - Revise and study the above rules carefully and write Your doubts in comment box.

Follow for Exercise on Articles in next part.