ARTICLES (A, AN, THE)

ARTICLES (A, AN, THE) 

Read the given sentences :

1. A   small boy is in the field. 

2. An  old man is sitting in the park. 

3. The  grass in the field is green. 

In sentence 1, 'A' is used to describe the number of the boy. 

In sentence 2, 'An' is also used to describe the number of the man. 

We all know that 'A' and 'An' both means 'one' and are used as determiners. These are also called the Demonstrative Adjective. 

In sentence 3, 'The' is also used as determiner and its function is like of Demonstrative Adjective. 

Therefore we can say that  'A', 'An' and 'The' articles are Demonstrative Adjectives. 

Note * Articles demonstrate towards a particular person or thing. 

KINDS OF ARTICLES :  

There are two kinds of articles:

1. Indefinite Articles - 'A', 'An' 

2. Definite Articles - 'The' 

 'A' and 'An' determine any particular person or thing while 'The'  is the definite article and determine some particular person or thing. 

Examples: 

1. I read a novel. ( Any particular novel) 

2. I read the novel. ( Some particular novel) 

USE OF 'A' 

1. 'A' is used before singular countable nouns which starts with a consonant sound. 

Examples : 

1. I saw a  horse. 

2. It is a  book. 

3. She is a  girl. 

2. 'A' is used before the word which starts with a vowel but it sounds in a consonant. 

Examples: 

1. My brother studies in a  university college. 

2. We are the members of a  union. 

3. A  unit of blood is sufficient for the patient. 

3.  'A' is used before the word 'one' that starts with consonant sound of 'wa'. 

Examples: 

1. We saw a   one-eyed dog yesterday. 

2. It is a  one-way bridge. 

4. 'A' is used before plural nouns having words like - great, many, thousand, few before them. 

Examples: 

1. A  many boys is in the playground. 

2. A  few girls were doing their classwork. 

USE OF 'AN' 

1. 'An' is used before the vowel (a, e, i , o, u) sound. 

Examples: 

1. I would like to have an  ice cream. 

2. That is an  aero plane. 

3. We should eat an  egg daily. 

2. 'An' is used before the words beginning with a silent 'h' . 

Examples : 

1. He is an  hour late for the meeting. 

2. John is an  honorable man. 

3. The word which has its first letter some consonant but sounds like a vowel follows 'An'. 

Examples: 

1. Mr. Smith is an  M. P. from this area. 

2. I lodged an  F. I. R. 

USE OF 'THE '

'The' is used under the following conditions:

1. Before Common Nouns: 

Examples: 

1. The  rat is a small animal. 

2. Let us go to the  canteen. 

3. The  table is made of iron and wood. 

2. Before the names of geographical structures like - oceans, gulfs, rivers, seas, mountains, hills, plateaus, deserts, continents, etc. 

Examples:  

1. The  Pacific is the largest ocean. 

2. The  Bay of Bengal is near Kolkata. 

3. Before the names of planets. 

Examples: 

1. The  earth is round. 

2. The   sun is very hot. 

4. Before the names of dates. 

Examples: 

1. I was born on the  2nd of December. 

2. The  26th January is celebrated as the Republic Day of India. 

5. Before superlative degree and parts of the body. 

Examples: 

1. She is the  most beautiful girl in the college. 

2. The  boy was wounded in the arm. 

6. Before the names of professionals and posts. 

Examples: 

1. The  press is alert. 

2. The  Principal is in his office. 

3. The  port was given an award. 

7. Before the names of newspaper, magazines, famous books and holy books of various religions. 

Examples: 

1. The   Student today is a good magazine. 

2. The  India today is published everyday. 

3. The Quran is a holy book of the Muslims. 

8. Before the names of historical monuments and buildings. 

Examples: 

1.  The  Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan. 

9. Before adjectives that are used for nouns. 

Examples:

1. The  clever fox made the crow fool. 

2. The  poor are always in need. 

3. We should honour  the  brave. 

10. 'The' is used before the name of a person or a thing. If we have already its reference in a paragraph or passage. 

Examples : 

1. There was an elephant in a forest. The  elephant was very hungry. He went in search of food in the forest. The elephant could not find anything to eat. 

Here 'an' is used before 'elephant' and 'a' is used before 'forest'

in the first sentence while 'the' is used before 'elephant' and 'forest' because 'elephant' and 'forest' has been already written in the first sentence. 

WHERE YOU SHOULD NOT USE ARTICLES? 

1. Proper nouns, Abstract nouns, plural common nouns, diseases, languages, seasons, festivals, foods, games and phrases. 

Examples: 

1. Mira is a good girl. 

2. Honesty is the best policy. 

3. Mount Everest is the highest peak of the world. 

4. Dogs bark at the strangers. 

2. Material nouns like gold, silver, water, milk, wood are used without article 'the'. 

Examples: 

1. Gold is expensive. 

2. Water is a colourless liquid. 

3. When nouns are used in pairs. 

Examples :

1. Father and son were present in the party. 

2. I want to make everything clear hand to hand. 

4. 'The' is not used before God, Heaven, Hell and Parliament. 

Examples: 

1. God bless all. 

2. God is great. 

3. Parliament has two houses the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. 

4. Just go to hell. 

5. May her soul rest in heaven. 

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