Article

Mistake 1: a singular countable noun without an article.

✘ She is doctor. (use a doctor)
✘ She is doctor who treated me. (use the doctor)

Doctor is a singular countable noun, so it needs an article in both sentences. Which article? Ask the listener's question.

In the first sentence we cannot tell which doctor is being talked about, so doctor is an indefinite noun and we use a. In the second sentence the part who treated me tells us exactly which doctor is meant, so doctor is a definite noun and we use the.

✔ She is a doctor.
✔ She is the doctor who treated me.

The same mistake hides in a sentence like Teacher came into the room. Teachers can be counted, and the listener does not know which one, so the sentence must begin A teacher came into the room…

Mistake 2: a / an with an uncountable or a plural noun.

A / an (and one) carry the sense of one, so they go only with a singular countable noun. With an uncountable noun (U.N.) or a plural countable noun (Pl.C.N.), a / an is completely wrong. If the noun is definite, though, the can be used.

✘ He gave me a news. (use news)
✔ He gave me the news of her demise.
✘ A people often criticize others. (use people)
✔ The people in this area are all critics.

News is uncountable and people is plural, so a has to go from the first and the third sentence. In the second sentence we mean a particular piece of news, the news of her demise, so the is correct. In the fourth sentence in this area tells us which people are meant, so the is correct there too.

> The same test shows why What a water! and What a milk! are wrong (uncountable), while What a delicious flavour these mangoes have! is right (here flavour is a singular countable noun).

An article goes with a noun. It is wrong to use it with an adjective that stands alone.

✘ Radhika is an honest.
✔ Radhika is honest.
✔ Radhika is an honest girl.
✘ He is a poor. (poor is an adjective here)
✔ He is a poor boy.

If there is no noun after the adjective, either drop the article or add the noun.

The article stands first in the noun phrase. If an adjective comes before the noun, put the article before the adjective. If both an adverb and an adjective come before the noun, put the article before the adverb as well.

[[parse: S=Radhika | V=is | X=a | X=very | X=good | X=girl]]

This also settles a or an: look at the word that comes just after the article (see the next unit), not at the noun.

Some words send the article behind the adjective. After so, as, too, how, this, that the order is adjective, then article, then noun. After such and quite the article comes first and the adjective follows.

✔ How good a teacher he is!
✔ It is too hot a day to go out.
✔ Such a beautiful girl!

Remember the six words so, as, too, how, this, that together. With an uncountable or a plural noun there is no article at all: such hot water should not be drunk, such honest boys.

Choose a or an by the sound of the next word, not by its spelling.

• A word that begins with a consonant sound takes a.
• A word that begins with a vowel sound takes an.

English has five vowel letters (a, e, i, o, u), but articles do not follow letters. They follow the first sound of the word. University begins with the letter u, yet it is said yoo-ni-versity, so it is a university. Hour begins with the letter h, yet the h is silent, so it is an hour.

The word just after the article decides. If an adjective or an adverb stands before the noun, look at that word, not at the noun.

✔ a boy
✔ an intelligent boy
✔ a very intelligent boy

Letters and abbreviations. When these letters are said on their own, an comes before them: A, E, F, H, I, L, M, N, O, R, S, X (their names begin with a vowel sound: ay, ee, ef, aitch, eye, el, em, en, oh, ar, es, ex). Every other letter takes a. So for an abbreviation, say its first letter aloud and listen.

An acronym that is read as a word follows its own first sound: a SEBI employee, a NASA employee, but an SBI employee, an FBI agent (read letter by letter).

Words that begin with E, O, U and H may take either a or an. When they give a vowel sound, use an; when they give a consonant sound, use a.

One-handed and one-rupee start with a w sound, so a one-handed man, a one-rupee coin. In the same way a eulogy, a unique box, a utopian scheme, a Xerox take a, while an X-ray and an honorary degree take an.

> Historical, historic, hotel and humble begin with the letter h, so some people feel that an should be used before them. In modern English a is the accepted form: a historical novel / play / film / painting, a humble occupation, a humble home. In the same way we write a hotel; an hotel is rather old-fashioned.

The basic use is the indefinite sense with a singular countable noun: I have a book. Radhika needs a phone. I want an apple. I have an umbrella. Here book, phone, apple and umbrella are used as common nouns. The other uses of a / an are these.

1. In the sense of one. Before dozen, hundred, thousand, lakh, million and so on, an article (a / an) or one is a must.

a dozen = one dozen; a thousand = one thousand; a million = one million; a book = one book

✘ I have hundred rupees. (use a hundred)
✔ I have a hundred rupees.

2. A rate, in the sense of per.

✔ ₹20 a kilo = ₹20 per kilo
✔ 2 times a day = 2 times per day
✔ 80 km an hour = 80 km per hour
✔ An apple a day = an apple per day
✘ He drinks tea three times the day. (use a day)
✘ He works seven days week. (use seven days a week)

> When we introduce the rate at which something is sold, we use by + the + unit: Onions are sold by the kilo. Petrol is sold by the litre. (Compare: by day means during the day; by the day means per day.)

3. Fractions. In phrases with half and quarter, a comes before them.

✔ One and a half hours (1½ hours)
✔ Three and a half metres (3½ metres)
✘ She waited for two and half hours. (use two and a half)

4. A job, profession or title. Use a / an with the singular countable noun.

✔ Radhika is a teacher.
✔ He is a plumber.

If two roles belong to one person, one article is enough. If they are two persons, each gets its own.

✔ I met a teacher and doctor. (one person who is both)
✔ I met a teacher and a doctor. (two persons)

5. A verb used like a common noun.

✔ He offered me a drink.
✔ He went for a ride.

Drink and ride are common nouns here.

6. Exclamations. After What or How, a singular countable noun takes a / an.

✔ What a beautiful girl she is!
✔ How good a teacher he is!

How + adjective + a / an + noun = What + a / an + adjective + noun. How beautiful a girl! = What a beautiful girl! With an uncountable noun there is no a: ✘ What a water!

A / an or one? Both carry the sense of one, but they answer different questions.

• a / an (article) answers what, which, who, what kind. Its focus is identity.
• one (number) answers how many. Its focus is number.

✔ How many doctors did you meet? I met one doctor.
✔ Whom did you meet? I met a doctor.
✔ What did you do there? I worked as a medical representative.

> Only a book and only one book are both correct, but they mean different things. You should read only a book names the kind of thing (a book, and nothing else). You should read only one book counts (one, not two).

A name that acts like a common noun. Generally a proper noun takes no article. When it is used like a common noun, it takes one.

• A name used as a type: a. ✔ Mohan sings very well. His friends say he is a Kishore Kumar.
• A name followed by an of-phrase: the. ✔ His friends say he is the Kishore Kumar of our village. ✔ Babar Azam is the Virat Kohli of Pakistan.
• A name with an adjective: the. ✔ The run machine Kohli is the fastest to score 10,000 ODI runs. (Run machine is used as an adjective here.)
• Many such people: ✔ The library is full of Shakespeares.

A description between commas (appositive). To identify, use the. To give extra information, use a / an.

✔ Salman, the actor, visited the stadium last week.
✔ My friend, a computer engineer, came to meet me last week.

The can go before every kind of noun, singular or plural, countable or uncountable, if the noun is definite: both the speaker and the listener know which noun is meant. These are the situations in which a noun becomes definite.

1. Second mention. When a noun comes for the first time, we put a / an with it. When the same noun comes again, it has become definite and takes the.

✔ I met a prince. The prince gave me a bag. The bag contained a coin. The coin was made of gold.

✔ I found a letter and a small box inside. The letter explained the contents, so I turned my attention to the box.

> A noun that is mentioned for the first time usually sits in the object position, and a noun in the subject position is usually already known. This is only an observation, not a fixed concept: a / an can stand in the subject position too.

2. Words after the noun that define it. A clause (a wh-clause or a that-clause), a phrase (preposition + noun), an adverb or a participle after a noun can point to one particular thing. Then the noun takes the.

✔ Call the person who met me yesterday. (the clause defines him)
✔ Call a person who knows Hindi and English. (many persons could fit)
✔ We appreciate the person who is leading this company.
✔ We need a person who can handle our social media accounts.
✔ I saw the movie suggested by you.
✔ I saw a movie directed by Steven Spielberg. (he has directed many)
✔ A car arrived. The driver got out. (the driver of that car)
✔ I got a job, but the salary was low. (the salary of that job)

If the noun still gives the sense of one of many, it stays indefinite and takes a / an. Compare these pairs.

✔ He lives in the house over there. (there is only one house there)
✔ He lives in a house over there. (there are many houses, and one of them is meant)
✔ Sagar is the friend of Ram. (= Sagar is Ram's friend)
✔ Sagar is a friend of Ram's. (= Sagar is one of Ram's many friends)
✔ The thumb of my left hand is injured. (a hand has only one thumb)
✔ A finger of my left hand is injured. (a hand has many fingers)

3. Only one exists. If the sense is the only one or all of it, use the. Do you know the house where Tagore was born? (he was born in one house) But I know a place where we can meet (many places would do).

4. A place or position points to one noun. Some nouns, because of where they are, can mean only one thing, so we use the with them.

✔ Please pass the salt. (the salt on the dining table)
✔ Where is the newspaper? (the one we read)

In the same way we say: go to the bank / post office / police station / cinema / circus / theatre / opera; go to the doctor / dentist / plumber / police / lawyer; go to the forest / beach / sea / seaside / country / town.

✔ I am not well, I should go to the doctor. (the doctor I usually go to)
✔ I am going to the bank to deposit cash. (the bank where I have my account)

1. Things that are one of a kind and known to everybody. Such nouns are definite in themselves, so they take the.

The Sun, the Earth, the sky, the ground, the internet, the world, the wind, the past, the present, the future, the universe.

✘ Scientists have made progress in understanding universe. (use the universe)
✔ You should forget the past and live in the present.
✔ The Earth revolves around the Sun.
✔ The equator divides the Earth into two parts.

2. Words that make a noun definite. Some words, when they stand before a noun, make it definite. Before these words we generally put the.

The + word + noun

• (a) Ordinal numbers: first, second, third … last.
• (b) Superlative adjectives: best, strongest, most beautiful.
• (c) Specifying words: only, same, whole, very.

✔ He is the third person to cross the line.
✔ She is the strongest fighter among all.
✔ This isn't the same book as others.
✔ China is the second most populous country in the world after India.
✔ The whole country applauded the courage of our soldiers.

An ordinal number (the second page) takes the article. A cardinal number placed after the noun does not (page two), and a plain quantity does not either (two boys).

3. Take care with only. Using an article with only needs some care.

• The article the comes before only, because only makes the noun definite.
• The article a / an can come after only and before the noun. We do this to put stress on the noun.

✔ This is the only book you need. (= you need only this book)
✔ This is only a book. (= this is just a book)

When the sense of only (the single one) or whole (all of it) is in the sentence, think the.

Many names carry the because the thing is single and well known. Learn them by group, with the exceptions beside each group.

✘ Her biggest ambition was to climb the Mount Everest.
✘ The UNESCO works for peace.
✔ The UN works for peace.

Names in the plural. When the name of a person or place is written in the plural form, put the before it: the Sharmas, the Guptas (= the Gupta family); the Andamans, the Philippines; the Himalayas, the Aravalis.

Directions. If east, west, north, south are used as the main noun, put the before them.

✘ The sun rises in east. (use in the east)
✔ India is to the north of Sri Lanka.

When these words are used as adjectives, the noun that follows decides whether an article comes. Eastern, western, northern, southern are also only adjectives.

✘ We live in the north India. (India does not take the)
✔ We live in north India.
✔ We live in northern India.
✔ We live in the northern United States. (the United States takes the)

A common noun standing for a quality or feeling. When a common noun such as doctor, mother represents an abstract quality, a feeling or a relation, use the.

✔ The doctor in him awoke when he saw his mother in pain.
✔ The mother in her arose when she saw a crying baby.

Parts of the day. Whether an article comes before morning, afternoon, evening, night and so on often depends on the preposition before it.

With on, the article a is generally used, and an adjective can stand in between. When of follows the part of the day, we use the.

✔ He came here in the morning.
✔ He came here on a morning. (one morning, not named)
✔ It happened on a cold morning.
✔ We met on a hot afternoon.
✔ It happened on the morning of Diwali.
✘ He came here in a beautiful morning. (use on)
✘ He came here in the morning of Christmas. (use on)

> The preposition chapter takes the choice of in / on / at further. For now remember the table.

Phrases that are tested again and again. In exams, a phrase is given with the article dropped, and the error is placed in that part. There is no logic to work out in these phrases. Read them a few times.

Phrases with a / an

• in a rage, in a hurry, in a mood, in a fix, in a dilemma, in a temper, in a fit of rage
• at a loss, at a pinch, at a low ebb
• have a drink, have a rest, have a walk, have a headache, have a dream, have a chat, have a quarrel, have a good / bad knowledge, have a good / bad education
• take a risk, take a rest, take a hint
• go for a walk, get / give / award a scholarship
• from a distance, once-in-a-lifetime (note the a before lifetime)

In a hurry and in haste are both correct.

Phrases with the

• at the eleventh hour, all the best, bite the dust, beat around the bush, castles in the air
• hit below the belt, set / raise the bar, salt of the Earth, kick the bucket
• under the influence of

✘ He was in the temper and refused to discuss it. (use in a temper)
✘ Cassius spoke to Brutus under so influence of jealousy. (use under the influence of)

The article the can be used with all three degrees of the adjective.

The + positive degree. When the is placed before the positive degree of some adjectives, the phrase refers to all the people with that quality.

The + adjective = All + adjective + noun

The strong = all strong people; the meek = all meek people; the disabled = all disabled people.

Two things must be kept in mind.

• These phrases already have a plural meaning, so adding s / es at the end is wrong.
• A plural verb always comes with them.

Examples: the blind, the deaf, the destitute, the poor, the dead, the rich, the wealthy, the dying, the elderly, the faithful, the homeless, the injured, the insane, the jobless, the old, the young, the needy.

✘ The poor is always ignored by the rich. (use are)
✘ We should always help the poors. (use the poor)
✘ Rich should help poor. (use The rich should help the poor)
✔ The elderly must be respected.

The same idea works for a nationality: the English, the French, the Chinese = all English / French / Chinese people (see the unit on zero article).

The + comparative degree. There are two cases.

Case I: the comparative adjective is used like a noun, as a subject or an object, or before of.

✔ You are the braver of the two candidates.
✔ Reena is the cleverer of the two sisters.
✔ Both Radhika and Rakhi are my friends. The former is more intelligent than the latter. (the former = subject, the latter = object)

Case II: to show a relative increase or decrease, that is, two things rising or falling together, the is used with the comparative.

✔ The harder one works, the stronger one becomes.
✔ The longer he waited, the more impatient he got.
✔ The more you study, the less you will get confused.

The + superlative degree. With the superlative degree of an adjective, the is used almost always.

✔ She is the best of all of us.
✔ Speech is the fastest method of communication.

Take care with most. Most is also used in the sense of very. So when most + adjective appears, check whether it is a real superlative, that is, whether it gives the sense of one out of all. Only then use the.

✘ She is the most beautiful girl. (no group is named and the sense is very beautiful; use a most beautiful girl)
✔ She is the most beautiful girl of our class. (one out of all in the class)
✔ Mumbai is the most populous city of Maharashtra. (the group is named)

One person in different situations. Putting the with a superlative is wrong when we compare the same person or thing in different situations.

✘ She is the best when she is motivated. (use best)

✔ Of all my friends he is the nicest. (different people)
✔ He is nicest when he is with children. (the same person in different situations)

This second kind of sentence may not be asked in the exam, but it should be known.

The article is not used before the names of the following. This is called the zero article.

✘ He is suffering from the cancer.
✔ I have a cold.
✔ She has a fever.
✘ He plays the cricket every evening.
✔ He plays cricket every evening.

Language, colour and subject: the bare name and the common noun. A bare name of a language, a colour or a subject has no article, because it works like a proper noun. If the word language, colour or subject is written with it, the name becomes an adjective and the noun becomes a common noun, so it takes the.

A language that is also a nationality. With the, the name stands for all the people of that nation.

The + name of language = All people of the nation: the English = English people; the Chinese = Chinese people.

✘ I like to learn the English. (the subject is meant; use English)
✘ English ruled over India for a long time. (the people are meant; use The English)
✔ She is English.
✔ This mobile is Indian. (the word is an adjective here, so do not write an Indian)

Quantity phrases. *A lot of, a great deal of, a large amount of, a good many, a great many, a great number of* take a. But plenty of never takes a.

✘ A plenty of
✔ Plenty of
✔ A lot of people
✔ Lots of people (no a with lots)

After type of, kind of, sort of, amount of, number of and a lot of, the noun that follows comes without an article.

✔ Doctors stress that this kind of treatment is important.
✘ What type of a game it is! (drop a)
✘ The amount of the money spent on this project is huge. (drop the second the)

Meals. The names of meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) take no article. If an adjective comes with the meal, use a / an. If a relative clause, a participle or of follows, use the.

✔ I had lunch at 2 P.M.
✔ I had a delicious lunch at 2 P.M.
✔ I had the lunch hosted by Mr Sharma.
✔ He generally skips breakfast but has a heavy lunch.

Seasons. Seasons take no article: in winter, in summer. If the word season is written with the name, the comes: in the winter season.

By + transport or communication. After by, a means of transport or communication takes no article: by bus, by car, by plane, by train, by ship, by bicycle, by road, by sea, by air, by land, by phone, by radio, by messenger, by mail, by post.

Sometimes the means of transport is specific, or we have to specify it. Then by is not used (it cannot take a determiner). We use on or in.

• On → bus, plane, train, ship (vehicles with a floor to walk on), bike, bicycle, horse
• In → car, cab, taxi, auto, helicopter, ambulance

✘ Radhika went there by the bus and returned in a car. (drop the)
✘ I talked to Radhika by a new phone. (use on a new phone)
✔ The man was hit by a car. (this by is the passive by, not transport)
✔ He came here by the 8 o'clock train. (if a time is mentioned, use by + the + time)
✘ The pilgrims covered 10 km by foot. (use on foot)

School, college, university, church, temple, jail, prison, hospital, parliament, bed. If they are used for the primary purpose for which they are built, no article comes. If they are used in some other sense, use the.

✘ The man was taken to the hospital for treatment. (the purpose is treatment, so hospital)
✘ Radhika went to church to meet Prashant. (the purpose is not prayer, so the church)
✔ He was in college when he got his first job.
✔ He had to spend some time in jail.
✔ I left bed at 8 am.
✔ The bed is broken. (a particular bed)

Class and court take no article when they are the object of in (in class, in court). The Supreme Court and the High Court take the, because they are named institutions. Go to sea (become a sailor) is a fixed phrase without the.

Body parts. Body parts generally take possessive words, not the. If the person is already clear from the sentence, the can be used.

✔ She hit him in the stomach.
✘ She hit in the stomach. (use his)

Relations. Words that show a relation take possessive words, not the. A possessive word and the never stand together before a noun.

✘ I have two brothers, both the brothers are younger than I. (use my)
✔ Both Hardik and Kunal play for India. Both the brothers have won several matches.
✘ The society of the our place is good. (drop the)

Three more places where no article comes.

1. Titles: Queen Elizabeth, President Obama. (For one particular person, the: The Queen had dinner with the president.) A post given with a name: Prime Minister Modi.
2. Object complement: They appointed him manager.
3. Vocative (direct address): Good morning, teacher!

Phrases with no article. In exams, phrases are often given in which an article is put before the noun, and that part is marked as the error. In these phrases an article before the noun is wrong.

• in: in demand, in time, in doubt, in confusion, in short, in detail, in danger, in crisis, in life, in debt, in haste, in difficulty, in trouble
• on: on demand, on time, on strike, on foot, on leave, on earth, on fire, on duty, on payment
• by: by post, by bus, by chance, by mistake, by credit card, by debit card, by UPI
• Others: to take sth to heart, eat humble pie, set sth on fire, to catch fire, to give ear, last but not least, take heart, take action, take care, lose heart, to beat sb black and blue, in black and white
• Write in pen / in pencil (= write with a pen)
• Double expressions: with knife and fork, from top to bottom, on land and sea, day after day, arm in arm, husband and wife, inch by inch

✘ He left the book by a mistake. (use by mistake)
✔ He left the book by mistake.

To generalise is to write a noun in the general sense, as we do when we say something about all of them or any of them. For this the noun can take a / an, the or the zero article. General sense is different from indefinite sense (I bought a mobile is one mobile, not mobiles in general).

1. Plural and uncountable nouns: zero article. With a plural or an uncountable noun in the general sense, no article is used.

✔ Salt is obtained from seawater. (any / all salt)
✔ Teachers generally work for long hours. (any / all teachers)
✔ Mobiles have become essential. (mobiles in general)
✔ Sugar is derived from sugarcane.
✔ The sugar present in fruits is less harmful. (a defined sugar takes the)
✔ Water is essential for life.

Compare: ✔ I bought a mobile. (one mobile, not all)

2. The whole class: the + singular noun. Before the name of a species, a flower, a machine, a currency, a musical instrument or an invention, the represents its whole class or category. This is the generalising *the*.

The tiger, the rose, the telephone, the dollar, the guitar, the bulb

✔ Save the tiger. (not one particular tiger, but the whole species)
✔ The electric bulb was invented by Thomas Alva Edison.

Compare the two sentences:

✘ A computer has revolutionised publishing. (the statement is true of the whole class, so write The computer or computers)
✔ A / the computer is an important research tool. (true for any one computer or for the whole class, so both are possible)

✔ I can buy a guitar. (one instrument, not the class)
✘ I can play a guitar. (in the exam, for the instrument in general use the guitar)

3. Animals. Before the name of an animal, a / an / the can all be used, in the structure a / an / the + singular noun. For the whole community use the. For any one use a / an.

✔ A cow is a useful animal.
✔ The cow is a useful animal.
✔ Cows are useful animals.

A tiger is dangerous is general. One tiger is dangerous would suggest not two, so we do not use one here.

4. Professions and relations. When we speak about a person's profession or a human relation in general, we use a / an. The can also be generic in real English, but exam keys prefer a / an.

✔ An astrologer is a person who predicts the future.
✔ A policeman's life is not easy at all.
✔ A baby daughter needs a lot of love and care.
✔ A son should always take care of his parents.

5. Man. When man stands for all humankind, no article is used.

✔ I saw a man. (one person)
✔ Man is mortal. (all humankind)