Which one of these words used in a general sense, must be preceded by the definite article, 'the'? Why?
Milk, butter, cheese, eggs, cows, cow.
My textbook doesn't give an example for when words used in the general sense must be preceded by 'the'.
Hi, May123,
The rule is simple: count nouns (e.g. cow, egg) can be used generically in the plural (with the zero article) or in the singular with the indefinite or the definite article (the indefinite one being more usual), while non-count nouns (e.g. milk, butter, cheese) can only be used generically with the zero article.
- Milk, butter and cheese are dairy products.
- Cows give us milk, and hens give us eggs.
- A cow (or the cow) is an animal.
