The definite article: 'the'

Level: beginner

The definite article the is the most frequent word in English.

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

  • because there is only one:

The Pope is visiting Russia.
The moon is very bright tonight.
Who is the president of France?

This is why we use the definite article with a superlative adjective:

He is the tallest boy in the class.
It is the oldest building in the town.

  • because there is only one in that context:

We live in a small house next to the church. (= the church in our village)
Dad, can I borrow the car? (= the car that belongs to our family)
When we stayed at my grandmother’s house, we went to the beach every day. (= the beach near my grandmother’s house)
Look at the boy over there. (= the boy I am pointing at)

  • because we have already mentioned it:

A young man got a nasty shock when he tried to rob a jewellery shop in Richmond. The man used a heavy hammer to smash the windows in the shop.

We also use the definite article:

  • to say something about all the things referred to by a noun:

The wolf is not really a dangerous animal. (= Wolves are not really dangerous animals.)
The kangaroo is found only in Australia. (= Kangaroos are found only in Australia.)
The heart pumps blood around the body. (= Hearts pump blood around bodies.)

We use the definite article in this way to talk about musical instruments:

Joe plays the piano really well.
She is learning the guitar.

  • to refer to a system or service:

How long does it take on the train?
I heard it on the radio.
You should tell the police.

The definite article the 1

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The definite article the 2

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The definite article the 3

GapFillTyping_MTU3MDY

 

Level: intermediate

We can also use the definite article with adjectives like rich, poor, elderly and unemployed to talk about groups of people: 

Life can be very hard for the poor.
I think the rich should pay more taxes.
She works for a group to help the elderly.

 

 

Level: beginner

The definite article with names

We do not normally use the definite article with names:

William Shakespeare wrote Hamlet.
Paris is the capital of France.
Iran is in Asia.

But we do use the definite article with:

  • countries whose names include words like kingdom, states or republic:
the United Kingdom the Kingdom of Bhutan
the United States the People's Republic of China
  •  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 (Ocean) the Amazon the Panama Canal
  • newspapers:
The Times The Washington Post
  • well-known buildings or works of art:
the Empire State Building the Taj Mahal the Mona Lisa
  • organisations:
the United Nations the Seamen's Union
  • hotels, pubs and restaurants:
the Ritz the Ritz Hotel the King's Head the Déjà Vu

But note that we do not use the definite article if the name of the hotel or restaurant is the name of the owner:

Brown's Brown's Hotel Morel's Morel's Restaurant
  • families:
the Obamas the Jacksons
The definite article with names 1

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The definite article with names 2

 GapFillTyping_MTU3MDg=

The definite article with names 3

GapFillTyping_MTU3MDk=

The definite article with names 4

GapFillTyping_MTU3MTA=

 

Average
Average: 4.6 (98 votes)

Hello raj.kumar123,

I expect that no article is required before 'contemporary politics', but it is impossible to be sure, and nor can we be sure if an article is required before 'historical past'.

The sentence is not in any kind of context, so we do not know what has been said before and what will follow. Articles are reference devices which can refer to things in the sentence or outside it (this is why, presumable, you have a definite article before 'book'). Here, we do not know if there is any reference outside of the sentence, and so cannot comment with any confidence.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Dear Peter M, Thanks for your response. Could you please let me know how the insertion of article 'the' before ‘contemporary politics’ change the meaning? In other words, how do the following two sentences convey different meanings: a. "The book resonates with the historical past and the contemporary politics." b. "The book resonates with the historical past and contemporary politics." Raj

Submitted by raj.kumar123 on Sat, 12/10/2019 - 06:58

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Hi! In the following sentence- "there is no doubt in the innocent minds of the villagers when the construction of religious idea of knowledge and ignorance is based on the sacred text", do we need the article 'the' before 'religious idea'? If yes, why? Thanks.
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Submitted by Kirk Moore on Sat, 12/10/2019 - 19:54

In reply to by raj.kumar123

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Hello raj.kumar123

Yes, I would use it there.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by muratt on Fri, 11/10/2019 - 14:27

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Hi, I'm learning nouns that are both countable and uncountable, and I would like to know if the below are correct: Love is what you need. I have a love of literature. Experience is important to gain. I have an excellent experience in sales. Time is very important nowadays. We had a great time whilst at work today. This country makes investment in education. My siblings had a good education in London. Knowledge in English is important at work. This position requires a knowledge of English.
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Submitted by Kirk Moore on Fri, 11/10/2019 - 16:39

In reply to by muratt

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Hello muratt

Well done -- except for the fourth one, you've used the nouns correctly in those sentences. We don't say 'an experience in sales' but rather something like 'excellent sales experience' (where it is uncountable). An example of 'experience' as a count noun would be something like 'He studied in Istanbul for one year and had a great experience'.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Keimo on Thu, 10/10/2019 - 12:45

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Which one it is --> The Customer or Customer, in case customer is defined in a contract text ("Customer means ...."). After that do you use "The Customer" or just Customer since it is already defined in a contract?

Hello Keimo,

The normal use in legal documents such as contracts is The Customer (The Employee, The Client, The Contractor etc.), and this is true right through the document.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Kaisoo93 on Fri, 04/10/2019 - 03:03

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Hi Sirs, 'The future belongs to the unmanned flying machines.' Or 'The future belongs to unmanned flying machines'. Why? Thank you
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Submitted by Peter M. on Fri, 04/10/2019 - 06:00

In reply to by Kaisoo93

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Hello Kaisoo93,

The use of articles is generally dependent on the context.

In your example, if you are simply making a prediction about the future in general (the most likely option) then no article is needed. The reference is to unmanned flying machines in general, not to a particular group of unmanned flying machines in contrast to another group of unmanned flying machines:

The future belongs to unmanned flying machines.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by man on Tue, 24/09/2019 - 12:14

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Hi, I would like to know why we add (the) before (weekend) in the first sentence, while in the second one we didn't add it before (weekdays): That is at the weekend. The last admission is at noon on weekdays.
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Submitted by Peter M. on Wed, 25/09/2019 - 08:35

In reply to by man

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Hi man,

'The weekend' is a particular period of time. The equivalent (Monday to Friday) would be 'during the week', which also uses the definite article.

'Weekdays' is just a plural noun, not the name of a period of time. You could also say 'on Tuesdays' or 'on Fridays', for example, also without an article.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by raj.kumar123 on Tue, 24/09/2019 - 01:04

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Hi! In the following sentence- "there is no doubt in the innocent minds of the villagers when the construction of religious idea of knowledge and ignrance is based on the Bible", do we need the article 'the' before 'religious idea'? If yes, why? Thanks.

Submitted by raj.kumar123 on Tue, 24/09/2019 - 00:58

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Hi ! Is 'retribution' a countable noun? Can we say 'It was a divine retribution'? Many people use the article 'a' with 'retribution'. Please guide me, Regards, Nakul

Submitted by Mah on Fri, 20/09/2019 - 08:30

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Hi. My question is should we leave out definite article the after the word 'both' in the examples below: 1) Both the women are French. 2) Both of the women are French. I come across examples like these and not sure if the Example 1 is correct. Thank you.

Hi Mah,

The sentence is fine both with and without the article, so you can say

Both the women are French.

Both women are French.

However, when 'both of' is used, the article is required:

Both of the women are French.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by LeyM on Mon, 02/09/2019 - 08:47

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hello team BC, i'm having doubts regarding the definite article with similar parts of sentence, hope you will help me to figure this one out: It differs from the previous one by allowance for the methane throttling effect, moisture evaporation and the coal reaction surface. I think 'throttling' and 'evaporation' are sort of from the same category and 'reaction surface' isn't so i use the definite article with it and omit it before the evaporation. Is it correct?

Hello LeyM,

I'm afraid we don't check or correct sentences for our users like this. Although I know it would be very helpful, we are only a small team and can't offer such help to all our users. In addition, questions like this are dependent on the broader context rather than just the individual sentence. We'd need to read the text around this and see what was mentioned before, for example, to give a confident answer.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Rai on Sun, 18/08/2019 - 14:40

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Hi Is it correct to use definite article with scientific inventions like telephone, mobile, radio, wheel? Thanks
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Submitted by Kirk Moore on Mon, 19/08/2019 - 19:48

In reply to by Rai

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Hello Rai

That really depends on the context, but yes, 'the' is often used when speaking about an invention.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Wan Fatisyah b… on Thu, 15/08/2019 - 14:16

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Hello Team BC, I'm not sure if we can repeat 'the' per sentence. e.g - Please carry the large and the heavier box to the van Correction ? The larger and the heavier box to the van? I'm not sure. I really got confuse when we discuss on this.

Hello Wan Fatisyah binti Wan Yahaya

Are you talking about just one box? If so, I think 'the larger, heavier box' would be best. 

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Pratima Kapure on Thu, 08/08/2019 - 17:21

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Can you help me? Which one sentence is correct.. I colour the apple red I colour the orange orange This sentences are from 3rd std..book..

Hello Pratima Kapure

They both look correct to me.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Mah on Sun, 04/08/2019 - 02:44

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Hi. Can you please help me identify which is correct? 1) I like watching "Little Mouse and Friends". 2) I like watching the "Little Mouse and Friends". 3) I like watching Little Mouse and Friends. 4) I like watching the Little Mouse and Friends. "Little Mouse and Friends" is a programme on TV. I'm not sure if quotation marks and definite article the should be used. Thank you

Hello Mah

2 and 4 are not correct -- no definite article is needed here. I'm afraid I can't say whether 1 or 3 is better, as this is something there is no agreement on. If I were writing this, I would put Little Mouse and Friends in italics (Little Mouse and Friends) and as a second option would write it like 1.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Panos on Thu, 11/07/2019 - 18:04

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Hello, When I receive an email and the other person states that: ''I have not received the letter yet'' and I reply: ''The letters should be delivered within 14 days at property's address''. Is the meaning different or/and is grammatically wrong to not include ''the'' before the word ''property's''? Many Thanks in advance.
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Submitted by Kirk Moore on Fri, 12/07/2019 - 09:21

In reply to by Panos

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Hello Panos

It sounds to me as if the article 'the' should go before 'property's address' here. Since both you and the other person know which property is being referred to, you should use the definite article 'the'.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Mah on Wed, 10/07/2019 - 04:31

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Should I put definite article 'the' in front of the name of a course? Ex: I've just attended the Be Safe Preparation Course.

Hello Mah

Here the general rules for using articles apply. In other words, if you think the person you are speaking or writing to already knows about the course, then you should use 'the'. On the other hand, if the course hasn't been mentioned yet in your conversation, then 'a' would be more appropriate. Does that make sense?

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by miswan on Mon, 01/07/2019 - 09:26

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Hello Sir, Can you help me to identify which one is correct? "From Information Centre at G floor, follow the "Sky Walk" sign to Entrance 1." or "From THE Information Centre at G floor, follow the "Sky Walk" sign to Entrance 1." or "From THE Information Centre at G floor, follow the "Sky Walk" sign to THE Entrance 1." Thank You
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Submitted by Kirk Moore on Mon, 01/07/2019 - 16:18

In reply to by miswan

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Hello miswan

I would say the second one, though I would say 'on the G floor' instead of 'at G floor'.

All the best

Kirk

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Magnus on Mon, 27/05/2019 - 18:53

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Hello! I have come across the expression "to become king" and would like to know if it is obligatory to add a "the" if you put an adjective (e.g. new) in front of the noun (king) or if you specify the noun a bit more (e.g. of-phase). Here are my examples: 1. He became (the) new king. 2. He became (the) k[K]ing of England. 3. He became (the) new king of England. I would be very grateful if you would send a reply!
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Submitted by Peter M. on Tue, 28/05/2019 - 06:21

In reply to by Magnus

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Hello Magnus, 'The' is required in the first and third sentences. In the second sentence, 'the' is required if 'king' is not capitalised. If 'King' is capitalised then 'the' can (optionally) be omitted as 'King of England' as a title can be used without the article. ~ Peter The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Aditi on Thu, 16/05/2019 - 16:27

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Sir, Can you please tell before which instruments do we use ‘the’
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Submitted by Peter M. on Fri, 17/05/2019 - 07:51

In reply to by Aditi

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Hello Aditi, Do you mean musical instruments? If so, then when talking about what we play or like then we use 'the' before all instruments: > I play the trumpet > I like the clarinet > I don't play the drums ~ Peter The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by raj.kumar123 on Sun, 05/05/2019 - 05:45

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If only one external expert is to be invited for a meeting of the board. Which of the following sentences should be used to invite the expert: "You are requested to join us as a professional expert" or "You are requested to join us as THE professional expert"?
Hello raj.kumar123, Both forms are possible, grammatically speaking. The expert is one of many in the world (so 'a' is logical) but is also the only one in the group (so 'the' is logical). I would say that 'the' makes the situation clearest to the person receiving the invitation. ~ Peter The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Seham Aly on Sun, 31/03/2019 - 09:44

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Thank you so much, It's clear now.

Submitted by Seham Aly on Thu, 28/03/2019 - 12:05

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Hello Sir, Really, I confuse about this sentence: I have ........... money but more time than i did ten years ago.( a little - little- less ) The answer should be ( a little or less ) ?? and why ?
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Submitted by Peter M. on Fri, 29/03/2019 - 06:56

In reply to by Seham Aly

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Hello Seham Aly, The correct answer is 'less'. The reason is that the sentence uses 'but' to contrast two changes: 'less money but more time'. Only 'less' fits this contrast as the other options show quantity (how much) but not change (more or less). Peter The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Andrew.int on Mon, 11/03/2019 - 05:04

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Hello Sir Re: definite article 'the' I heard it on the radio. Is it alright to say I saw it on the TV or I saw it on TV but Switch off the TV. Please let me know. Thank you. Regards Lal
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Submitted by Peter M. on Mon, 11/03/2019 - 06:44

In reply to by Andrew.int

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Hello Lal,

You can say

I saw it on TV or I saw it on the TV

 

However, when we refer to the TV as a machine we need to use an article. This is generally the definite article because we are talking about a particular TV (our own or the one in the room).

I turned the TV off.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by Hari4171 on Thu, 07/03/2019 - 10:48

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Sir, Iam confused with these statements, please clarify the exact difference and the usage 1. Definite article THE is used to say something about all the things referred to by a noun Eg: the wolf is not a dangerous animal 2. We use a/an with a singular noun to say something about all things of that kind Eg: A dog likes to eat meat My question is if I say A wolf is not a dangerous animal, it means all wolves are not dangerous animals.. Then, what is the difference between using A or THE before wolf when both are having same meaning Thanks in advance
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Submitted by Peter M. on Fri, 08/03/2019 - 06:59

In reply to by Hari4171

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Hello Hari4171,

We can use the indefinite article, the definite article and the zero article for general meaning, but there are some differences between them. I'll explain this first, and then addess your particular example.

 

a + singular countable noun

we can use this with general meaning when we are talking about something which defines the group. For example:

An elephant is an impressive sight.

In other words, being an impressive sight is one of the characteristics of an elephant; if we saw an animal and it was not impressive then we could be fairly sure that it was not an elephant. We are talking about any elephant here - it is true of them all.

 

the + singular noun

we can use this with general meaning when we are talking about our image or concept of the noun. For example:

The elephant can live for over sixty years.

Here we are not talking about a real elephant, but rather the concept of 'elephant' in our heads.

 

no article + plural countable noun or uncountable noun

we use this to talk about what is normal or typical of a type. It may or may not be true of all individuals but it is typical of most. For example:

Swedish people are tall.

Here we are talking about the average height of Swedes, not any particular person or concept.

 

The distinctions are subtle but sometimes can be important. For example, we can say with general meaning:

Whales are in danger of becoming extinct.

The whale is in danger of becoming extinct.

 

However, we cannot say:

A whale is in danger of becoming extinct.

This is because being in danger of becoming extinct may be true but it does not define the whale.

 

With regard to your example, I think certainly the wolf and wolves are possible forms. The indefinite article depends upon the point of view of the speaker. If you consider non-dangerous behaviour to be part of what it is to be a wolf then a wolf is also possible.

 

I hope that helps to clarify it for you. It is a complex area.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by adelina on Sun, 03/03/2019 - 18:38

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Hello, I have a quick question. when I speak about Buckingham Palace, do I use the definite article?