雅思考试中，一个常见的错误就是定guan词the的误用。学英语乱用定冠词，就好似学北京话乱用儿化音一样，常常会闹出尴尬。

下面有两个题目，来检测一下你是否真的掌握了定冠词the的用法。

找出正确使用the的句子

1. Many people are worried about the bad effects of mobiles on brain.

Many people are worried about the bad effects of mobiles on the brain.

2. We need to look at factors such as the availability of health care.

We need to look at factors such as availability of health care.

正确答案老师放在了文章最后，看看你选对了吗？

敲黑板：知识点讲解

从词源上来说，the可视为that或those的弱化形式。而that或those是指示形容词，有明确的指示功能。所以定冠词the也可以用同样的角度来了解：凡是上下文中有明指或暗指时，也就是有“那个”的指示功能时，便要用定冠词the。

这一点认识几乎可以解释各大语法书对the列举的条条框框。以下举两个例子来看，例句摘自《Common mistakes at IELTS Advanced and how to avoid them》。

1. the通常用在一般名词而不是具体名词前面。

这是因为具体名词表达的内容很明确，不需要the来指出其特殊性。但是一般名词因为表达的含义比较普遍，所以想要描述一个具体含义的一般名词时，就需要the来指出它的特殊性。比如：

· These are problems for students living away from the family.

· We don't know the effects of such chemicals on the body.

· The role of the student at university level varies greatly from country to country.

· Most of our business is carried out over the telephone.

2. The也经常用在带of sth结构的抽象名词前面。

这是因为of sth可以翻译为“某物的”，前面的抽象名词表达的就是“某物的”的具体内容，如果是一个抽象名词，则不够具体说明“某物的”内容，所以需要添加the来指出其特殊性。

· There is a problem with the availability of clean water in some villages.

· The distribution of income is uneven in most countries.

· On the whole, the standard of living is better in urban areas.

· Many residents complained about the frequency of bus services.

· This advance was brought about by the development of antibiotics.

· He made a number of recommendations for the improvement of staff training.

需要注意的是：the developmeng/improvement...of sth，经常用来描述一般的变化过程，但是developments/improvements...in sth，是去描述具体的改变。例如：

We try to keep up-to-date with new developments in information technology.

练习

同学们，一起来练习一下the的使用方法吧：

1. A diet high in cholesterol is bad for heart.

2. The introduction of computerised systems led to an increase in unemployment.

3. We all benefit from development of new technologies.

4. We were unhappy about quality of the food available.

5. Last year the airline saw a 20% improvement in delays.

6. There have been changes in the relationship between the teacher and the student.

7. Rates vary depending on standard of accommodation you choose.

8. She focused on the role of a family in a child's education.

答案

文章开头检测答案：

1（第二句正确）

2（句正确）

文章结尾练习答案：

1. bad for the heart

2. correct

3. benefit from the development of

4. unhappy about the quality of

5. correct

6. correct

7. depending on the standard of accommodation

8. the role of the family