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Articles, Prepositions and Subject-Verb Agreement | Kerala PSC LDC
- Fact 1 of 8🔤
'An hour' but 'a university'
The choice between 'a' and 'an' depends on the sound, not the letter. So we say 'an hour' and 'an MLA' (vowel sounds), but 'a university' and 'a one-rupee coin' (consonant sounds).
- Fact 2 of 8🏔️
'The' before unique things
The definite article 'the' is used before things that are one of a kind, such as the sun, the moon and the earth. It also goes before rivers, oceans and mountain ranges: the Periyar, the Arabian Sea, the Western Ghats.
- Fact 3 of 8🎻
Superlatives take 'the'
Superlative adjectives need 'the': 'Periyar is the longest river in Kerala.' 'The' also comes before musical instruments, as in 'She plays the veena.' Both rules appear often in error-spotting questions.
- Fact 4 of 8⏰
At, on, in for time
Use 'at' for exact times (at 6 o'clock), 'on' for days and dates (on Monday, on 1 November) and 'in' for months, years and seasons (in May, in 1956). This trio is a PSC favourite.
- Fact 5 of 8⏳
'Since' vs 'for'
'Since' marks a point in time and 'for' marks a length of time: 'I have lived here since 2015' but 'I have lived here for ten years.' Both are usually used with the perfect tense.
- Fact 6 of 8👥
'Each' and 'every' are singular
Subjects starting with 'each', 'every', 'either' or 'neither' take a singular verb: 'Each of the students has a book.' Choosing 'have' here is a classic trap in exams.
- Fact 7 of 8⚖️
The nearer subject decides
With 'either...or' and 'neither...nor', the verb agrees with the subject closest to it: 'Neither the teacher nor the students were present.' Swap the order and it becomes 'Neither the students nor the teacher was present.'
- Fact 8 of 8🤝
'As well as' doesn't add up
Phrases like 'as well as', 'along with' and 'together with' do not make the subject plural. 'The captain, along with his players, is arriving today' is correct, because the verb follows the first subject.
