Tips to Spot Error in the English Questions- Articles Part-II:
Useful tips to spot errors in the English Questions in Articles were given here. This will be more helpful to attend the English Awareness Part in the Banking and all other competitive exams.
Usage of ‘The’:
When we speak of a particular person or thing already referred to:
(i) I dislike the follow
(ii) The boy near the taps is my brother.
· When a singular noun represents a whole class:
Example:
(i) The mango is considered the king among fruits.
(ii) The ass is used as a beast of burden.
Remark:
The nouns ‘man’ and ‘woman’ do not take ‘the’ before them.
Example:
Man is the greatest of God’s creations.
· With names of:
(a) Gulfs, rivers, oceans, islands and mountains.
Examples:
The Himalayas, the Indian ocean, the Persian Gulf, the Red sea, the Andaman islands, the Brahmaputra river.
· Certain books:
Example:
The Vedas, the Puranas, the Bible, the Ramacharitmanas.
· Musical instruments:
Example:
The flute, the violin, the table, the trumpet.
· The inventions:
Example:
(i) I hate the telephone for its constant ringing.
(ii) The television is a gift of science.
· Parts of body:
Example:
(i) He was wounded in the leg.
(ii) They hit him on the hands
· Religious groups:
The Sikhs, the Hindus, the Parsees.
· Names enforcing law:
The police, the Navy, the Air Force.
· Political parties:
The Congress, the Janata Pary, the B.J.P.
· Aeroplanes, ships, trains etc:
The Makalu (aeroplane), the Vikrant (ship), the Rajdhani express (train).
· Before names of an empire, dynasty or historical event
The Gupta dynasty, the Old Stone Age, the First World War, the American
Revolution.
· With superlatives:
Examples:
(i) He is the best boy in the class,
(ii) Prizes would be given for the most outstanding performances.
· Clubs, foundations etc:
The Lion’s Club, the Ford foundation.
· Before common nouns denoting unique things:
The sun, the sky, the earth, the world, the stars.
· With ordinals:
Example:
(i) He took the first taxi that came his way.
(ii) He lives in the tenth block.
(iii) Our class is on the second floor.
· Before the comparative degree:
Example:
(i) The more they get, the more they want.
(ii) He is the cleverer of the two.
· Before an adjective when the noun is understood:
Example:
(i) The poor would favour him.
(ii) We must not shun the disabled.