Omission of "the" - Omission of the Definite Article
The definite article (The) is not used:
1 Before names of places or before names of people.
- I like Mark.
- I've never been to Paris.
2 Before abstract nouns if they are not used in a particular sense.
Compare:
- He was a man of great wisdom.
But
- The wisdom of this man never stops to surprise me.
3 Before names of meals
- We eat eggs for breakfast
But
- The wedding breakfast was held in her uncle's house.
4 After a noun in the possessive case, or a possessive adjective.
- the boy's notebook = the notebook of the boy.
- This is my red T-shirt = The (red) T-shirt is mine.
5 Before names of games
- She plays volleyball.
- They like football.
6 Before parts of the body and articles of clothing. These normally prefer a possessive adjective.
- I raise my left hand.
- Take off your hat.
- He clapped his hands.
But we can also say:
- The ball hit Tim in the face.
In the passive it looks like this:
- He was hit on the head.
- She was smack on the cheek.
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