Your English ClassFREE Grammar Lessons for Teachers and StudentsSkip to contentHomeClass Videos← Older postsArticlesPosted on September 11, 2014 by Tom FasanoArticlesThe adjectives a, an, and the are called Articles.A and an are Indefinite Articles; the is a Definite Article. Their distinctive uses are shown in the following sentences.Hand me a pencil (any pencil).Hand me the pencil (a particular pencil).The indefinite articles indicate a member of a class without designating which particular one; the definite article indicates a specific member or members of a class.Uses of “A” and “An.” (1) The article a precedes a word beginning with a consonant sound; an precedes a word beginning with a vowel sound: a tree, an olive tree.Note. Besides the common vowels of a, e, i, o, and u, in English a y can have the characteristics of either a vowel or a consonant. That is, an initial y is almost always a consonant (yell, yard); in the middle of a word, it is often a vowel (analysis).(2) The letter u can have either a vowel or a consonant sound. Before a word beginning with a u having a vowel sound, an is used: as, an understanding, an uncle; before a word beginning with a u having a consonant sound, a is used: as, a union (pronounced yunion), a uniform, a use.(3) Before a word beginning with h, an is used if the h is silent; a is used if the h is sounded: as, an honorable profession, a humid day, a house.Adherence to the above rule is not universal. Some writers use a before a word beginning with h if the first syllable is accented and an if it is unaccented: as, a his´-tory; an his-tor´-ical event. However, this practice is not recommended.Also on Facebook and Twitter. All content (c) Thomas Fasano 2014. Any other copyrighted material is included as “fair use”, for the purpose of study, review or critical analysis only, and will be removed at the request of copyright owner(s).Posted in Adjectives|Tagged Articles|Leave a commentPronominal AdjectivesPosted on August 31, 2014 by Tom FasanoPronouns and certain function words are frequently used to modify nouns. They precede nouns and determine or limit their meaning. They are sometimes called “limiting adjectives” in traditional grammar.Personal Pronouns: “This is my car.” “He found her purse.”Relative Pronouns: “The neighbor whose dog is barking came home.” “Whichever wine you select, the dinner guests will probably like it.”Interrogative Pronouns: “Which flavor do you want?” “What decision will the court make?”Demonstrative Pronouns: “That sort of thing is good to avoid.” “Those apples are delicious.”Indefinite Pronouns: “Any time off will be good.” “Some situations are best avoided.” “The other clerk was more helpful.” “Few people care.”To determine whether a pronoun is used as a pronominal adjective or as an actual pronoun is a simple matter of determining if it modifies a noun or is used as a noun.PRONOMINAL ADJECTIVEPRONOUNThat politician is corrupt.That is a corrupt politician.Which wi