Fill in the blank with an appropriate Article :
Mr. Anand became __________ youngest Principal of the college in 1995.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → the
Complete sentence: Mr. Anand became the youngest Principal of the college in 1995. "Youngest" is a superlative.
| Option | When to use | Example |
|---|---|---|
| (1) the (answer) | An adjective in the superlative degree (youngest, best, tallest) picks out one person or thing from a group, so it takes the definite article "the". | Mount Everest is the highest peak in the world. |
| (2) a | The indefinite article "a" means any one of many, which cannot go with a superlative. | – |
| (3) no article | A superlative before a noun needs "the". "Became youngest Principal" is ungrammatical. | – |
| (4) an | "An" is indefinite too, and "youngest" begins with a consonant sound, so "an" is wrong on both counts. | – |