What are Articles in the English Grammar?
Articles are words used before nouns to
show whether the noun is general or
specific.
There are three articles:
A An and The
Types of Articles
Indefinite Articles. A, An
Definite Article The
Uses of Articles?
Use of A
“A” is used before:
A singular, countable noun
A word that begins with a consonant sound
Examples:
I saw a dog in the street.
She is a teacher.
He bought a car yesterday.
This is a useful book.
Use of An
“An” is used before:
A singular, countable noun
A word that begins with a vowel sound (a, e, i, o, u)
Examples:
She ate an apple.
He was an old french footballer.
I need an umbrella.
It was an interesting movie.
Remember:
For generalizations, use no article:
Birds have feathers.
Coffee has caffeine.
Tobacco has nicotine.
(plural for count, no plural for non-count.)
Use of The
“The” is used:
When we talk about a specific person, place, or thing
When the noun is already known to the listener
With unique things (sun, moon, earth)
Examples:
The sun rises in the east.
I found the book you lost.
She went to the market near her house.
The teacher is absent today.
We use Article the with the names of Rivers, names of seas and oceans, names of Mountain chains ( the Alpes), the USA, the INDIA , the U.S.S.R
Note:
With collective nouns you cannot have a, an ( they generally are plural nouns )
E.g. the Police dispersed the mob.
E.g. the youth are our hope.
E g. the Money is in the drawer.
* Rule 1: Use A/An for the first mention
I saw a cat.
The cat was very cute.
I watch a movie. The movie was horror
* Rule 2: Use The for something specific
Please close the door.
I red the article which we discussed in the morning.
* Rule 3: A/An are used only with singular countable nouns
a water. ( Incorrect)
a bottle of water. ( Correct)
* Rule 4: Use An based on sound, not spelling
an hour (silent “h”)
a university (starts with “you” sound)
I sent you a SMS. ( In correct )
I sent you an SMS. ( Correct )
My uncle is a S D O. ( In correct)
My uncle is an S D O. ( Correct)
In the above sentences S sounds A not s
* Rule 5
For generalizations, use no article:
Birds have feathers.
Coffee has caffeine.
Tobacco has nicotine.
(plural for count, no plural for non-count.)
The is used with superlatives
She is the best student in the class.
He is the tallest boy in our team.
0 Comments