What is the grammar rule for using the?

Answer 1

Well, it's actually quite complicated. Generally speaking you should use the word "the" when it is obvious which item you are referring to. This occurs under several circumstances:

1. There is only one in existence (e.g., the sun, the moon).

2. You have previously mentioned the object (e.g., I saw a man and a woman, and the man was limping).

3. You customarily use only one of these items (e.g., I'm going to the bank. Let's go to the store).

4. With superlatives (e.g., The tallest man in the world. The longest river in the world).

In addition to this, 'the' is used with hotels, oceans, islands, mountain ranges, and rivers (e.g., the Hilton Hotel, the Pacific Ocean, the Virgin Islands, theRocky Mountains, and the Mississippi River).

The is not used with next or last (e.g., next week or last Sunday - without the). The is similarly not used when referring to things in general (e.g., "I like flowers." when you mean flowers in general, not a specific arrangement of flowers on display).

The is not used with streets, individual mountains, or countries (except where those countries are a conglomeration of individual parts, such as the United States or the United Kingdom). For example, we say Sunset Boulevard, Mount Everest, and Peru (not the Sunset Boulevard, the Mount Everest, or the Peru).

Bridges are the most confusing of all as bridges generally do take the word the (e.g., The Golden Gate Bridge, The Tower Bridge) but some bridges do not take the word 'the' (e.g., London Bridge).

The is not used in phrases of frequency (e.g., twice a day, not twice the day).