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Articles – A, an, the

Articles are a, an, the. You need to use these articles before nouns and adjectives depending on various situations.

She has an umbrella.
He is a brave boy.
They have a white elephant.
The cat ate the fish.

When to use A?

“A” means “one”. We use “A” before singular (single) nouns.

  • She is a good girl.
  • Mr Harry is a teacher.

Now, read the sentences below and say which sounds correct?

  1. She is singer / She is a singer.
  2. He is student / He is a student.

When to use An?

Basic Level

Just like “A”, “An” is also used before a singular noun that usually starts with a (apple), e (elephant), i (ink), o (orange, open) and u (umbrella, uncle).

  • It is an apple.
  • I saw an elephant.
  • I have an important meeting.
  • She has an orange tree.
  • I bought an umbrella yesterday.

Advanced Level

If the first letter of a singular noun (university, useful book, etc.) is a, e, i, o, u but sound other than aeiou, we use “a” instead of “an.”

  • Her neighbor is a European.
  • She studies in a university.

When to use The?

  • Before “first, second, third, last, previous, next,” etc. (This is the first question).
  • Before any noun (name) that you have already mentioned earlier. (The girl you are talking about is my sister).
  • Before body parts (The eye is the light of the body).
  • Before planets and stars (The sun, the moon, the earth).

Where not to use an article?

  • Before some kind of pronouns (my, our, your, their, his, her, its).

  • Question of

    He has _______ older brother.

    • a
    • an

    Correct Wrong

  • Question of

    She is _________ intelligent girl.

    • a
    • an

    Correct Wrong

  • Question of

    I can’t see _______ sun.

    • a
    • the

    Correct Wrong

  • Question of

    She went abroad in her ______ plane.

    • a
    • an
    • the
    • no article needed.

    Correct Wrong

  • Question of

    She cried at _______ last.

    • the
    • no article needed

    Correct Wrong

  • Question of

    Give my an orange or ______ melon.

    • an
    • a

    Correct Wrong

  • Question of

    I went to ______ school for meeting my old friends.

    • a
    • the

    Correct Wrong

What do you think?

Written by English Melon

Biju John, author of ByeBle and Maclins, is an English Language Trainer. He has also authored his educational Fiction. All these titles are available on Amazon and Google. You can contact his office on WhatsApp / Telegram number +917510923061

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