Study these sentences:
* The giraffe is the tallest of all animals.
* The bicycle is an excellent means of transport.
* When was the telephone invented?
* The dollar is the currency (= money) of the United States.
In these examples, the... does not mean one particular thing. The giraffe one particular type I animal, not one particular giraffe. We use the (+ a singular countable noun) in this way to talk about a type of animal, machine etc.
In the same way we use the for musical instruments:
* Can you play the guitar?
* The piano is my favorite instrument.
Compare a:
* I'd like to have a guitar.
* We saw a giraffe at the zoo.
Note that we use man (= human beings in general/the human race) without 'the':
* What do you know about the origins of man? (not 'the man')
The + adjective
We use the + adjective (without a noun) to talk about groups of people, especially:
the young the old the elderly the rich the poor the unemployed the homeless the sick the disabled the injured the dead
The young = young people, the rich = rich people etc.:
* Do you think the rich should pay more taxes to help the poor?
* The homeless need more help from the government.
These expressions are always plural in meaning. You cannot say 'a young' or 'an unemployed'. You must say 'a young man', 'an unemployed woman' etc. Note also that we say 'the poor' (not 'the poors'), 'the young' (not 'the youngs') etc.
The + nationality
You can use the with some nationality adjectives to mean 'the people of that country'. For example:
* The French are famous for their food. (= the people of France)
* Why do the English think they are so wonderful? (= the people of England) In the same way you can say:
the Spanish the Dutch the British the Irish the Welsh
Note that the French/the English etc. are plural in meaning. You cannot say 'a French/an English'. You have to say 'a Frenchman/an Englishwoman' etc.
You can also use the + nationality words ending in -ese (the Chinese/the Sudanese etc.):
* The Chinese invented printing.
These words can also be singular (a Japanese, a Sudanese).
Also: the Swiss/a Swiss (plural or singular)
With other nationalities, the plural noun ends in -s. For example:
an Italian a Mexican a Scot a Turk (the) Italians (the) Mexicans (the) Scots (the) Turks
EXERCISES
75.1 Answer the questions. Choose the right answer from the box. Don't forget the. Use a dictionary if necessary.
1. animals: tiger elephant rabbit cheetah giraffe kangaroo
2. birds: eagle penguin swan owl parrot robin
3. inventions: telephone wheel telescope laser helicopter typewriter
4. currencies: dollar lira escudo rupee peseta yen
1. a. Which of the animals is tallest? _the giraffe._
b. Which animal can run fastest?
c. Which of these animals is found in Australia?
2. a. Which of these birds has a long neck?
b. Which of these birds cannot fly?
c. Which bird flies at night?
3. a. Which of these inventions is oldest?
b. Which one is most recent?
c. Which one is especially important for astronomy?
4 a. What is the currency of India?
b. What is the currency of Portugal?
c. What is the currency of your country?
75.2 Put in the or a where necessary. If the sentence is already complete leave an empty space
1. When was _the_ telephone invented?
2. Can you play ---music instrument?
3. Jill plays --- violin in an orchestra.
4. There was --- piano in the corner of the room.
5. Can you play --- piano?
6. Our society is based on --- family.
7. Martin comes from --- large family.
8. When was --- paper first made?
9. --- computer has changed the way we live.
75.3 Complete these sentences using the + one of these adjectives:
injured poor rich sick unemployed young
1. _The young_ have the future in their hands.
2. Ambulances arrived at the scene of the accident and took --- to hospital.
3. Life is all right if you have a job, but things are not so easy for ---.
4. Julia has been a nurse all her life. She has spent her life caring for ---.
5. In England there is an old story about a man called Robin Hood. It is said that he robbed --- and gave the money to ---.
75.4 What do you call the people of these countries?
1. Canada?
one person (a/an ...): a Canadian
the people in general: the Canadian
2. Germany?
one person (a/an ...):
the people in general:
3. France?
one person (a/an ...):
the people in general:
4. Russia?
one person (a/an ...):
the people in general:
5. China?
one person (a/an ...):
the people in general:
6. Brazil?
one person (a/an ...):
the people in general:
7. England?
one person (a/an ...):
the people in general:
8. and your country?
one person (a/an ...):
the people in general:
75.1
1 b. the cheetah
c. the kangaroo (and the rabbit)
2 a. the swan
b. the penguin
c. the owl
3 a. the wheel
b. the laser
c. the telescope
4 a. the rupee
b. escudo
c. the ...
75.2
2 a 3 the 4 a 5 the
6 the 7 a 8 (-) 9 The
75.3
2 the injured
3 the unemployed
4 the sick
5 the rich ... the poor
75.4
2 a German the Germans
3 a Frenchman/a Frenchwoman the French
4 a Russian the Russians
5 a Chinese the Chinese
6 a Brazilian the Brazilians
7 an Englishman/an Englishwoman the English
8 a/an ... the ...
