Free Articles MCQs with Answers

1. Choose the correct article: He is ____ honest officer who never accepts a bribe.

• A. a
• B. an
• C. the
• D. no article

Explanation: The choice between a and an depends on the opening sound, not the opening letter, and the h in honest is silent so the word begins with a vowel sound. The same rule gives an hour and an MBBS degree, but a university and a one-rupee coin, where the spelling begins with a vowel but the sound does not.

2. Choose the correct article: He is ____ honest man.

• A. a
• B. an
• C. the
• D. no article

Explanation: The choice depends on the sound rather than the letter, and honest begins with a vowel sound because the h is silent, so an is correct. The same reasoning gives a university and a one rupee note, where the spelling begins with a vowel but the sound does not. Always say the word aloud before choosing.

3. Choose the correct article: ____ Mount Everest is the highest peak in the world.

• A. A
• B. An
• C. The
• D. No article

Explanation: Names of individual mountains take no article, so we say Mount Everest and K2 but the Himalayas for the range. The same pattern applies to lakes, which take no article, and rivers and seas, which take the. These conventions are learnt by exposure rather than deduced.

4. Choose the correct article: He was appointed ____ captain of the team.

• A. a
• B. an
• C. the
• D. no article

Explanation: No article is used before a unique office or title that follows verbs such as appoint, elect or make, so he was appointed captain and she was elected president. Adding the would be needed only if the noun were being identified rather than conferred. This zero article rule surprises many candidates.

5. Choose the correct article: ____ Sun rises in the east.

• A. A
• B. An
• C. The
• D. No article

Explanation: Unique objects such as the Sun, the Moon, the Earth and the sky take the definite article. Directions such as the east and the north follow the same rule in this construction. An indefinite article would imply there is more than one Sun.

6. She is awaiting _______ result.

• A. for
• B. from
• C. the
• D. on

Explanation: Await is a transitive verb and takes a direct object without the preposition “for”: “She is awaiting the result.” The definite article “the” is used because a particular result is meant.

7. _______Parrot of Pakistan is beautiful ?

• A. a
• B. an
• C. The
• D. None

Explanation: “The” is used because the phrase identifies a particular or well-known parrot associated with Pakistan. The sentence therefore begins, “The Parrot of Pakistan is beautiful.”

8. Can you repair _____ compter in Liam's office? It's not working.

• A. a
• B. the
• C. an
• D. none of these

Explanation: “The computer” is required because the phrase identifies a particular computer, namely the one in Liam’s office. “A” would introduce any one computer without specifying which one.

9. Everyone who works in this department uses ___________ computer.

• A. a
• B. the
• C. an
• D. none of these.

Explanation: “A computer” refers to each person’s computer in a general, non-specific sense, so the indefinite article is used. “The computer” would normally point to one already identified computer.

10. He is _________ doctor.

• A. a
• B. an
• C. the
• D. no article

Explanation: “Doctor” is a singular countable noun and begins with a consonant sound, so it requires “a.” The article “an” is used before a vowel sound, not merely a vowel letter.