Common Errors with Adjectives – Part III

Incorrect: We live in city.
Correct: We live in a city.

Explanation

A singular common noun (e.g. city, state, country, boy, girl, teacher etc.) takes the article a/an before it. But if the common noun refers to a particular person or thing it requires the definite article the whether the noun is singular or plural.

Compare: We live in a city. (Here we use the indefinite article because we are not referring to any particular city.)
The city is very big. (Here we use the definite article (the) because we are referring to a particular city that has already been mentioned in a previous sentence.)

Incorrect: He is best player.
Correct: He is the best player.
Incorrect: She is a most intelligent girl in the class.
Correct: She is the most intelligent girl in the class.

Explanation

Adjectives in the superlative degree takes the article the before them.

Incorrect: The London is big city.
Correct: London is a big city.
Incorrect: I live in the Mumbai.
Correct: I live in Mumbai.

Explanation

Both London and Mumbai are proper nouns because they are the names of particular cities. Proper nouns do not take articles before them.
Remember that a noun can be proper in one sentence and common in another sentence; so it is useless to label a particular noun as proper or common.

Incorrect: The gold is yellow.
Correct: Gold is yellow.

Explanation

Material nouns (gold, rice, silver, iron, wood, marble etc.) do not take articles before them.

Incorrect: Himalayas are mountains.
Correct: The Himalayas are mountains.
Incorrect: We should love the God.
Correct: We should love God.
Incorrect: The man is a member of society.
Correct: Man is a member of society.

Explanation

Here the noun man refers to the whole of mankind. We do not use articles before a noun used to refer to the whole of its kind.

Incorrect: We had a picnics nearly everyday.
Correct: We had picnics nearly everyday.

Articles are not normally used before plural common nouns that do not refer to a particular person or thing.

Incorrect: Each of us loves our country.
Correct: Each of us loves his/her country.
Incorrect: None of the boys had brought their books.
Correct: None of the boys had brought his books.

Explanation

The pronoun referring back to singular words like each, every and none should be singular in number. Note that this rule is no longer strictly followed. Sentences like ‘Each of us loves our country’ and ‘None of the boys had brought their books’ are now considered correct in informal speech and writing. However, in a formal style you must stick to the rules and use the correct pronoun.

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Comments

  1. xavierry on December 2nd, 2009:

    In that type of common errors in adjectives, it is associated with the correct way of using articles. Through my writing and reading experience, even though I am not a professional, I’d learned that we only use the, an and a when the object is singular. When it is plural, then you should not use articles especially when the object has an adjective that is use to describe it.

  2. xavierry on December 2nd, 2009:

    I base it in your sentence examples since the adjective is use to modify the object. Although adjectives are commonly use in the subject.

  3. tutor on December 3rd, 2009:

    A singular countable noun always takes an article with it. We say a dog or the dog, not dog. Similarly, we say a book or the book, not book.

    A plural noun can be used with or without an article. We say books, not a books. But we can say the books.

    Note that articles are used with plural nouns when we are talking about particular people or things. Articles are not used when we are talking about people or things in a general way.

    Compare:
    The children were playing in the garden. (Particular children)
    Children like to play. (General statement: all children like to play)

  4. lynne.28 on December 7th, 2009:

    We must use the right article in a sentence. Using it carelessly may leave your sentence questionable.

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