‘The’ with Countries, Rivers, etc.

Below is a list of countries which use the definite article. In English, we use “the” if a country has a political title in its name, or if it re-
fers a group of islands. There are also countries, such as the Netherlands, which people commonly attach the definite article to even
though it does not follow the two rules above. For bodies of water, we frequently add the definite article to rivers, oceans, and seas.
For single mountains, we don’t typically add the definite article. However, for groups of mountains, we do.

You’ll find many examples of these rules below, as well as a list of other geographical features which use the definite article.

Countries Rivers Gulfs, Oceans, Other Features

the Bahamas the Amazon Seas, Straits the equator
the Cayman Islands the Colorado the Adriatic Sea the Far East
the Central African Republic the Columbia the Aegean Sea the Gobi (desert)
the Channel Islands the Danube the Arabian Sea the Kalahari (desert)
the Comoros the Don the Arctic Ocean the Middle East
the Czech Republic the Euphrates the Atlantic (Ocean) the Near East
the Dominican Republic the Ganges the Baltic (Sea) the North Pole
the Falkland Islands the Huang the Black Sea the Occident
the Gambia the Hudson the Caribbean (Sea) the Orient
the Isle of Man the Indus the Caspian (Sea) the Panama Canal
the Ivory Coast the Jordan the Coral Sea the Sahara (desert)
the Leeward Islands the Lena the Gulf of Aden the South Pole
the Maldives the Mackenzie the Gulf of Mexico the Suez Canal
(the Maldive Islands) the Mekong the Gulf of Oman the Tropic of Cancer
the Marshall Islands the Mississippi the Tropic of Capricorn
the Netherlands the Missouri Mountain Ranges
the Netherlands Antilles the Niger the Alps
the Philippines the Nile the Andes
the Solomon Islands the Ob the Appalachians
the Turks and Caicos the Ohio the Atlas Mountains
Islands the Caucasus
the Orinoco
the United Arab Emirates the Himalayas
the Po
the United Kingdom the Pyrenees
(of Great Britain and the Rhine
Northern Ireland) the Rhone the Rockies
(the Rocky Mountains)
the United States the Rio Grande
(of America) the Urals
the St. Lawrence
the Virgin Islands the Seine
the Tagus
the Thames
the Tiber
the Tigris
the Volga
the Yangtze

1 • 'The' with Countries, Rivers, etc. more free resources, lessons, and quizzes at

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by Alex

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