In English grammar, an article is a type of determiner that is used to specify whether a noun is specific or general. There are two types of articles in English: definite and indefinite.
Indefinite Articles: "a" and "an" are used before a singular noun to refer to any member of a general class. For example, "I saw a car on the road." Here, "a" is used because the noun "car" refers to any car in general, not a specific car.
Definite Article: "the" is used before a noun when it is specific or known. For example, "I saw the car that we rented." Here, "the" is used because the noun "car" is a specific car that the speaker rented.
A or AN
"a" and "an" are indefinite articles used before singular countable nouns. The choice between "a" and "an" depends on the sound of the first letter of the noun that follows.
- Use "a" before a singular countable noun that begins with a consonant sound.
Example: "a book," "a car," "a house."
- Use "an" before a singular countable noun that begins with a vowel sound.
Example: "an apple," "an hour," "an umbrella."
Note: The choice of "a" or "an" is based on the sound of the first letter of the noun, not the letter itself. For example, "an hour" is correct because the first letter of "hour" is a vowel sound, even though the letter is "h," which is a consonant.
It's important to note that if the noun following "a" or "an" begins with a consonant or vowel letter, but produces the opposite sound, you should use the article that is consistent with the sound of the first letter.
For example:
"A university" (pronounced "yoo-ni-vers-ity") - the first sound is a consonant sound, so we use "a."
"An honorable man" (pronounced "on-er-able man") - the first sound is a vowel sound, so we use "an."
10 SAMPLE QUESTIONS
1. Which of the following sentences uses an indefinite article correctly?
a) "I want the apple."
b) "I want a apple."
c) "I want an apple."
The rule for using an indefinite article is to use "a" before singular countable nouns that begin with a consonant sound and "an" before singular countable nouns that begin with a vowel sound.
In this sentence, "apple" is a singular countable noun that begins with a vowel sound, so we use the indefinite article "an" before it. Therefore, "I want an apple" is the correct sentence.
Option a) "I want the apple" uses the definite article "the," which implies that the speaker is referring to a specific apple. Option b) "I want a apple" is incorrect because "apple" begins with a vowel sound and requires the use of "an" rather than "a."
2. Which of the following sentences uses a definite article correctly?
a) "I saw a car."
b) "I saw the car."
c) "I saw car."
The definite article "the" is used before a noun when the noun is already known or has been previously mentioned. In this case, the speaker has seen a specific car and is referring to it as "the car".
Sentence a) "I saw a car." uses an indefinite article "a" correctly.
Sentence c) "I saw car." is incorrect because it is missing an article.
3. Which of the following nouns requires an indefinite article?
a) "University"
b) "Hour"
c) "Elephant"
The indefinite article "an" or "a" is used before a singular countable noun to indicate that the noun is one of many possible examples of its type. In this case, "hour" is a singular countable noun, so an indefinite article is required to indicate that the speaker is referring to one specific hour out of many possible hours.
Noun a) "University" and noun c) "Elephant" are not countable in the same way as noun b) "Hour", so they generally do not take indefinite articles. However, in certain contexts, they may be used with an indefinite article depending on the specific meaning the speaker intends to convey.
4. "I saw _____ eagle flying over the mountain yesterday."
a) a
b) an
c) the
The correct answer is "an" because "eagle" begins with a vowel sound, so the indefinite article "an" is used. The rule for using "a" or "an" before a noun is determined by the sound at the beginning of the word, not by the letter itself. Since the sound, in this case, is a vowel sound, "an" is the appropriate article.
Therefore, the correct sentence is "I saw an eagle flying over the mountain yesterday.
5. "_____ books on the shelf are mine."
a) a
b) an
c) the
The correct answer is "the" because the sentence refers to specific books that are on the shelf, and the definite article "the" is used to refer to specific or particular nouns.
Therefore, the correct sentence is "The books on the shelf are mine."
6. "She is _____ only person who knows the truth."
a) a
b) an
c) the
In the sentence, "She is the only person who knows the truth," the word "person" refers to a specific individual, and we use the definite article "the" before "person" to indicate this specificity. The word "only" further emphasizes that this particular person is the exclusive one who knows the truth.
Therefore, the correct answer is "the" and the correct sentence is "She is the only person who knows the truth."
7. "_____ unicorn is a mythical creature that is often depicted as a horse with a horn."
a) a
b) an
c) the
The correct answer is "a" because the word "unicorn" begins with a consonant sound, and the indefinite article "a" is used before singular countable nouns that begin with consonant sounds.
Therefore, the correct sentence is "A unicorn is a mythical creature that is often depicted as a horse with a horn."
8. "I'm going to _____ store to buy some milk."
a) a
b) an
c) the
The correct answer is "the" because the speaker is referring to a specific store, likely one that has been previously mentioned or is well-known to both the speaker and the listener.
When referring to specific or particular nouns, we use the definite article "the" before the noun. In this case, "the store" refers to a particular store that the speaker has in mind.
Therefore, the correct sentence is "I'm going to the store to buy some milk."
9. "I need _____ new laptop"?
a) a
b) an
c) the
The correct article to use to fill in the blank in the sentence "I need _____ new laptop" is "a."
The reason for this is that "laptop" begins with a consonant sound ("L"), and therefore, the indefinite article "a" should be used before it.
The indefinite article "an" is used before words that begin with a vowel sound. For example, "an apple" or "an umbrella."
The definite article "the" is used when we are referring to a specific item that has already been mentioned or is already known to both the speaker and the listener. For example, "I need the laptop that I left at the office."
10. "_____ dog chased the cat down the street"?
a) a
b) an
c) the
The correct article to use to fill in the blank in the sentence "_____ dog chased the cat down the street" is "the."
The reason for this is that the sentence is referring to a specific dog that chased the cat down the street. The definite article "the" is used to refer to a specific noun that is already known to both the speaker and the listener or has been previously mentioned.
On the other hand, the indefinite articles "a" and "an" are used to refer to non-specific nouns or to refer to one of many of the same kind. For example, "a dog chased the cat" would be appropriate if the speaker is talking about any dog in general and not a specific dog.