In this post, we’ll study articles in English.
Table of Contents
Articles in English
In the English language articles ‘a’, ‘an’, and ‘the, are used before a noun. In fact, articles are a part of adjectives, which are used before a noun. It is used before those nouns which can be counted and are singular.
There are two types of it:
(A) Indefinite Article (B) Definite Article
(A) Indefinite Article: – ‘A’ and ‘An’ are Indefinite Articles because these are put before an uncertain noun.
Examples: (i) I saw a boy. (Any boy whose identity is not known.)
(ii) You met a man. (Any man whose identity is not known.)
(B) Definite Article: – ‘The’ is a Definite Article, which is used before a certain noun.
Examples: (i) I saw the boy. (Particular boy whose identity is known.)
(ii) You met the man. (Particular man whose identity is known.)
(A) Uses of the Indefinite Articles in English (A, An)
The meaning of ‘a’ and ‘an’ is one and these are used with a singular noun.
1. Article ‘a’ is used before those words which begin with a consonant and are also pronounced like a consonant.
Examples: a cup, a horse, a book, a useful book, a European, a unit, a dog, a woman, a horse, a boy, a table, a car, etc.
2. Article ‘an’ is used before those words which begin with a vowel and are also pronounced like a vowel.
Examples: an apple, an orange, an umbrella, an egg, an hour, an honest, an M.A., etc.
(B) Uses of the Definite Articles in English (The)
‘The’ is called a Definite Article and it can be used before nouns in the following situation.
(1) Before noun introduced earlier.
Examples: (i) I saw a lion. The lion was sleeping under a tree.
(ii) We heard a noise. The noise came from a neighbor’s house.
(2) Before the superlative degrees of adjectives.
Examples: The best writer, the richest, the tallest, the wisest, the hottest, the smallest, etc.
(3) Before the names of rivers, seas, oceans, bays, deserts, islands, chains of
mountains, canals, plural names of countries, and republics.
Examples: The Ganga, The Yamuna, The Bay of Bengal, The Arabian Sea, The Gulf of Mexico, The Thar, The Sahara, The Himalayas, The Aravalis, The USA, The UK, The West Indies, The UN, etc.
(4) Before the names of things that are unique and only one in the world.
Examples: The Sun, The Moon, The Sky, The Earth, The World, The Taj Mahal, The Great Wall of China, etc.
(5) Before the names of religious books.
Examples: The Quran, The Geeta, The Bible, etc.
(6) Before the names ordinal numbers.
Examples: The first, the fourth, the eleventh, the last, the next, etc.
(7) Before the names of musical instruments.
Examples: The violin, The flute, etc.
(8) Before the names of religious communities, casts, nationality, political
parties, ships, trains, and airplanes.
Examples: The Hindus, The Sikhs, The Muslims, The Indians, The Americans, The Congress, The BJP, The Titanic, The Aravalli Express, The Shatabdi Express, etc.
(9) Before the names of all four directions.
Examples: The East, The West, The North, The South.
(10) Before the common noun to represent an entire species.
Examples: (i) The cow is a useful animal.
(ii) The dog is a faithful animal.
(11) Before the plural surname used for the entire family.
Examples: The Guptas, The Sharmas, The Khans, etc.
(12) Before the days and dates of national importance.
Examples: The 15th of August, The 26th of January, Independence Day, Republic Day, etc.