The Definite Article
Pronunciation of the definite article:
a) “The” is pronounced everywhere “I ðə I” would be used (§ 4). For example: “the man,” “the waiter,” “the young animal,” “the uniform,” “the ewe,” “the hero.”
b) “The” is pronounced as “I ði I” everywhere “an” would be used (§ 5). For example: “the animal,” “the unpleasant man,” “the hour,” “the honest boy,” “the honour.”
c)The Definite Article “The” is pronounced as “lði:l” before a consonant or a vowel when one wants to give it the emphatic sense of “the very,” “the famous,” etc. For example: “Though his name is Browning, he is not related to the Browning.”
Translation: Bien qu’il s’appelle Browning, il n’est pas parent du grand Browning.
For many English people, Champagne is the vine!
Gender and number:
The article “the” is invariant in gender and number. For example: “the girl,” “the boy,” “the book,” “the girls,” “the boys,” “the books.”
General rule of use:
In principle, “the” (formerly a demonstrative: ðə, ðəo, ðæt) can only be used if the noun is determined, meaning one knows which person or object is referred to. A noun is determined:
a) If the designated object is unique of its kind (§ 7, a, z7r). For example: “the Sun,” “the Moon,” “the wind,” “the snow,” “the mind.”
b) If it is followed by a determinative complement, often introduced by “of.” For example: “The justice of kings is often slow.”
c) If it introduces a completive clause. For example: “The grief you felt will make your heart kinder.”
d) If the sense is specified by the context. For example: “He fell into the fire” (the one burning in the room where he was). “The summer has been very wet” (this year’s summer).
Syntactic rules of use:
a) “The” is used before adjectives used substantively (§ 63-64). For example: “The rich are sometimes unhappy.” “Platonic philosophers tried to identify the Beautiful and the Good.”
b) The is always omitted after “whose” and after a possessive case.
Ex: He is a boy whose memory is as good as his intelligence.
This boy’s memory is as good as his intelligence.
c) “The” can also be omitted in a quick descriptive style. Ex: Sea and sky were of a color.
d) “The” doesn’t have the possessive sense that the article takes before names of clothing or body parts. Ex: He had his hands in his pockets and a cigarette in his mouth.
The Definite Article