In academic essay writing, one of the grammatical errors is use of wrong article at wrong place. While the confusion between “a” and “an” is common mistake, unnecessary “the” is also another issue. Here, you will learn to use indefinite and definite article. We all know academic essay writing is a tough part of curricular, but with this tips, it will be clear how to use articles properly.

Use of Indefinite Article “a”

Place it before first letter of word that is consonant.

Example: a ball, a coffee cup

In this example, the first letter of word is b, and c, which is consonant letters.

Use of Indefinite Article “an”

Place it before first letter of word that produces vowel sounds like a, e, i, o, u.

Example: an ice cream, an egg

In this example, the first letter of word is i and e, which is vowel letters.

Special Cases

When the first letter of a word is silent h, place ‘an’ before that word every time.

Example: He was an honorable man.

In this example, even though h is first letter, the sound it produces is with vowel ‘o.’

When the first letter of a word begins with u but produce ‘y’ sound, place ‘a’ before that word every time.

Example: Throw a used napkin in the dustbin.

In this example, even though u is a vowel, the sound it produces is with consonant ‘y.’

Example: Yesterday, rain was an unexpected surprise.

In this example, u is a vowel, and the sound does produce is with vowel ‘u.’

Use of Definite Article “The”

Place it before a singular or plural noun. However, remember to always put it before specific noun only.

Example: The dog is not at all train for police service.

In this example, we are talking about a particular dog.

Place it before uncountable nouns.

Example: He spilled the water on me.

Henceforth, from above simple examples, it is clear that how indefinite and definite article should be used in academic essay writing. We hope this tips will be helpful while you plan to write an essay.