Questions tagged [definite-articles]
This tag is for questions about the definite article.
86
questions with no upvoted or accepted answers
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"The number of Xs" - why no article?
Looking at Why not add ‘the’ before the last ‘steps’ word? as recently asked on ELL, I was struck by the realisation that it's very difficult to find contexts where we would include both articles in ...
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The teacher , teacher, the students, students
The following is a quotation from a book entitled Teaching English as a Second Language:
The teacher is viewed as a knowledge provider and the students as the receivers of knowledge , and the ...
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1
answer
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Usage of a/the articles, when an object is determined by "that...."
In "Cambridge preparation to TOEFL"'93 book I've found the phrase:
The old woman made a special tea with __ herb that smelled of oranges.
The correct answer is "an". But the woman added the specific ...
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1
answer
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Do I need the definite article 'The' before 'construction'?
Recently I had a conversation with a colleague and ran into a problem I can't stop thinking about. I was talking about the new campus of my university and said 'construction was started in 2012'. Is ...
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Use of articles before proper nouns of person
In a closed question to a related topic on this forum, the following was suggested as an answer:
"Another is to use a proper noun as an example of particular traits that could also be held by others (...
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0
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Omission of definite article before common nouns in pairs
I am well aware that the usage of, or the omission of, the definite article "the" has been a frequently asked question, here and elsewhere. I have read up on existing questions on this matter. (But I ...
user253154
2
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4
answers
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(The) unemployment in the country has fallen recently
I have been recently wondering about the reason why is "the" omitted in such a phrase like the one quoted below.
"The unemployment in the country has fallen recently."
My ...
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vote
0
answers
761
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The definite article before dark, darkness, light
Why is there a definite article before the words darkness and light in the sentence below:
But as is so often true, the darkness lingers longer than the light.
And why is the expression in the dark/...
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vote
0
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"The" inside or outside quotation marks when naming a thesis
When stating the name of a scientific thesis or principle, for example, "the theory of evolution," should "the" be inside or outside the quotation marks?
Put simply, which option ...
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0
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When shortening the title of a book, should it be prefaced by a definite article?
I am writing a research paper which is concerned with Euler's book 'Introductio in analysin infinitorum'. May I refer to it as "the 'Introductio'"? And would it be wrong to simply refer to ...
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215
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Guideline for use of definite and indefinite articles in source code documentation
I have a doubt about proper use of definite and indefinite articles is source code documentation.
For example:
/**
* Opens the door.
*
* @param speed The opening speed in cm/s.
* @param alarm The ...
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vote
0
answers
940
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Definite Article and no Article with Animal Groups
I've encountered two sentences:
— Dogs make good family pets.
and
The main source of food for the Hippo is the short grass.
My question is:
Why do we use the plural form of 'dogs' with no ...
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vote
0
answers
84
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The (?) French cuisine
Phrases like "French cuisine", "Italian cuisine", "Russian cuisine" seem to be used both with and without definite article. Is there any rule to this? I looked at a few hundred results of Google book ...
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0
answers
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The number of (the) unemployed/super-rich/poor/dead/infected
'The + adjective' usually means 'adjective + people'. For example, the unemployed means 'unemployed people'. In this type of construction, you cannot remove the.
But when the construction is ...
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0
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202
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Hardware Modes: Prepositions, Articles, Capitalization
I have a lot of uncertainties regarding how to address hardware modes, when it comes to computers, cell phones, circuit boards, etc.
Google provides all kinds of contradicting thoughts and answers ...
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0
answers
770
views
Articles with proper names
It's correct to use the definite article before the name of a river, canal, sea and ocean:
When my father dies, we will have to wash him, wrap him in rich cloth, cremate him, and then sprinkle ...
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0
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"Here is a list of all (the) modified files." Should I write "the" or not?
In this sentence:
Here is a list of all modified files.
Do I write the before modified or not ?
I know that plural nouns often lose the article, but I'm not sure with this sentence.
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answers
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Definite and indefinite articles when introducing a person
No article is used when introducing a person.
This ended terribly for Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi; eight years after giving up his nuclear program, the US intervened against him in the Libyan civil ...
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vote
0
answers
511
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No 'the' in front of noun/title
I'm struggling to understand whether or not I can exclude the in front of Countess' Suffering/Pain? This is meant to be a title, as in a book title (but not necessarily that), and I was wondering if ...
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0
answers
103
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Is "the" needed in the following scenario?
I am just going to make a scenario of which nothing has been mentioned before in my paper. The scenario is as follows:
A biology student hears, while she is cooking in the kitchen, that someone on ...
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6k
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When I needed you most vs When I needed you the most
This question happens to remind of an oldie song by Randy Vanwarmer, but I was wondering if the two are the same in effect or if they can be different, if at all, or if it's just a matter of ...
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Q: Optional use of 'the' referring to "daily life of" vs. "daily life as"
Helping a recent graduate with a cover letter and ran into an interesting question about 'the'. Please consider these two passages:
... As a result, I have a better understanding of both the ...
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answers
87
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Articles before nouns and "or" conjunction
I am trying to understand the correct use of articles before nouns that are separated by "or". For example.
It doesn't matter whether you are a mobile or a frontend developer
....
Or it should ...
1
vote
1
answer
37
views
Including an article if the following phrase already contains it
For example, when referencing a webpage:
Visit the "The Performers" page to learn about our musical lineup.
In this case, I want to tell someone to visit a webpage entitled "The ...
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vote
1
answer
198
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Why would someone say “the American consumer” instead of "the American consumers"?
As in "The Survey of the American Consumer" or "The state of the American consumer". Why is the phrase singular?
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0
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49
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The bicycle is a vehicle but the bicycle in this room is just a decoration
Can the definite article have two different meanings in front of identical words in one sentence? As in
The bicycle is a vehicle but the bicycle in this room is just a decoration.
Or perhaps this ...
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0
answers
63
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usage of "the" - "listen to the TV", or "listen to TV"
Question:
When we only listen to the sound of that machine (TV), not watching its screen, which is appropriate to say "listen to the TV" or "listen to TV"?
Background:
When we ...
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0
answers
61
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Definite article, italics/quotations for a document name?
The below text is an extract from a document titled Technical Specification 13 Meter Harbor Tug.
Is it sufficient to have the title capitalized or do I need to put it into italics/quotes when ...
0
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0
answers
87
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Nominalized adjectives or nominalized adjective phrases?
Numerous adjectives can be combined with the. Examples include the poor, the limitless, the miraculous, etc. Such constructions are semantically equivalent to nouns. According to Wikipedia:
A ...
0
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0
answers
77
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For Nth time or for a/an Nth time
In an English language class at school, I was taught to always use "the" not "a/an" when I want to use an ordinal number, for example, "for the second time in a row" ...
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1
answer
105
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(In)definite articles with abstract concepts
I am always struggling to figure out whether to use a definite or indefinite article with abstract concepts.
See the following example. Positions in question are marked with (the?):
Section X ...
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36
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Why has it become preferable to put the definite article in 'Here are the details about…'
Consider the phrases
Here are details about…
Here are the details about…
If you look at google books, both versions exist in edited books written by native speakers. But google NGrams shows that ...
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lacquer finish/a lacquer finish/the lacquer finish [article usage]
I've just read an article about lacquer finish (or should I say a lacquer finish here?), and the use of articles is a bit confusing.
The headline uses the indefinite one, which is kind of clear ...
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0
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0
answers
2k
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"Last but not Least" or "The last but not the least"?
Is it because, in most cases, we use "last but not least" after mentioning some items that don't add "The" to the phrase? or is it just an accepted exception? Shouldn't the correct ...
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Name for the previous definition to which a definite article refers
Pronouns refer to antecedents.
What do definite articles refer to? Are these also antecedents?
For example:
Mary owned a fennec fox named Archibald, who was a gift from Mary's father. The fox was ...
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both (the) X and (the) Y
Which of the three alternatives is correct (or recommended)?
"in both the military and civil fields";
"in both military and civil fields";
"in both the military and the civil ...
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0
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Is it grammatically correct to use the definite article before "grana" in this case?
Stroma: the fluid surrounding grana, where the light-independent reactions occur.
In this vocabulary list entry—"Stroma: the fluid in the chloroplast surrounding the grana, where the light-...
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0
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Under what circumstances may the noun 'ambush' not be preceded by any article?
In particular, I wish to know if they were attacked from ambush and they were attacked from an ambush are equally in fashion. The articled form is is definitely more familiar, but look at the first ...
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116
views
Which article a/the should be used in API documentation?
For example:
some_field - an/the description of smth
In what cases articles should be/should not be used?
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49
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Why "the" in "teach the 3rd grade"?
When asked "What do you do?", I understand it's idiomatic to say both:
"I teach the 3rd grade"
"I teach 3rd grade"
Note that the former can be used even as a general ...
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0
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47
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Definite or zero article in front of adjective
My linguistic instinct (for whatever it is worth to non-native writers) tells me that the sentence
The French historiography ascribes to the first legendary king of Poldevia…
"sounds" ...
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Definite article use. Baseline characteristics of (the) included patients
Could you help me with definite article use in a table caption. Should I use or not "the" there?
Table 1. Baseline characteristics of included patients.
Table 1. Baseline characteristics ...
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42
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Lead to (the) confusion where
Don’t listen to multiple perspectives, it will eventually lead to the confusion where it’s hard to focus.
Does using the definite article here make sense? We generally don’t use the definite article ...
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The Definite Article with the Names of Festivals
I have noticed that the definite article the is always dropped before religious festivals, such as Easter, Passover, Christmas, Eid-al-Fitr, etc. However, it is always used before film festivals , ...
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Is there a case I should say "in absence of" instead of "in the absence of"?
I am checking the usage of "in the absence of".
I learned "in the absence of", but there may be some cases this phrase is written without "the".
(Example: https://ludwig....
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715
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Using "The" article at the beginning of (table) titles and figure captions including "of" phrase
What's good practice for writing titles for academic papers and their tables, and captions for figures.
The baseline characteristics of the included patients.
OR
Baseline characteristics of the ...
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0
answers
41
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Why is 'the' usage is incorrect in the sentence below?
We enjoy the life on this planet because of diversity.
why article 'the' is incorrect when used with 'life' ?
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0
answers
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Why 'the' is incorrectly used here?
Bilingualism is an additional skill that can give an added advantage in career or
the cognitive development. Some opine that it must be developed easily in life, while others suggest to learn it once ...
0
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0
answers
562
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Articles with job position and names
Is it necessary to use the definite article while writing an official letter or filling out an application and addressing the Rector of a university?
e.g.
To (the) Rector of University
First Name/...
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answers
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When can we use an indefinite singular noun as a subject in the start of a sentence?
I was told not to use an indefinite singular noun as a subject in the start of a sentence, so I can say such to refer to a general phenomenon:
Cats eat mouses.
A cat eats mouses.
The cat eats mouses.
...
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