Article

A, An and The are known as Articles.

A, An and The are known as Articles.
Articles are of two types.
A] Indefinite Article: a, an.
B] Definite article: The

1) Indefinite Article: a, an. is used before indefinite person or thing.
(A teacher: that is any teacher)
2) It is used before singular countable noun.
(A pen, a book, a cat etc.)

2] Definite article: The is used before particular person or thing (we know it)
1) He saw the teacher (particular teacher)
2) The is used before singular countable, plural countable and uncountable noun. (The pen, the boy, the books,)

Uses of ‘A’

1)A is used before the word beginning with consonant.
(A pen, a car, a class)
2) A is used before a noun beginning with vowel but the sound is of consonant.
(A European, A University, a one-eyed man, a unity)
3) Before an adjective begins with consonant
(a beautiful garden, a nice suggestion)

Use of ‘An’

1)An is used before the word beginning with a ‘vowel’ (a, e, i, o, u) sound.
(An enemy, an ant, an orange)
2) An is used before a word which begins consonant h but sound of vowel.
(An hour, an honest, an heir)
3) An is used before short forms:
(An M.A., an M. Com., an SP, an MP)
4) Before an adjective begins with vowel sound.
(an old woman/ an inspiring story.)

Use of definite article: The 

1) Used when a singular noun represents a whole class/group.
(The dogs is an honest animal, the rich should help the poor,
The rose is a lovely flower.)
2) Used before name of things unique of their kind
(The sun, the moon, the sky, the Earth)
3) Used before the ordinals (number)
(The first, the second, the third)
4) used before the word ‘same’ (the same boot, the same house)
5) Before the name of newspaper magazines, holy books,
-The times of India, the Lokmat times, the Hindu, the bible, the Vedas, the Mahabharata, the Ramayana, the twinkle,
6) Musical Instruments: The violin, the flute, the piano,
7) Superlative adjective: -The best, the most beautiful, the tallest
8) Historical events: (Day)
-The Republic day, the Independence Day, the mother’s day.
9) Historical buildings or directions (sides): (If the direction follows a preposition or if it designates a definite region, use the definite article the. If it follows a verb, no article is used.)
-The Tajmahal, The red fort, The East, The north, The right side, The left side)
10) Names of Oceans, seas, rivers, desert, canals, group of islands, mountains.
-The Indian Ocean, the Arabic sea, the Sahara, the Panama Canal, the Ganga, the Andmans and the Nicobars.
11) Before the proper noun when it is compared to other.
- Tukaram Maharaj is the Shakespeare of Maharashtra.
12) When the same nouns are repeated, use ‘a/an’ before the first noun and ‘the’ before the second noun.
-I saw a book. The book is very interesting.
-I ate an apple yesterday. The apple was juicy and delicious.
13) Plural name of a country.
The USA, The USSR.
Use the- before Bank, Organization: The State Bank of India,
Use- ‘The’ before plural name of a ‘Surname’ to show the whole family.
I saw the Ranes on the Bus station
Use- a before the Noun which show number a dozen, hundred, a thousand.

Do NOT use ‘the’ before:
Lakes: Dal Lake (Jammu Kashmir), Hussain Sagar (Telangana), Shivsagar (Maharashtra). 
Mountains: Mount Fuji, Mount Everest.
Continents: Europe, Asia.
Counties: India, England, Sweden.

States: California, Maharashtra
Cities, towns, villages: London, Paris, Mumbai, Lohara
Islands: Bali, Hawaii.

Names of languages and nationalities: Chinese, Russian (But use the for the population of the place e.g. ‘The Italians are known for their delicious food.’).
Names of sports: cricket, baseball.
Names of subjects: Art, Mathematics.