Articles and Determiners Questions and Answers

Answer: A

The keyed answer is a: If you see him, give him a message.

The sentence does not say which message is meant, and nothing has been mentioned before it, so message is introduced here for the first time as one unspecified message. A singular countable noun introduced in this way takes the indefinite article, and message begins with a consonant sound, so the form is a.

The message would be used if a particular message had already been identified, which this sentence does not do. An cannot come before a consonant sound, and message is countable, so it cannot stand with no article in the singular.

Answer: D

No article is required: Mr. Mukherjee became Principal of the college in 2012.

When a noun naming a post that only one person can hold at a time is used as the complement of verbs such as become, elect, appoint or make, it usually takes no article: he was elected chairman; she was appointed captain.

'The Principal' would be acceptable in casual speech, but the grammar rule this question tests is the omission of the article before a unique title used as a complement. 'A' and 'an' would suggest the college has several principals, which it does not.

Answer: A

The answer is a: We had a late lunch today.

Names of meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) normally take no article: we had lunch at one. But when an adjective describes the meal, it becomes one particular kind of meal and takes the indefinite article: a late lunch, a heavy breakfast, a good dinner.

'An' is used only before a vowel sound, and 'late' begins with a consonant sound. 'The' would point to a lunch already known to the listener, which the sentence does not. Leaving out the article is the rule only when the meal has no adjective.

Answer: C

The answer is the: This is the best book of elementary English.

A superlative adjective (best, tallest, most useful) picks out one thing as unique within its group, so it takes the definite article.

'A best book' and 'an best book' treat it as one of several, which contradicts the meaning of 'best', and 'an' would in any case be wrong before a consonant sound. Omitting the article is not standard before a superlative used before a noun.

Answer: C

The answer is the: The Mr. Sen whom you met last evening is my uncle.

Proper names normally take no article. But when a proper name is followed by a clause that singles out one particular person of that name from others, the is used: the Mr. Sen whom you met last evening, as distinct from any other Mr. Sen.

'A Mr. Sen' would mean 'a certain person called Mr. Sen' whom the listener does not know, but the listener has met him. 'An' is wrong before a consonant sound, and 'no article' ignores the identifying clause.

Answer: A

The answer is a: Yesterday a European called at my office.

The visitor is one unidentified person, so the indefinite article is needed. The choice between a and an depends on the sound, not the spelling, of the next word. European begins with the sound 'yoo', a consonant sound, so it takes a, as in a university, a uniform.

'An European' is the common slip of judging by the vowel letter E. 'The' would refer to a European already known to the listener, and 'no article' is not possible before a singular countable noun.

Answer: D

No article is needed: Gold is a precious metal.

Gold is an uncountable (mass) noun used here in a general sense, for gold as a substance. Names of materials and substances used generally take no article: Iron is useful, Milk is nourishing, Gold is a precious metal.

A and an are used only with singular countable nouns, so A gold and An gold are wrong. The gold would be correct only for particular gold already identified (The gold in this ring is pure), not for the metal in general.

Answer: C

The blank takes the: London is on the Thames.

Names of rivers take the definite article in English: the Thames, the Ganga, the Nile, the Brahmaputra. The same holds for seas, oceans and canals (the Arabian Sea, the Suez Canal) and for mountain ranges (the Himalayas), though not for single mountains or lakes (Mount Everest, Lake Chilika).

A and an cannot go before a unique proper name, and leaving the article out (on Thames) is wrong in ordinary prose; it survives only in fixed place names such as Kingston upon Thames.

Answer: B

The blank takes a: Switzerland is a European country.

The choice between a and an depends on the first sound of the next word, not its first letter. European begins with the consonant sound /j/ (as in you), so it takes a, like a university, a useful book, a one-day match.

An European is the trap, chosen because the word starts with a vowel letter. The would wrongly suggest the only European country, and some article is needed before the singular countable noun country.

Answer: A

The blank takes an: He is an honourable man.

The h in honourable is silent, so the word begins with a vowel sound, and an is used before a vowel sound: an honour, an hour, an heir, an honest man.

A honourable follows the letter rather than the sound. The would point to one particular man already known to the reader, which the sentence does not, and a singular countable noun such as man needs an article, so 'no article' is wrong.