Articles and Common Errors - III

 

                                            Articles and Common Errors - III

Dear readers, in the previous post we discussed some of the common errors associated with definite articles that English as non-native speakers encounter in their daily conversation. This present post highlights the common errors that people tend to commit in terms of articles.

In English, articles are categorised into two parts – Definite article and Indefinite article. Definite article is ‘the’, and Indefinite articles are ‘a’ and ‘an’. This post briefs the contexts where articles are not used usually.

Avoid articles in the following places:

1.   Names of Sports - Cricket, Tennis, Football etc.

-      Cricket is my favourite game.

-      I would like to play football.

2.   Name of Academic Subjects - Physics, English, Science, etc.

-      Poorvik has scored centum in Physics.

-      I have to improve my English.

3.   Name of People and Holidays - Surya, Pongal, Christmas, etc.

-      Ramesh is a good boy.

-      I will go to my native place during Pongal holidays.

4.   Names of Weekdays, Months, and Seasons - Sunday, May, Summer

-      He came to college on Monday.

-      We enjoy playing in water during summer in May.

5.   Names of Languages and Nationalities - Tamil, English (While referring to the people of a nation, for example, the Indians, the Americans)

-      Tamil is one of the classical languages in the world.

-      The Japanese work sincerely.

6.   After These Phrases Referring to a Job Title- the position of Manager, the post of Principal, the rank of Commissioner of Police.

-      I have requested principal to inaugurate our International Seminar on Monday.

-      Dr. G. Sylendra Babu served as DGP of Tamil Nadu.    

Using articles in both spoken and written versions is important for every speaker of English. Moreover, it is also significant to know the place where articles should not be used. Learning the correct usage of the articles makes the speakers communicate in English with good accuracy. Let us discuss some other interesting subjects in the next post.

 

Author:

Dr. K. Nandhakumar

Assistant Professor of English

Sri Ramakrishna Mission Vidyalaya College of Arts and Science (Autonomous)

Coimbatore- 641 020

 

Reference:

Saumya Sharma. (2017). Common Errors in Everyday English.