Here are some guidelines for when NOT to use the definite article 'the'. I hope it's helpful :) 1. When you talk about things in general: *The main rule to remember is: you don’t need an article when you talk about things in general. For example: Cats are very cute-correct The cats are very cute -incorrect because this is about cats in general, not a specific cat. 2. Names – holidays (such as Christmas, Valentine's Day, New Year and Eid al-Fitr) geography (For example:countries, states, cities, towns, continents, single lakes, single mountains), companies (For example: Mircosoft, Mc Donalds & Facebook) languages (For example: Arabic, English, French) and Universities (For example: Oxford, Harvard). For example: I live in South Africa - correct I live in the South Africa -incorrect Microsoft is a very big company-correct The Microsoft is a very big company - incorrect. 3. Streets, some locations and places do not need an article. For example: I live on 26 Main Street - correct I live on 26 the main street - incorrect. 4. Sports. ports and other physical activities do not need an article. For example: I love to do yoga - correct. I love to do the yoga - incorrect. 5. Acronyms An acronym is an abbreviation (a short form) of a name. It uses the first letter of each word to form a new word. a) If the acronym is pronounced as a word (not individual letters), don’t use ‘the.’ For example: SCUBA (short for: self-contained underwater breathing apparatus). I like SCUBA diving - correct. I like the SCUBA diving - incorrect. b) The is not used before university acronyms: For example: I have a MBA degree. - correct. I have the MBA degree -incorrect.

Non-specific plural nouns do not require "the". For example, "pockets were not invented until the seventeenth century."

Using :)