Using “The” Correctly – Part II

This entry is part 9 of 13 in the series Improving English

We already looked at the basic rules about “the,” but there are a few things that are harder to understand. Let’s take a look at using articles with names.

  • Proper names never use an article. (David, Brian, Santa Clause, Barack Obama, Xuxa)

  • Proper titles typically use “the” if specific or “a/an” if general. (The President of the United States, The math teacher, The CEO of the company. A teacher, A president, An executive assistant)

  • Countries with a name do not use an article. (Brazil, China, England, America, Russia)

  • Countries with a title use “the”. (The People’s Republic of China, The United Kingdoms, The United States of America, The Soviet Union)

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