• There are 3 articles in the English Language.
• They are:
  • a,
  • an, and
  • the
• The articles are divided into two;
  • The definite article, and
  • The indefinite article
• ‘A’ and ‘an’ are called the indefinite articles
• ‘The’ is called the definite article.

Uses of Various Articles

• ‘A’ precedes or is used to introduce a noun that begins with a consonant sound
  • For example:
    • A box
    • A goat
    • A cat
    • A book
    • A queen, etc.
• ‘An’ is used before nouns beginning with any vowel sound:  a, e, i, o, u or silent h.
  • For example:
    • An iroko
    • An honor
    • An honest man
• The indefinite article ‘a’ and ‘an’ are only used before singular nouns.
  • For example:
    • A boy came here
    • I was given an orange
• ‘The’ is a definite article. The definite article occurs with both singular and plural nouns.
  • For example:
    • The book is interesting
    • The boy visited me yesterday
    • The book is on the table

Uses of the Definite Article

• The definite article ‘the’ is used to refer to:
  1. Something already known. For example: I saw the girl. The teacher is here.
  2. Something which is already one. For example: The Sun. The Earth. The Moon. The Bible
  3. A whole class of things. For example: The lion is a brave animal
  4. It is used to refer to nature, like rivers, seas, range of mountains. For example: The Niger, The Atlantic Ocean, The Nile, The Atlas Mountain