COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUES- I ENGLISH GRAMMAR (CONTINUED) 7. USE OF ARTICLES This first lesson under Unit II moves forward from the previous unit of Semester I where verbs and its many forms and the three kinds of verbals were covered. In this lesson, you will learn an important part of speech called articles and the correct usage of the same. You will learn how articles are essential to establish reference to a general or specific thing in a sentence. ___________________________________________________________________________
7.0
Objectives By the end of this lesson, you will:
i. ii.
7.1
Identify Articles – Definite and Indefinite Use Articles correctly in spoken and written language
Introduction Familiarity with the rules in the use of articles is an important requirement for proper construction of sentences. Correct use of articles will establish the right reference to a noun in a sentence. You should use the awareness gained in learning about the features of articles explained in this lesson by reading extensively and observing how articles are used. This will give you the necessary exposure to the subject and enable you to choose the proper article to precede the noun in sentences.
7.2
Articles When we communicate, we sometimes need to refer to a specific or general thing (the car in the garage; A horse pulled the cart). It is important to help our listeners/readers to understand exactly what we want them to understand. Using the correct article will help us convey the generalness or specificity of the things we are referring to in our speech. The choice of the proper article to precede a noun is usually not a problem for speakers and writers who have grown up speaking English. However, it is a difficult concept to master for non-native speakers of English.
1
7.3
Use of Articles – Definite and Indefinite Articles Two words that are very commonly used in the English language are ‘a’ (or ‘an’) and ‘the’. They are called articles and they always appear immediately before common nouns. Articles are of two kinds:
• •
Definite Article Indefinite Article
7.3.1 Indefinite Articles Look at the following examples: a book, a house, a basket, a year, a plate, a university, a unit an egg, an apple, an hour, an insect, an orange, an umbrella ‘a’ and ‘an’ denote a single number. However ‘an’ is only used before a common noun that begins with a letter that sounds like a vowel. The examples given above on the usage of ‘a’ and ‘an’ are based on this rule. As we know, the letter ‘h’ is not a vowel, but the word ‘hour’, is pronounced in a manner where the first letter ‘h’ sounds like a vowel. Similarly, though the letter ‘u’ is a vowel, the words ‘university’ and ‘unit’ are pronounced in a manner where the first letter ‘u’ sounds like ‘y’ that is not a vowel. ‘a’ or ‘an’ are not used with uncountable nouns, like ink, sugar, tea, paper, chalk, but we say a bottle of ink, a bag of sugar, a sheet of paper, a cup of tea, a piece of chalk. Now look at the following examples. 1. Get me a book to read. 2. I would like to watch a movie. 3. We can go to a restaurant. 4. There is a small hill-station near Mumbai. 5. I want to buy an umbrella. 6. An eagle is flying above the tower. 7. Hari has borrowed a book from the library. 8. I have a hobby. 9. I would like to eat an orange. 10. I have an idea. From the above examples we can therefore infer that ‘a’ or ‘an’ are Indefinite Articles. When we use these articles with common nouns, the individual identity of the common noun is not specifically known.
2
Self-Check Questions Fill in the Blanks 1. 2. 3. 4.
She bought ____ notebook. Please give me ____ application form. She would like to join _____ university. He is _____ honest person.
7.3.2 Definite Articles ‘The’ may denote single, few or large numbers. ‘The’ is used when we refer to some particular person, place or thing. It is also used when we refer to a previously mentioned noun. Depending on the structure of a sentence, ‘the’ is used with uncountable nouns. Look at the following examples: The old man who was looking for me has left. The house I just bought has a beautiful lawn. The engineering college has an excellent library. He bought a new scooter and a bicycle. He uses the scooter to go to office, but the bicycle is used for exercise. 5. They run a restaurant. They serve excellent food in the restaurant. 6. She is learning music under a qualified teacher. The teacher sings classical music over All India Radio. 1. 2. 3. 4.
(Observe use of ‘the’ with uncountable nouns in the next few sentences.) 1. 2. 3. 4.
Please pass me the paper. Give me the sugar. The coffee was excellent. The board of members voted unanimously for a new department head. ‘the’ is a definite article because it is placed before a particular/specific noun (as opposed to any noun). Let us examine the following sentences.
1. The teacher came home. 2. A teacher came home.
3
In the first sentence, ‘the’ indicates that a particular teacher for example, it could be the class teacher who came home. In the second sentence, ‘a’ indicates that it could have been any teacher who came home. Besides referring to a particular (specific) noun, ‘the’ is also used to refer to a special category (group) or species (sometime even including proper nouns.) Look at the following sentences. 1. The Taj Mahal is a beautiful monument. 2. The monkey is an intelligent animal. 3. She plays the piano. More examples will clearly demonstrate the difference between definite and indefinite articles. Look at the following examples: 1. She will attend the function to be held at the Regent Hotel. 2. She will attend a function. (In the first sentence, the word “the” helps us identify the exact function she will attend. This sentence would need other sentences that would help us understand the whole context. When someone mentions that “She will attend the function.” the first thought that comes to the mind is “what function?” It needs clarification. The speaker could have said: “She will attend the function to be held at the Regent Hotel.” In the second sentence, the article “a” tells us that the girl would attend a function - however, we are not able to determine what function it is. We get the information that she is attending some function. We do not need other sentences to help us understand this fact.) Read the following sentences carefully. Do pay attention to the articles and the meaning of what they convey. Thereafter, discuss the appropriate use of the article in each of the sentences in a small group. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
4
He is reading a book. He got the book from the library. I will watch a movie. I will watch the latest movie starring Amitabh Bachan. The president gave an inspiring speech. The speech was very inspiring. The dog belonging to Mr. Barua is well-trained. The Godavari River flows through many states. He recites verses from the Koran everyday. The rich had no problems obtaining food during the famine. The airlines crew made the passengers comfortable. Mihir swam across the English Channel.
Self-Check Questions Fill in the Blanks 5. She gave me ____ orange. ______ orange was sour. 6. I have ____ plan. Let us discuss ____ plan tonight. 7. ____ Red Fort was built by the Mughals. 8. He lifted ____ bag of rice. 9. ____ poor always suffer during ____ monsoon.
7.4
Summing Up In this lesson you learnt about articles and how they are essential to establish reference to a general or specific thing.
• •
7.5 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9.
7.6
The common articles are ‘a’, ‘an’, and ‘the’. There are two kinds of articles – indefinite (which refers to a non-specific noun) and the definite (which refers to a specific noun).
Answers to Self-Check Questions She bought a notebook. Please give me an application form. She would like to join a university. He is an honest person. She gave me an orange. The orange was sour. I have a plan. Let us discuss the plan tonight. The Red Fort was built by the Mughals. He lifted the bag of rice. The poor always suffer during the monsoon.
References
1. Colonel (Retd) Jayakaran, I. Everyone’s Guide To English Grammar (A New Approach). Chennai: Apple Publishing International (P) Ltd, March 2003. 2. Wren and Martin. Revised by Prasada Rao,N.D.V. High School English Grammar & Composition. New Delhi: S.Chand & Company Ltd, 2005. 3. Wijesinha, Rajiva. A Handbook of English Grammar. Chennai: Foundation Books, 2004.
5
7.7 •
•
• • • •
6
Glossary Article:refers to two words very commonly used in the English language ‘a’, ‘an’ and ‘the’. Articles are used with nouns, showing whether they are definite. (specific) or indefinite (general or common). Countable Nouns: refer to nouns which can be made plural (most nouns can be changed from single to plural by adding an ‘s’ at the end- e.g. house houses). Definite Article: refers to a specific or particular noun. Indefinite Article: refers to a general or common noun. Noun: a word that names a person, animal, place, thing, or idea Uncountable or Non-countable Nouns: refer to nouns that cannot be changed into plural. They are treated as either plural or singular depending on the context (e.g. sugar o I’d like a teaspoon of sugar in my tea please. o I will need two cups of sugar for my cake recipe.).