Articles - Class 8 English - Extra Questions

He is ____ honour to this profession.

Answer: He is an honour to this profession.
Explanation: Articles are used to determine whether a noun is definite or indefinite in a sentence. The is used when we want to specify something definite (a particular person or thing). On the other hand, a and an are used when the noun we want to refer is not something specific but a general one.
Here, word before the blank begins with a vowel sound. Though letter 'h' is a consonant, it begins with a silent 'h', which means that it is giving a vowel sound. So, an is right here.


____ able man has not always a distinguished look. 

An man has not always a distinguished look. 
The choice between 'a' and 'an' is determined by sound. Before a word that begins with a vowel sound 'an' is used. Here, able has a vowel sound 'a'. So, an is the right answer.


The children found ____ egg in the nest.

The children found an egg in the nest. 
"An" is an indefinite article used before a vowel sound. Here, an egg also refers to "one egg" that was found in the nest.


The poor woman has not rupee.

Answer: The poor woman had not a rupee.
Explanation: Articles are used to determine whether a noun is definite or indefinite in a sentence. The is used when we want to specify something definite (a particular person or thing). On the other hand, a and an are used when the noun we want to refer is not something specific but a general one. 
Here, 'a' will be placed before rupee. Here, it even plays the role of one to emphasise that she didn't have even one rupee. Moreover, rupee is a countable noun here. So, a is right. 


Wild animals suffer when kept in captivity.

Wild animals suffer when kept in captivity.
There is no need to insert article in the sentence. No definite or indefinite or any countable noun present.


Get pound of sugar from nearest grocer.

Answer: Get a pound of sugar from the nearest grocer.
Explanation: Articles are used to determine whether a noun is definite or indefinite in a sentence. The is used when we want to specify something definite (a particular person or thing). On the other hand, a and an are used when the noun we want to refer is not something specific but a general one.
Here,  article 'a' and 'the' will be placed before the words pound and nearest respectively.  Pound of sugar is a countable noun and used in a general way. So, a is right here. On the other side, nearest is superlative. Thus, the is used before superlatives. So, it is right here.


Eskimos make houses of snow and ice

Answer: The Eskimos make houses of snow and ice. 
Explanation: Articles are used to determine whether a noun is definite or indefinite in a sentence. The is used when we want to specify something definite (a particular person or thing). On the other hand, a and an are used when the noun we want to refer is not something specific but a general one.
Here, the will be added before Eskimos. We want to focus on the entire group of people i.e. "Eskimos". So, the is the right article here.


Rewrite the following sentence by inserting the approriate articles whenever necessary.
I read interesting story from Mahabharata.

I read an interesting story from the Mahabharata.


One of _________ most common causes of malnutrition is __________ unhealthy lifestyle.
(Fill in the blanks with appropriate articles.)

One of the most common causes of malnutrition is an unhealthy lifestyle.


Fill in the blanks with the appropriate articles:
He wanted to become ___________ artist and live in ____________ Himalayas. 

Articles are words that tell us whether the noun is specific or non specific. Articles 'a' and 'an' are non definite articles, used when the noun is not specific. The article 'the' is a definite article used when the noun is a specific one.

The correct answer for this question is:
'He wanted to become 'an' artist and live in 'the' Himalayas.

'An' is used when the noun begins with a vowel (a). The noun 'artist' is not a specific one, and 'Himalayas' is a proper noun that is plural.
We generally do not place an article before proper nouns. But when the noun is unique and there is no other noun with the same name, then we place 'the' before it.


Here are some more examples of ‘the’ used with proper names. Try to say what these sentences mean. (You may consult a dictionary if you wish. Look at the entry for ‘the’.)
(i) Mr Singh regularly invites the Amitabh Bachchans and the Shah Rukh Khans to his parties.
(ii) Many people think that Madhuri Dixit is the Madhubala of our times. 
(iii) History is not only the story of the Alexanders, the Napoleons and the Hitlers, but of ordinary people as well.

(i) This means that Mr Singh regularly invites famous personalities as of the calibre of Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan to his parties.
(ii) This means that Madhuri Dixit is compared to a landmark in acting in the form of legendary actress Madhubala.
(iii) This means that history is not only the story of the great fighters and leaders such as Alexander, Napoleon and Hitler, but also of ordinary people.


Class 8 English Extra Questions