Grammar: Word classes: Determiners: Referring to specific people, things, etc 

Definite article (the)

The uses of the

The definite article the tells us that a specific Thing in a noun group is meant, but it does not tell us how to identify the Thing. Instead we have to look for its identity somewhere else, eg elsewhere in the text or outside the text. The most important functions of the definite article the are:

	to refer backwards
	to refer forwards
	to refer outwards
	to make general statements

These uses of the definite article the are usually called 'definite reference'.  

Pointing backwards

The definite article the often points back to something that has already been mentioned:

Here the swimming pool points backward to the same noun (swimming pool), which was first introduced as part of the noun group a swimming pool in Wan Chai. 

Pointing forwards

The definite article the may also point forward to some text that has not yet been mentioned:

Here all the water points forward to from the swimming pool. Without the Qualifier from the swimming pool, we would not know which water was referred to.  

Pointing outwards

The definite article the may also point to something outside the text, ie to the context or environment of the text:

Here children had not been mentioned before and so the children points outwards, appealing to cultural knowledge: there are children in the world, a big city like Hong Kong has public swimming pools, and children in big cities use public swimming pools. 

Making general statements

The definite article the is also used when making general statements, usually called 'general reference'.  

The cat was revered in Ancient Egypt.

Here the cat points to all cats, ie to the cat as a species of animal, not any specific animal. This way of making a general statement is used mostly in scientific, academic or technical writing when the writer wants to make a generalisation about a whole class of things.

This way of making general statements is also sometimes used to refer to social roles that people may have:

The customer is always right.

Note that the terms Thing and Qualifier are written with an initial capital to remind us that they are functional terms.

For PrimeTeach teaching activities which provide KS2 students with practice in using the definite article the, see:

I know an old lady