DEVANS CLASSES
ARTICLES
What is an Article?
An article is used before a noun to define whether the noun is general or specific.
Types of Articles
Indefinite articles: a, an
A and an are indefinite articles. They are also called general determiners. A is used before singular,
countable nouns beginning with consonant sounds and an is used before singular, countable nouns
beginning with vowel sounds.
Be Careful! The article an is used with words starting with the vowel sound and not just with words
starting with vowels. So, when a word starts with a silent consonant and actually starts with a vowel
sound, we use an with it.
Example: It is an honour to meet you.
However, when a word begins with a vowel, but is spoken with a consonant sound at the beginning,
then we use a with it. For example: I want to apply to a university for higher studies.
Rules for using a/an
1. The article a is used before a word beginning with a letter having a consonant sound.
Example’s: a book, a dinner party, a European flag, a university, a one-way street, a hat, a BSc, an
MBA, an MP an X-ray, an island, an hour.
2. A/An is used before a singular countable noun which is used as an example of a class of things.
Examples: A baby needs care. (It refers to all babies/any baby.)
A car must be maintained. (It refers to all cars/any car.)
3. A/An is used with quantities and also the price of quantities.
Examples: Rs 50 a kilo, 60 kilometres an hour, a lot of, four times a week, a great many, a hundred, a
dozen, a couple, a great deal of, a large amount, one and a half kilograms
4. A can be placed before Mr./Mrs./Miss and surnames.
Examples: A Mr. Smith called. (This is a shortened form of saying, a man named Mr. Smith called.)
5. A and an are also used in the following ways:
An assembly of 350 members
Show an interest in
To give an assurance
Accepting a bribe (in a majority of cases)
Run a temperature (in a majority of cases)
Omission of a/an
1. A/an is omitted before plural nouns and uncountable nouns.
2. A/an is omitted before names of meals (except when these are preceded by an adjective).
Examples: We have dinner at eight. (Here dinner refers generally to all dinners)
He gave us a good breakfast. (Here breakfast is a specific event)
Definite article: The
The is a definite article which indicates a particular noun. The is also called a specific determiner. For
example, if we take the case of a boy and the boy, then a boy means any boy from the category of
boys in general, whereas the boy specifically means a particular boy, such as Sunil or Anil.
Rules for using the
1. The is used before the names of universal objects.
Examples: the sun, the stars, the galaxy, the moon
2. The is used before certain proper names of rivers, groups of islands, plural names of countries,
deserts, seas and Oceans.
Examples: the Bay of Bengal, the Pacific Ocean, the Red Sea, the Krishna, the Ganges, the Godavari,
the Arabian Sea, the Andaman, the United States of America, the Sahara, the Pacific Ocean
3. The is used before the names of holy books.
Examples: the Bible, the Quran, the Gita
4. The is used before the names of unique positions or designation.
Examples: the Prime Minister, the Chief Minister, the Vice Chancellor, the CEO, the President of India,
the General Manager.
5. The is used before the names of directions.
Examples: the north, the south, the east, the west
6. The is used before the names of musical instruments.
Examples: the tabla, the keyboard, the violin
7. The is used before the names of mountain chains.
Examples: the Himalayas, the Nilgiris, the Alps
8. The is used as an adverb with a comparative.
Example: The sooner the results are out, the better it is for job-seekers.
9. The is used before superlatives.
Examples: the tallest, the largest, the fastest
10. The is used before the names of countries which have plural words in them. It is used even for
countries which are known in their abbreviated forms and have plural words in their full form.
Examples: the U.S.A, the U.K, the Philippines, the West Indies
12. The is used before the names of ordinal numbers.
Examples: the First World War, the second round
13. The is used when the object or group of objects is unique or considered to be unique.
Examples: the sea, the earth, the equator, the stars
14. The is used before a noun made definite by the addition of a phrase or a clause.
Examples: the girl in blue, the place where I met her
15. The is used before names of the body organs.
Examples: the brain, the kidneys
16. The is used before names of newspapers.
Examples: the Times of India, the Deccan Chronicle
17. The is used before names of historical monuments and famous buildings.
Examples: the Taj Mahal, the Red Fort
18. The is used before abbreviations.
Examples: the CBI, the UNO
19. The is used in plural surnames which indicates a whole family.
Example: the Smiths (To indicate the entire family of Smiths)
Rules for omitting the
1. The is not used before countries with single names which are not in plural and which do not have a
prefix showing the kind of state it is (such as the republic, the united, the kingdom, and so on).
Examples: India, China, Japan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia
2. The is not used before the names of games/sports
Examples: cricket, volleyball, football, hockey
3. The is not used before the names of meals.
Examples: lunch, dinner and breakfast (Not the lunch, the dinner or the breakfast)
4. The is not used for a routine activity When it is used with names of institutions like schools,
churches, hospitals or offices, the indication is that the activity mentioned is not routine.
Examples: Mary goes to school every day. (Going to school is a routine activity here.)
Mary's mother went to the school to pay her school fee. (Going to school is not an everyday activity
here but a specific one.)
5. The is omitted before material nouns.
Example: The gold is a precious metal. (Wrong)
Gold is a precious metal. (Correct)
6. The is omitted before names of places of before names of people.
Example: In the Chennai (Wrong)
In Chennai (Correct)
