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Aptitude

Articles

Rules for Articles

Articles are words that defines a noun to be specific or general. They are namely – ‘A’, ‘An’, ‘The’. Here are some rules for articles :

  • A – used before consonants
  • An – used before vowels
  • The – used for specification of a noun.

Example:

The girl from the team is short.

With the use of 'the' in the sentence, we clearly bring out that the girl was a specific girl in that team.

A mobile phone from Apple is costly.

With the use of 'a' it refers to any mobile phone from Apple.

The Definite Article

1 – The Definite Article from among the three articles is ‘THE’.

2 – It specifies the objectivity of a noun.

3 – The definite article walks you through the particularity of a noun.

4 – For example, your friend might ask, “Are you willing to participate in the competition this year?� The definite article ‘the competition’ tells you that your friend is talking about a particular competition that the two of you know of.

5 – The definite article can be used with singular, plural, or uncountable nouns.

6 – With definite article it becomes easy to identify a noun in a sentence that might be otherwise vague or not clear in concept.

The Indefinite Article

1 – The indefinite article comes in the form of two articles – ‘a’ and ‘an’. ‘A’ is used before any consonant while ‘an’ takes its place before a vowel. 

2 – The indefinite articles walks you through the general idea of a noun as a contrast to definite article.

3 – For example, you might ask your mom, “Should I wear a jeans to the party?� Your mom will know that you’re talking about wearing a jeans to the party. Not a particular one but jeans of any color or design.

4 – “Why don’t you wear an ankle length jeans?� your mom replies back. Here the indefinite article ‘an’ talks about a jeans of ankle length but not specifying which one.

Rules for Articles: Using Indefinite Article ‘A’ & ‘An’

Rule 1:

In the singular sequence, a common noun also has an article prior to it. But an article doesn’t necessarily need a traditional plural noun. A plural common noun will have the article ‘the’ if we want to designate the noun.

Example:

  • I have an apple. (Refers to a random apple)
  • I ate pinapple at home. (No article is required)
  • I have eaten the apples again (Refers to the apple i have eaten earlier)
  • I have eaten the apples again before leaving the house. (Refers to the particular apples which I ate earlier at the house.)

Rule 2:

You can choose between the two indefinite articles – a & an – by its sound. There are some exceptional cases against the general use of ‘a’ and ‘an’

  • a university, a union, a useful book, etc.
  • a one-dollar book, a one-man army, etc.
  • an MA, a BA, an LLB, a BSC, etc.

Rule 3:

A or an – sometimes a sentence can translate a Proper noun into Common noun. Proper nouns are generally not preceded by articles but when it changes to common noun it needs an article.

Example: 

  • He regards himself as a Shakespeare. (Here, Shakespeare isn’t the person but a reference)
  • She thinks her house is a Palace.

Rule 4:

We use indefinite articles to represent a number that is generally ‘one’/’each’/’per’.

Example:

  • I am half an hour late for the meeting. (Half an hour late)
  • I have a dog. (One dog)
  • The plane can travel 10 miles an minute ( an hour or per hour)

Rule 5:

Indefinite articles are often used before any descriptive adjectives.

Example:

  • He is a good boy.
  • What a nice car !
  • She is a brilliant student.

Rule 6:

‘A’ sometimes precede determiners, for example,  a few, a little, a lot of, a most, etc. However, when you write a sentence using many, ‘a’ or ‘an’ is used after it.

Example:

  • I have a few pens lying around on the table.
  • There is a little water in the bottle
  • Many a man tried to rescue the dog, but none could.
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