Article

  06-08-2026

Article 

An article is a word that is used before a noun to show whether the noun is specific or general.

There are three articles in English:

1. A – used before a singular countable noun beginning with a consonant sound.
   • Example: a boy, a book, a university
2. An – used before a singular countable noun beginning with a vowel sound.
   • Example: an apple, an egg, an honest man
3. The – used before a specific person, place, thing, or noun already known to the listener or reader.
   • Example: the Sun, the Taj Mahal, the book on the table

Definition 

An article is a word placed before a noun to indicate whether the noun is definite (specific) or indefinite (general).

Types of Articles

1. Indefinite Articles: A, An
2. Definite Article: The

Examples

• I saw a dog. (Any dog)
• She ate an orange. (Any orange)
• The dog is sleeping. (A particular dog)

1. Use of "A"

Rule 1: Use a before a singular countable noun beginning with a consonant sound.

Examples:

• a boy
• a girl
• a pen
• a table
• a school

Rule 2: Use a before words beginning with a vowel letter but a consonant sound (/juː/, /w/).

Examples:

• a university
• a European
• a uniform
• a one-eyed man
• a useful book

Rule 3: Use a to mean one or any one.

Examples:

• I have a car.
• She bought a pen.

2. Use of "An"

Rule 1: Use an before a singular countable noun beginning with a vowel sound.

Examples:

• an apple
• an orange
• an umbrella
• an egg
• an elephant

Rule 2: Use an before words beginning with a silent h.

Examples:

• an honest man
• an hour
• an honour
• an heir

Rule 3: Use an before letters or abbreviations pronounced with a vowel sound.

Examples:

• an MLA
• an MP
• an FIR
• an MBA

3. Use of "The"

Rule 1: Use the for a particular person or thing.

Examples:

• The boy in the blue shirt is my brother.
• The book on the table is mine.

Rule 2: Use the with unique things.

Examples:

• the Sun
• the Moon
• the Earth
• the sky

Rule 3: Use the with rivers, seas, oceans, deserts and mountain ranges.

Examples:

• the Ganga
• the Nile
• the Indian Ocean
• the Arabian Sea
• the Himalayas

Rule 4: Use the with famous buildings and monuments.

Examples:

• the Taj Mahal
• the Red Fort
• the Qutub Minar

Rule 5: Use the with newspapers and holy books.

Examples:

• the Times of India
• the Hindu
• the Bhagavad Gita
• the Bible
• the Quran

Rule 6: Use the with superlative degrees.

Examples:

• the best student
• the tallest boy
• the most beautiful flower

Rule 7: Use the with ordinal numbers.

Examples:

• the first prize
• the second chapter
• the last question

Rule 8: Use the with musical instruments.

Examples:

• He plays the guitar.
• She plays the violin.
• They play the piano.

Rule 9: Use the with the names of families.

Examples:

• the Sharmas
• the Guptas
• the Khans

Rule 10: Use the when something has already been mentioned.

Examples:

• I bought a pen. The pen is blue.
• She saw a dog. The dog was barking.

When No Article is Used (Zero Article)

Use no article before:

1. Names of people
   • Ram is my friend.
2. Names of cities, countries and states (in most cases)
   • India is a beautiful country.
   • Bhopal is the capital of Madhya Pradesh.
3. Languages
   • She speaks English.
4. Subjects
   • Mathematics is interesting.
5. Meals
   • We had breakfast at 8 a.m.
6. Games and sports
   • They play cricket.

Exercise 1: Fill in the blanks with a, an, the or Ø (no article)

1. I saw ______ elephant in the zoo.
2. She is ______ honest girl.
3. ______ Ganga is a holy river.
4. He wants to become ______ engineer.
5. My father bought ______ umbrella yesterday.
6. We visited ______ Red Fort during our trip.
7. ______ Sun rises in the east.
8. Mohan is ______ best student in the class.
9. She has ______ pet dog.
10. I like ______ milk.
11. We reached ______ airport on time.
12. He is reading ______ interesting novel.
13. ______ Earth moves around ______ Sun.
14. They live in ______ village near Bhopal.
15. She is wearing ______ blue dress.

Exercise 2: Choose the Correct Article

1. He is (a/an/the) MLA.
2. She bought (a/an/the) orange.
3. I met (a/an/the) old man yesterday.
4. (A/An/The) Himalayas are very high.
5. He is (a/an/the) university student.
6. She wants to buy (a/an/the) European car.
7. (A/An/The) Taj Mahal is in Agra.
8. He gave me (a/an/the) useful book.
9. This is (a/an/the) unique idea.
10. She is (a/an/the) MBA graduate.

Exercise 3: Error Correction

Correct the following sentences.

1. He is the honest man.
2. She has an university degree.
3. I saw a elephant.
4. The milk is good for health.
5. Sun is a star.
6. He is a MLA.
7. She is an European citizen.
8. I bought the pen yesterday. (first mention)
9. Ganga is longest river of India.
10. He is a best player.

Exercise 4: Insert Articles Where Necessary

1. Ravi is ____ teacher.
2. ____ Moon shines at night.
3. She wants to become ____ IAS officer.
4. We visited ____ India Gate.
5. He bought ____ one-rupee coin.
6. I saw ____ owl in the tree.
7. ____ Pacific Ocean is the largest ocean.
8. She lives in ____ United States.
9. He is ____ honest officer.
10. They went to ____ school by bus.

Exercise 5: Mixed Practice

Fill in the blanks.

1. There is ______ apple on the table.
2. She is ______ actress.
3. He is ______ richest man in the village.
4. We crossed ______ bridge.
5. My sister is ______ doctor.
6. I saw ______ eagle flying.
7. ______ Yamuna flows through Delhi.
8. He bought ______ expensive watch.
9. She speaks ______ English fluently.
10. This is ______ only solution.

Exercise 6: Advanced Exercise

Fill in the blanks.

1. My brother is ______ engineer in ______ multinational company.
2. ______ Ganges is one of ______ longest rivers in India.
3. He has ______ unique talent.
4. She gave me ______ useful advice.
5. We had ______ lunch before leaving.
6. He was elected ______ President of the club.
7. I met ______ one-eyed man.
8. She is studying at ______ Oxford University.
9. ______ rich should help ______ poor.
10. This is ______ most interesting story I have ever read.

Answer Key

Exercise 1

1. an
2. an
3. The
4. an
5. an
6. the
7. The
8. the
9. a
10. Ø
11. the
12. an
13. The, the
14. a
15. a

Exercise 2

1. an
2. an
3. an
4. The
5. a
6. a
7. The
8. a
9. a
10. an

Exercise 3

1. He is an honest man.
2. She has a university degree.
3. I saw an elephant.
4. Milk is good for health.
5. The Sun is a star.
6. He is an MLA.
7. She is a European citizen.
8. I bought a pen yesterday.
9. The Ganga is the longest river of India.
10. He is the best player.

Exercise 4

1. a
2. The
3. an
4. the
5. a
6. an
7. The
8. the
9. an
10. Ø

Exercise 5

1. an
2. an
3. the
4. a
5. a
6. an
7. The
8. an
9. Ø
10. the

Exercise 6

1. an, a
2. The, the
3. a
4. Ø
5. Ø
6. the
7. a
8. Ø
9. The, the
10. the

Article	Used Before	Examples
A	Consonant sound	a boy, a university, a useful book
An	Vowel sound	an apple, an hour, an honest man
The	Specific/unique nouns	the Sun, the Ganga, the Taj Mahal