When we are talking about things or people in general, we do not use 'the':
* I'm afraid of dogs. (not 'the dogs') (dogs = dogs in general, not a particular group of dogs)
* Doctors are paid more than teachers.
* Do you collect stamps?
* Crime is a problem in most big cities. (not 'the crime')
* Life has changed a lot in the last 30 years. (not 'the life')
* Do you often listen to classical music? (not 'the classical music')
* Do you like Chinese food/French cheese/Swiss chocolate?
* My favorite sport is football/skiing/athletics. (not 'the football the skiing' etc.)
* My favorite subject at school was history/physics/English. We say 'most people/most books/most cars' etc. (not 'the most ...').
* Most people like George. (not 'the most people')
We use the when we mean particular things or people. Compare:
1 In general (without 'the')
* Children learn a lot from playing. (= children in general)
* I often listen to music.
* All cars have wheels.
* Sugar isn't very good for you.
* Do English people work hard? (= English people in general)
2 Particular people or things (with the)
* We took the children to the zoo. (= a particular group, perhaps the speaker's own children)
* The film wasn't very good but I liked the music. (= the music in the film)
* All the cars in this car park belong to people who work here.
* Can you pass the sugar, please? (= the sugar on the table)
* Do the English people you know work hard? (= only the English people you know, not English people in general)
The difference between 'something in general' and 'something in particular' is not always very clear.
Compare these sentences:
1 In general (without 'the')
* I like working with people. (= people in general)
* I like working with people who are lively. (not all people, but 'people who are lively' is still a general idea)
* Do you like coffee? (= coffee in general)
* Do you like strong black coffee? (not all coffee, but 'strong black coffee' is still a general idea)
2 Particular people or things (with the)
* I like the people I work with. (= a particular group of people)
* Did you like the coffee we had after our meal last night? (= particular coffee)
EXERCISES
74.1 In this exercise you have to write whether you like or dislike these things:
boxing cats fast food restaurants football hot weather mathematics opera small children rock music zoos Choose FOUR of these things and begin your sentences with one of these:
I like .../ I don't like... I don't mind... I love .../ I hate... I'm interested in .../ I'm not interested in ...
1. _I don't like hot weather very much._
2. ---
3. ---
4. ---
5. ---
74.2 Complete the sentences using one of the following. Use the where necessary.
(the) basketball (the) questions (the) history (the) hotels (the) meat (the) lies (the) information (the) patience (the) people (the) water (the) grass (the) spiders
1. My favourite sport is basketball.
2. The information we were given wasn't correct.
3. Many people are afraid of ---.
4. A vegetarian is somebody who doesn't eat ---.
5. The test wasn't very difficult. I answered all --- without difficulty.
6. Do you know --- who live next door?
7. --- is the study of the past.
8. George always tells the truth. He never tells ---.
9. We couldn't find anywhere to stay in the town. All --- were full.
10. --- in the pool didn't look very clean, so we didn't go for a swim.
11. Don't sit on ---. It's wet after the rain.
12. You need --- to teach young children.
74.3 Choose the correct form, with or without the.
1. I'm afraid of _dogs/the dogs._ ('dogs' is correct)
2. Can you pass _salt/the salt_, please? ('the salt' is correct)
3. _Apples/The apples_ are good for you.
4. Look at _apples/the apples_ on that tree! They're very big.
5. _Women/The women_ live longer than men/the men.
6. I don't drink _tea/the tea._ I don't like it'
7. We had a very nice meal. _Vegetables/The vegetables_ were especially good.
8. _Life/The life_ is strange sometimes. Some very strange things happen.
9. I like _skiing/the skiing_ but I'm not very good at it.
10. Who are _people/the people_ in this photograph?
11. What makes _people/the people_ violent? What causes aggression/the aggression?
12. _All books/All the books_ on the top shelf belong to me.
13. Don't stay in that hotel. It's very noisy and _beds/the beds_ are very uncomfortable.
14. A pacifist is somebody who is against _war/the war._
15. _First World War/The First World War_ lasted from 1914 until 1918.
16. One of our biggest social problems is _unemployment/the unemployment._
17. Ron and Brenda got married but _marriage/the marriage_ didn't last very long.
18. _Most people/The most people_ believe that _marriage/the marriage_ and _family life/the family life_ are the basis of _society/the society._
74.1 Example answers:
2 I like cats.
3 I don't like zoos.
4 I don't mind fast food restaurants.
5 I'm not interested in football.
74.2
3 spiders 4 meat
5 the questions 6 the people
7 History 8 lies
9 the hotels 10 The water
11 the grass 12 patience
74.3
3 Apples 4 the apples
5 Women ... men
6 tea 7 The vegetables
8 Life 9 skiing
10 the people
11 people ... aggression
12 All the books
13 the beds 14 war
15 The First World War
16 unemployment
17 the marriage
18 Most people ... marriage ... family life ... society
