Articles (a, an, the) Practice Quiz: WBPSC Clerkship English
A little practice. A step forward.
12 questions on articles, each with an explanation. 📖 Read the detailed topic
She waited for ___ hour outside the office.
The h in hour is silent, so the word begins with a vowel sound and takes an. A is wrong before a consonant sound, and the would point to one particular hour, which the sentence does not.
- The first sound decides, not the first letter
- Silent h: hour, honest, honour, heir
- Choosing a because the word starts with h
- Silent h takes an
<figure class="inkforge-figure" style="margin:8px 0"><img src="https://pesha.in/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/wbpsc-clerkship-english-articles-a-an-the-fig-hour-c9b0fdb0.png" alt="An hour: worked in three steps" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:8px"><figcaption style="font-size:.85em;opacity:.75">An hour, step by step</figcaption></figure>
Ravi is ___ university student.
University begins with the consonant sound 'yoo', so a is used. An is wrong even though u is a vowel letter. The would point to a particular student, and a singular countable noun cannot stand without an article here.
- university, union, unit, useful, European, one: consonant sound, so a
- The letters u, eu and o can start a consonant sound
- Using an because u is a vowel letter
- Hear 'yoo' and use a
<figure class="inkforge-figure" style="margin:8px 0"><img src="https://pesha.in/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/wbpsc-clerkship-english-articles-a-an-the-fig-sound-8d066518.png" alt="Venn diagram: vowel letters and vowel sounds" loading="lazy" style="max-width:100%;height:auto;border-radius:8px"><figcaption style="font-size:.85em;opacity:.75">A or an: watch the first sound</figcaption></figure>
___ Himalayas protect India from the cold winds of the north.
Names of mountain ranges take the (the Himalayas, the Alps). A and an go with singular countable nouns, and Himalayas is plural. No article is wrong, since it applies to single peaks such as Mount Everest.
- Ranges, rivers, seas and oceans take the
- Single peaks, lakes, countries and cities usually take none
- Leaving out the before Himalayas
- Waters and ranges: the
| Use | Examples |
|---|---|
| the (rivers, ranges, seas) | the Ganga, the Himalayas, the Bay of Bengal |
| No article (a single peak, country, city, lake) | Mount Everest, India, Kolkata, Lake Chilika |
She goes to ___ school every day at 8 a.m.
When school, college, hospital, bed or church is visited for its own purpose (study, treatment, sleep), no article is used. The school would refer to the building alone. A and an make no sense here.
- go to school/college/bed/hospital: purpose, no article
- the school: a particular building, as in 'I went to the school to meet the principal'
- Putting the everywhere
- Going to study = school; going to see the building = the school
He is ___ honest officer.
The h in honest is silent, so the word begins with a vowel sound and takes an. A is wrong before a consonant sound. The would be used only for a particular officer already known.
- Silent h: honest, honour, hour, heir
- Sounded h takes a: hotel, house, horse, hero
- Writing a honest
- Silent h means an
| an (silent h) | a (sounded h) |
|---|---|
| an hour | a hotel |
| an honest man | a house |
| an heir | a horse |
| an honour | a hero |
Mohan is ___ tallest boy in the class.
Tallest is a superlative and only one boy can be the tallest, so the is used. A and an are not used before a superlative. No article is wrong because the superlative needs the.
- The before a superlative: the best, the tallest
- The before an ordinal: the first, the second
- Using a before a superlative
- Most or first: the
___ sun rises in the east.
There is only one sun, so it is a unique object and takes the (the moon, the sky, the earth). A and An suit an unspecified item, while the sun is definite and unique.
- Unique things: the sun, the moon, the sky, the equator
- The also goes with directions: the east, the north
- Leaving out the before sun
- Only one exists: the
They had ___ breakfast at 8 o'clock.
Names of meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) usually take no article. The is used for a particular meal, as in 'the dinner we had at your house'. A and an do not fit this plain use.
- No article before a meal: have lunch
- With an adjective a can appear: a heavy breakfast
- Writing have the breakfast
- Plain meal, no article
He gave me ___ one-rupee coin.
One begins with the consonant sound 'wun', so a is used. An is wrong even though o is a vowel letter. The would refer to a particular coin already mentioned.
- one, once, one-eyed, one-day: 'w' sound, so a
- The sound, not the letter, decides
- Using an because o is a vowel letter
- Hear 'wun' and use a
She has ___ MBA degree from Calcutta University.
MBA is read 'em-bee-ay', so it begins with the vowel sound of the letter name 'em', and an is used. A is wrong. For abbreviations, listen to how the first letter is named.
- For abbreviations, listen to the letter name: an MBA, an MLA, an SDO, an FIR
- an M.A., an LL.B., an X-ray
- Choosing a because M is a consonant letter
- Letters named with an 'e' sound at the start (F, L, M, N, S, X, R, H) take an
| an (letter name starts with a vowel sound) | a (letter name starts with a consonant sound) |
|---|---|
| an MBA | a BA |
| an MLA | a PhD |
| an SDO | a CM |
| an FIR | a UN official |
Choose the correct sentence.
The h in hour is silent, so an hour is right. An university is wrong because university begins with 'yoo'. A honest is wrong because honest has a silent h, so it takes an. An European is wrong for the same reason as university: it should be a European.
- an: hour, honest, honour, MLA
- a: university, European, one, unit
- Judging by spelling instead of sound
- Decide by ear, not by eye
___ Mount Everest is the highest peak in the world.
Names of single peaks usually take no article (Mount Everest, Mount Kanchenjunga), while ranges take the (the Himalayas). A and An are out because this is a proper name. The the before highest belongs to the superlative and is a separate matter.
- Mount + name: no article
- the Himalayas, the Alps, the Andes: ranges
- Writing the Mount Everest
- A lone peak takes nothing; a range takes the
| Use | Examples |
|---|---|
| the (rivers, ranges, seas) | the Ganga, the Himalayas, the Bay of Bengal |
| No article (a single peak, country, city, lake) | Mount Everest, India, Kolkata, Lake Chilika |
📊 Topic Analysis
12 questions on articles, each with an explanation.
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