Articles For Grade 3

Definition of Articles:

In English grammar, we employ unique words that are known as articles to say more about a noun. A noun is the name of a thing, animal, place, or a person. Articles precede a noun to enable us to know which one is being referred to. There are two key forms of articles: definite and indefinite articles.

Types of Articles:

Definite article

The term "the" is referred to as the definite article. We say "the" whenever we are referring to a particular thing which both the speaker and the listener are familiar with.

Example: The dog is barking.

(This refers to a specific dog which we are already familiar with.)

Indefinite article

"a" and "an" are referred to as indefinite articles. They are employed when we are referring to any one individual, animal, or object, not a special or familiar one.

1. Example for “a”: I saw a bird.

(This is any bird, not one we already know.)

2. Example for “an”: I brought an apple

We put "an" before words which start with a vowel sound (a, e, i, o, u).

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Rules for using Articles

When to use ‘A’

Use "A" when referring to something generally or whenever it is mentioned for the first time.

Example:

1. I want to watch a film. (Not a specific film but any film)

2. She has a dog. (Any dog, not necessarily a dog of mine.)

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When to use ‘An’

“An" is used before the words that have a vowel sound.

Example:

1. I saw an owl. Owl starts with the sound of "o". It's a vowel sound.

2. She has eaten an orange. (Orange begins with a vowel, a "o")

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Remember This:

For terms like honour, you must use 'an' despite its initial consonant sound. Conversely, in the case of words like university, you must use 'a' or 'the' depending on what is necessary rather than 'an' because they are pronounced like consonants.

For example: 

1. She received an honour for her bravery.

2. He is studying at a university in London.

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When to use ‘The’

“The” is used when talking about something specific or when we both know what we are talking about.

Examples:

1. The pen on the table is mine. (We both know which pen because it's the one on the table.)

2. The sun shines. (There is only one sun, so we use the.)

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Using Articles with Adjectives

In English, we do have the option of using adjectives with articles such as a, an, or the. An adjective is a word that tells us about the noun (such as big, red, happy). If an adjective is before a noun, the article comes first before the adjective.

If the article is an indefinite one (such as a or an), we select it on the basis of the sound of the following adjective that immediately follows it — not the noun.

Following are some examples:

1. Riya visited an ancient castle during her visit.

"(old" begins with a vowel sound, so we use "an")

2. Tom gave his friend a humorous card.

("funny" begins with a consonant sound, therefore we use "a")

These demonstrate how the article precedes the adjective and then the noun.

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Indefinite Articles with Uncountable Nouns

The things we cannot count are called uncountable nouns, like water, milk, sugar, advice etc. we can not use indefinite articles before these nouns- usually we do not say “a water” or “an advice”. It doesn’t sound right!

For example:

• She drank a milk (incorrect way)
• She drank a glass of milk (correct way)

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How to Use Articles with Pronouns 

Articles (a, an, the) and possessive pronouns (my, his, her, our, their) both inform us about a noun. However, when we combine articles with pronouns, we must be careful!

You must not place an article and a possessive pronoun in front of the same noun — it is confusing and wrong.

Wrong Example:

She found the my pencil.

This is incorrect because both "my" and "the" are attempting to modify the same noun (pencil), which cannot be done.

Correct Examples:

1. She found my pencil.

2. She found the pencil.

They are both correct, but you must select just one: either the article or the possessive pronoun, not both.

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Fun With Articles

Activity:1

Pen down a small story using the three-words together - a, an, and the.

For instance: "One day, a dog entered the park. The dog viewed an apple at 

ground level. He picked that one up, chewed and gulped.

Now your turn……

1. _______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

 

2. _______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________________

 

Activity:2

Draw some pictures of things that go with articles a, an and the.

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Exercise: 

Fill in the blanks with a, an, or the.

1. I have ___ apple in my lunchbox.
   
   

2. There is ___ cat sitting on the windowsill.
   
   

3. We saw ___ elephant at the zoo yesterday.
   
   

4. ___ sun is shining brightly today.
   
   

5. She bought ___ new book from the store.

Rewrite the sentences using correct article:

1. I saw an dog running in the park.
   
   

2. There is a orange on the table.
   
   

3. A book you gave me is really interesting.
   
   

4. He has the toy car that he loves to play with.
   
   

5. An sky is so blue today.
   
   

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FUN FACTS

• A vs. An: It’s All About Sound!
• The difference between a and an depends on the sound that follows. A is used before consonant sounds, and an is used before vowel sounds. It's not just about the letter but the sound!

FAQ’s

1. What are articles in English grammar?

Articles are small words like a, an, and the that come before nouns. They help tell if we are talking about something general or specific.

2. When do we use a and an?

Use "a" before words that start with a consonant sound (like a cat).
Use "an" before words that start with a vowel sound (like an apple).