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Place names may or may not use “the”: Sometimes they use “the,” sometimes they do not.

Place names that Do NOT use “the”:

General place names – continents, countries, states, islands, cities, etc.:

Egypt is located in Africa. (not The Egypt…the Africa)
Paris is the capital of France. (not The Paris…the France)
We visited New York in April. (not the New York)
Iceland is an island in the North Atlantic. (not The Iceland)

Places in towns – streets, squares, buildings, airports, stations, universities, parks, etc.:

Mr. Smith’s shop is on Michigan Avenue in Chicago. (not the Michigan Avenue)
Jackie’s dream is to be at Times Square in New York for New Year’s Eve. (not the Times Square)
And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street was Dr. Seuss’s first children’s book. (not the Mulberry Street)
Does this train line go to O’Hare Airport? (not the O’Hare Airport)
James wants to go to Northwestern University. (not the Northwestern University)
We’re planning a trip to Yellowstone National Park. (not the Yellowstone National Park)

Note: We have the following exceptions to the above situations.
Place Names that DO use “the”:

Country names with republic / states / kingdom:

The new symphony conductor comes from the Czech Republic.
What is the capital of the United States of America?
The Kingdom of Norway became independent from Sweden in 1905.

Plural place names – the –s:

General MacArthur’s son was born in the Philippines.
Mother would like to visit the Hawaiian Islands someday.
Anne Frank and her family escaped to the Netherlands as the Nazis came to power in Germany.
The Matterhorn is one of the highest peaks in the Swiss Alps.

Oceans, rivers, seas, canals, channels:

The Titanic sank on its maiden voyage across the Atlantic.
The Vikings crossed the North Sea, eventually making it to Greenland and Nova Scotia.
Agatha Christie’s book Death on the Nile was made into a movie in 1978.
The Suez Canal was opened in 1869.
Gertrude Ederle was the first woman to swim across the English Channel.

Names of hotels, restaurants, theaters, museums, monuments, etc.:

We stayed at the Breakers Hotel on our honeymoon.
Father took Mother out to eat at the Pepper Mill for Mother’s Day.
Have you ever been to a performance at the Lyric Opera?
Uncle Jack dropped the kids off at the Multiplex for a matinee show while he practiced at the driving range.
Are you coming along on next month’s excursion to the Art Institute?
When I was a child, we could climb the stairs of the Washington Monument.

Place names with the pattern “the … of …”:

My favorite museum is the Museum of Science and Industry.
The University of Wisconsin has a number of campuses throughout the state.
John and Mary visited the Leaning Tower of Pisa on their trip to Italy.
How long is the Great Wall of China?

Points of compass – the north, the south, the east, the west:

The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.

Exercise. Answer the geography questions, using names from the box. Use “the” if necessary.

Example:

______ is the capital of Denmark. (Copenhagen) ==> Copenhagen is the capital of Denmark.
______ are near Indonesia. (Philippines) ==> The Philippines are near Indonesia.

(Click to enlarge)

1. ______ are mountains in North America.
2. ______ is a river in Europe.
3. ______ is on the west coast of Florida.
4. ______ is the largest country in the Americas.
5. ______ lie off the coast of Africa.
6. ______ is a country in Europe.
7. ______ is a sea between Europe and Africa.
8. ______ is a large country in Asia.
9. ______ is Canada’s neighbor.
10. ______ is the capital of Italy.
11. ______ separates North America and Europe.
12. ______ is the capital of Peru.
13. ______ is a river in South America.
14. ______ is the largest ocean.
15. ______ is a country in Africa.

Exercise. Look at the following sentences. Insert “the” if it is needed. If “the” is not necessary, write “OK.”

Example:

The sun rises in ______ east and sets in ______ west. ==> The sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
Mr. Smith’s shop is on ______ Main Street. ==> OK.

1. Can you tell me how to get to ______ Guggenheim Museum?
2. Do you know if ______ Showtime Theater is open on Christmas?
3. ______ National Theatre is also known as “Theatre of the Presidents.”
4. Mark Twain wrote a memoir called Life on ______ Mississippi.
5. Once a year, Aunt Karen went shopping on ______ Park Avenue.
6. ______ University of Chicago is not too far from ______ Museum of Science and Industry.
7. The twins had their picture taken in front of ______ Lincoln Memorial.
8. I think this train will take you to ______ Union Station.
9. France gave ______ Statue of Liberty to ______ United States in commemoration of America’s Declaration of Independence.
10. It took ______ United States a decade to complete ______ Panama Canal.
11. ______ St. Lawrence Seaway allows boats to travel from ______ Great Lakes to ______ Atlantic Ocean.
12. People visit ______ Central Park in ______ New York to relax and enjoy some green space.
13. There are over 1700 islands in ______ Florida Keys.
14. The Chicago White Sox no longer play in ______ Comiskey Park.
15. Many people were put into ______ Tower of London to await execution.
16. The stone statues on ______ Easter Island are over 500 years old.
17. ______ Erie Canal was officially opened in 1825.
18. ______ Princeton University was originally established to train men for Christian ministry.
19. ______ Andes are the longest continental mountain range in the world.
20. ______ Old Faithful is a popular attraction at ______ Yosemite National Park in ______ Wyoming.

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