the
definite article /ðə/, before vowels /ði/, strong form /ðiː/
/ðə/, before vowels /ði/, strong form /ðiː/
Idioms - used to refer to somebody/something that has already been mentioned or is easily understood
（指已提到或易领会到的人或事物） - There were three questions. The first two were relatively easy but the third one was hard.
有三个问题。头两个相对容易，第三个困难。 - There was an accident here yesterday. A car hit a tree and the driver was killed.
昨天这里发生了一起事故。一辆小轿车撞到树上，驾车的人死了。 - The heat was getting to be too much for me.
天气热得快让我受不了了。 - The nights are getting longer.
夜越来越长。
- There were three questions. The first two were relatively easy but the third one was hard.
- used to refer to somebody/something that is the only, normal or obvious one of their kind
（指独一无二的、正常的或不言而喻的人或事物） - the Mona Lisa
《蒙娜丽莎》 - the Nile
尼罗河 - the Queen
女王 - What's the matter?
怎么回事？ - The phone rang.
电话铃响了。 - I patted her on the back.
我拍了拍她的背。 - How's the (= your) baby?
宝宝好吗？
- the Mona Lisa
- used when explaining which person or thing you mean
（解说时用） - the house at the end of the street
街尽头的房子 - The people I met there were very friendly.
我在那里遇到的人很友善。 - It was the best day of my life.
这是我一生中最美好的一天。 - You're the third person to ask me that.
你是第三个问我那件事的人。 - Friday the thirteenth
十三号，星期五 - Alexander the Great
亚历山大大帝
- the house at the end of the street
- used to refer to a thing in general rather than a particular example
（用以泛指） - He taught himself to play the violin.
他自学拉小提琴。 - The dolphin is an intelligent animal.
海豚是聪明的动物。 - They placed the African elephant on their endangered list.
他们把非洲大象列为濒危动物。 - I heard it on the radio.
我从收音机里听到了这件事。 - I'm usually out during the day.
白天我通常不在家。
- He taught himself to play the violin.
- used with adjectives to refer to a thing or a group of people described by the adjective
（与形容词连用，指事物或统称的人） - With him, you should always expect the unexpected.
在他身上你应随时料到有意想不到的事情发生。 - the unemployed
失业者 - the French
法国人
- With him, you should always expect the unexpected.
- used before the plural of somebody’s last name to refer to a whole family or a married couple
（用于姓氏的复数形式前，指家庭或夫妇） - Don't forget to invite the Jordans.
别忘了邀请乔丹一家。
- Don't forget to invite the Jordans.
- used with a unit of measurement to mean ‘every’
（与计量单位连用）每，一 - My car does forty miles to the gallon.
我的车每加仑汽油跑四十英里。 - You get paid by the hour.
你领的是时薪。
- My car does forty miles to the gallon.
- enough of something for a particular purpose
（指特定用途的事物）足够，恰好 - I wanted it but I didn't have the money.
我想买那东西，但钱不够。
- I wanted it but I didn't have the money.
- used with a unit of time to mean ‘the present’
（与时间单位连用）当前的，本，此 - Why not have the dish of the day?
何不试一下今天的特色菜？ - She's flavour of the month with him.
她是他眼下的红人。
- Why not have the dish of the day?
- /ðiː//ðiː/used, stressing the, to show that the person or thing referred to is famous or important
（重读，表示所指的为知名或重要的人或事物） - Sheryl Crow? Not the Sheryl Crow?
雪瑞尔 · 克洛？莫不是大名鼎鼎的雪瑞尔 · 克洛？ - At that time London was the place to be.
那时候伦敦是不可不去的地方。
- Sheryl Crow? Not the Sheryl Crow?
词源Old English se, sēo, thæt, ultimately superseded by forms from Northumbrian and North Mercian thē, of Germanic origin; related to Dutch de, dat, and German der, die, das.
Idioms
the more, less, etc…, the more, less, etc…
- used to show that two things change to the same degree
（用以表示两个事物按照同一程度变化）越…越，愈…愈 - The more she thought about it, the more depressed she became.
她越想这事越沮丧。 - The less said about the whole thing, the happier I'll be.
对整个事情议论得越少，我越高兴。
- The more she thought about it, the more depressed she became.