Line英会話クラス
Lesson Plan December 27, 2024
Topic: Nouns: When not to use and when to use ‘the’
In some situations, the is not normally used before certain nouns.
Section A
Things or people in general
When we are talking about things or people in general, we do not normally use the with uncountable and plural nouns.
Do you prefer dogs or cats?
I like Italian food, especially pizza and pasta.
I don’t like people who shout. (= people who shout in general)
Jack eats all the time. He really likes food.
Maria often listens to music.
Particular things or people
When we are talking about particular things or people, we normally use the.
I don’t like the people who live next door. (= a particular group of people)
We went to that new restaurant last night. The food was excellent.
The music they played at the party wasn’t very good.
Section B: The + Adjective
We can use the + adjective to talk about a group of people in general (the old, the young, the rich, the poor, the disabled, the homeless etc). The meaning is always plural
The rich (= rich people) have more money than the poor (= poor people).
The government should do more to help the homeless and the unemployed.
We use the with some nationality adjectives to talk about people from a particular country.
The French are passionate about food.
America was discovered by the Spanish in 1492.
In general we use the + adjective for nationality adjectives ending in -sh, -ch, -ese or -ss.
the British
the Dutch
the Chinese
the Swiss
This rule doesn’t apply to all nationality adjectives. With adjectives like American and Canadian, we usually use plural nouns, Americans or Canadians.
Section C: the + type of (animals / machine / currency etc)
The cheetah is the fastest land animals.
The Euro is the currency used in the European Union.
Lee plays the guitar very well.
In the above examples, we use the + singular countable noun to talk about particular type of animal, currency and musical instrument in general. the meaning is not one particular thing.
The computer is a very useful machine. (= a type of machine)
The computer that I ordered has arrived. (= a particular computer)
Lesson Notes
Words & Phrases
I cooked a mushroom and herb risotto and then shaped it into round cakes.
Crab cakes, fish cake, potato cakes, rice cakes
Appropriate Language
“Cake” refers to anything shaped into a solid mass, often compact and east to handle. The key idea is the form or shape rather than ingredients.
Nouns 3
I like this school. The teachers are great. (= specific teachers at this school)
I love that house. The garden is beautiful. (= specific garden at that house)
I love this restaurant. The food is delicious. (= specific food at this restaurant)
We went to that park yesterday. The playground was full of kids. (= specific playground in that park)
I just bought this book. The story is really interesting. (= specific story in this book)
He lives in that apartment building. The view from his balcony is amazing. (= specific view form that building)
She works at this company. The office is very modern. (= specific office in this company)
I saw a movie last night. The actors were fantastic. (= specific actors in the movie)
We visited the museum. The exhibits were very interesting. (= specific exhibits in the museum)
I love these shoes. The colours are so bright. (= specific colours of these shoes)
They have a big garden. The flowers bloom in spring. (= specific flowers in the garden)
She bought a new phone. The apps are really easy to use. (= specific apps on the phone)
