Most names of people, cities and countries have no the: Paris, Iran, Maria. But some kinds of name take the: rivers, seas, mountain ranges and most newspapers. This page shows which kinds take the and which do not.
We do not normally use the with names. This is true for people, cities, countries and continents.
We do not use the with continents, and we do not usually use it with lakes. The word Lake comes before the name.
Some kinds of name take the. The table groups them by kind. Learn the kind, and you can use the right form with new names.
| Kind of name | With the | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Countries with Kingdom, States or Republic in the name | the | the United Kingdom, the United States, the People's Republic of China |
| Countries with a plural name | the | the Netherlands, the Philippines |
| Mountain ranges | the | the Himalayas, the Rockies, the Dolomites |
| Groups of islands | the | the Canaries, the Bahamas, the Florida Keys |
| Rivers | the | the Amazon, the Nile, the Thames |
| Seas, oceans and deserts | the | the Atlantic, the Mediterranean, the Sahara |
| Canals | the | the Panama Canal |
| Newspapers | the | The Times, The Washington Post |
| Some well-known buildings and works of art | the | the Empire State Building, the Taj Mahal, the Mona Lisa |
| Most organisations, especially names with United, Union or Federation | the | the United Nations, the Red Cross |
| Families | the + plural | the Obamas, the Jacksons |
You can leave out the word river, ocean, sea or desert when it is obvious: the Nile, the Atlantic, the Sahara. If you use the word, the is still there: the Atlantic Ocean, the Sahara Desert.
Two kinds vary. Some works of art and buildings have no the: Guernica, Stonehenge, Windsor Castle. A few organisations, often names said as acronyms, have no the: NASA, UNICEF.
Some names do not take the, even though they are places.
| Kind of name | No the | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Names with Mount or Mountain | no the | Mount Olympus |
| Some single mountains | often no the | Everest, Kilimanjaro, Snowdon |
| Lakes | usually no the | Lake Michigan, Lake Geneva |
| Streets, squares, areas in a town or city | no the | Broadway, Times Square, Princes Street |
Some single mountains do take the: the Matterhorn, the Jungfrau. There is no short rule for these, so learn them as they come.
Major roads in a country take the: the M6, the A40.
We use the with some names of buildings: the Taj Mahal, the Alhambra, the Houses of Parliament. Other buildings have no the: Stonehenge, Windsor Castle, St Paul's Cathedral.
We usually use the with hotels, cinemas, museums and art galleries: the Marriott, the Louvre, the National Gallery. We also use the with pubs and restaurants: the King's Head.
If the name of a hotel or restaurant is the name of the owner, we do not use the: Brown's Hotel, Morel's Restaurant.
When the name of a town or city is part of the name, we do not use the: Gatwick Airport, Cambridge University Press. Without the city name, we use the: the airport, the University Press.
There are exceptions, such as the London Eye. Learn them as fixed names.
✗The Paris is a beautiful city.
✓Paris is a beautiful city.
City names do not take the.
✗We crossed Atlantic by ship.
✓We crossed the Atlantic by ship.
Oceans take the.
✗She lives in Netherlands.
✓She lives in the Netherlands.
A plural country name takes the.
✗We walked along the Oxford Street.
✓We walked along Oxford Street.
Oxford Street, like most street names, takes no the.
For the with school, hospital and bed, see School, hospital, bed and work: with or without the. For talking about groups of people, see Special uses of the: groups of people, nationalities and kinds. For a, an and the in general, see A, an or the?: introducing and identifying.
Eight questions. Choose one answer for each.