Ravi had _______ younger brother who taught at _______ university. He was widely regarded as ________ honorable man. Select the option with the correct sequence of articles to fill in the blanks. A. a; a; an B. the; a; an C. a; an; an D. the; an; an

GATE 2025 · General Aptitude · Articles · easy

Answer: A. a; a; an

  1. Blank 1 — article before 'younger brother': Brother is introduced without prior context; use indefinite article. 'Younger' starts with consonant /j/ sound => 'a younger brother'. Options B and D use 'the', implying a known specific person — incorrect for a first mention.
  2. Blank 2 — article before 'university': Although 'university' starts with the letter 'u', its pronunciation begins with consonant /j/ ('yoo-niversity'). The correct article is 'a', not 'an'. Option C uses 'an university' — incorrect.
  3. Blank 3 — article before 'honorable': The 'h' in 'honorable' is silent; the word begins with vowel sound /o/. Use 'an'. All remaining options agree on 'an' here.