Basic English Grammar Rules Of Articles

English Language is one of the most important section in banking exams and grammar is an exremely important topic. A banking aspirant is suppose to have a good command over grammatical rules as they are very important from exam point of view. Considering the importance of grammar in mind,  we will covering the basic rules related to Articles in this article.

Also read,

•  Basics Rules of Noun
• Basic Rules of Verb
• Basic Rules of Subject-Verb Agreement

What Is Article?

An Article is a word or a letter which is often used before a noun and tells about the certainity of that noun. Consider the following examples:

Types of Articles:

There are  two types of articles: Definite and Indefinite. 

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The Definite Article

“THE” is the definite article. It serves the purpose of imposing the  limits to the meaning of a noun to one particular thing. The definite article is used when the noun with which it is used is a particular one, which is identifiable to the listener. It may also used for a noun that has already been mentioned or is uniquely specified. For example, My friend might ask, “Are you going to the seminar this weekend?” Here it tells you that your friend is referring to a specific seminar that both of you know about.

Examples-

• Please give me the book.
• Please give me the red book; the blue one is not interesting
• Please give me the guitar.
• Please give me the electric guitar; it’s the only one i like to play.

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• How to Increase Calculation Speed to Crack Bank Exams?
• English Grammar Rules that Can Get You Confused

Rules related to Definite Articles:

Rule 1-“The” is used before a noun if it is followed by a relative pronoun stressly.

Example- He is the only boy who plays guitar

Rule 2– “The” is used before the name of commission, Rivers, Seas, Gulfs, Deserts, Directions, Canals, Historical caste, Name of the titles and posts, buildings & Monuments, Religious books, Community, Holy Scriptures, etc.

Example- The Taj Mahal, The Brahmin, The Iron Man etc.

Rule 3- “The” is used before an adjective if that adjective is followed by proper noun

Example- Yesterday, I met the great Sachin Tendulkar.

Rule 4- “The” is used before common noun whenever it is used as adjective

Example- When Sonam saw a hungry girl crying , the mother came in her.

Rule 5- “The” is used whenever two proper nouns are compared

Example- Prabhu deva is the Michael Jackson of India.

Rule 6- “The” is used before “Superlative degree”

Example- Rahul is the best player of his team.

Rule 7- “The” is used If comparative Degree is used for two or it is used in parallel.

Example- Rajesh is the taller of the two sons.

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There are two types of  indefinite articles “A” & “AN”. Word “A” when it precedes a word that begins with a consonant. We use the  word “AN” when it precedes a word that begins with a vowel. The indefinite article indicates that a noun refers to a general idea or it is non specific rather than a particular thing. For example, you might ask your friend, “Should I bring a book to the seminar?” Your friend will understand that you are not asking about a specific type of book. “I am going to bring an Mango pie,” your friend tells you. Again, the indefinite articles used here indicates that your friend  is not talking about a specific mango pie.  The indefinite article only appears with singular nouns.

Examples-

• He caught a bird. ( any bird)

Exceptions: Choosing A or An

There are certain exceptions to the general rule of using “A” before words that start with consonants and “An” before words that begin with vowels. For example, The first letter of the word honor, is a consonant, but it’s unpronounced and hence In spite of its spelling, the word honor begins with a vowel sound. Therefore, we will  use an instead of a.

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Rules Related to Indefinite Articles

Rule 1- “A” is used when the first letter of a countable singular common noun is consonant.

Example- I have caught a fish

Rule 2- “A” is used with a singular countable noun when the noun denotes a complete class of thing/Persons/Animals etc.

Example- A dog has four legs.

Rule 3- “A” is used before a profession, rank, title, religion, nationality etc.

Example- A teacher, A hindu

Rule 4- “A” is used before singular countable nouns and after ‘what’ & ‘How’, in exclamatory sentences.

Example- What a beautiful painting.

Rule 5- “A” is used to express the rate

Example- Ten rupees a kilo.

Usage of “AN”

Rule 1– We use “AN” when the first letter of a countable singular noun is a vowel.

Example- He is an astronaut

Rule 2- We use “AN” before some abbreviations which start with ‘H, L, M, N, F, R, S, X, etc.

Example- He is an MLA

Rule 3- Indefinite articles are not used with ‘Plural Noun’

Example- A cars are parked ( Incorrect)

Cars are parked( correct)

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