THE ARTICLE THE

We use the definite article in front of a noun when we believe the hearer/reader
knows exactly what we are referring to:

because there is only one: The Pope is visiting Russia / The moon is bright.
because there is only one in that place or in those surroundings : We live in a small
village next to the church.
because we have already mentioned it: A woman who fell 10 metres from High Peak
was lifted to safety by a helicopter. The woman fell while climbing.
to say something about all the things referred to by a noun: The kangaroo is found
only in Australia (= Kangaroos are found only in Australia). We use the definite article
in this way to talk about musical instruments: Joe plays the piano really well.(= Joe can
play any piano)
to refer to a system or service: How long does it take on the train?
With adjectives like rich, poor, elderly, unemployed to talk about groups of people:
Life can be very hard for the poor / I think the rich should pay more taxes.
countries whose names include words like kingdom, states or republic: the United Kingdom.
countries which have plural nouns as their names: the Netherlands; the Philippines.
geographical features, such as mountain ranges, groups of islands, rivers, seas, oceans and
canals: the Himalayas; the Canaries; the Atlantic; the Atlantic Ocean; the Amazon.
newspapers: The Times; The Washington Post.
well known buildings or works of art: the Empire State Building; the Taj Mahal
organisations: the United Nations; the Seamens Union
hotels, pubs and restaurants*: the Ritz Hotel. *Note: We do not use the definite article if
the name of the hotel or restaurant is the name of the owner, e.g., Browns Hotel.
families: the Obamas; the Jacksons
You need to use the before acronyms of organizations & countries when the letters
are pronounced individually, not as a word: The UN was created after the Second
World War.

We do not normally use the definite article:

with names: William Shakespeare wrote Hamlet / Paris is the capital of France.
When you talk about things in general
geography, *Articles are not used before countries, states, cities, towns, continents,
single lakes, single mountains. I live in Canada.
companies, Bill Gates founded Microsoft.
languages. I speak French.
When you talk about holidays which are proper nouns: I love Christmas.
 Places, locations, streets: *Streets, some locations and places do not need an article: I
left my book at home.
you dont need an article for subjects you study at school: math, geography, business,
history, science
Sports: I love to go skiing in the winter.
Noun + number: The train to Paris leaves from platform 2.
The is not used before university acronyms:She has a Ph.D. from MIT

1. On Sundays my father stays in bed and reads Sunday papers.

2. youngest daughter has just started going to school; eldest

daughter is at university.

3. darkness doesn't worry cats because they can see in dark.

4. He had an accident and was taken to hospital. Have you rung hospital to
see how he is?

5. Ann has given up gymnastics and is taking ballet lessons instead.

6. most of stories that people tell about Irish aren't true.

7. married couples with children often rent cottages

by seaside for summer holidays.

8. girls in my class are going to cinema this Saturday.

9. My grandmother goes to church in mornings.

10. You can fool some of people all time, and all people some

of time; but you cannot fool all people all time.