When to use ‘THE’ with names of seas, oceans, and rivers

You got 10 correct out of 10.
:D

^ Yeeeeees !!
THank you Dr.ALeX ^_^

Khalid

No problem!

Alex

thank you so much

mauricio123

Hello,mr.Alex I got 100
thank you for a wounderful lesson you are alway good teacher God bless you

Akuein

Respected Professor,

I have a question about one sentence from the quiz. I feel “the” article should have been used before north of Poland.Awaiting your reply.

Greetings from India

Khoogshs

I am interested , thanks

mars

I got also 10 out of 10 to

Nexi

thank you soooooooo Much

nino31

Thanks

Dahbia

You’re welcome!

Alex

Thankyou so much ,you are very kind pepole

Smsm kasem

thanks so much Alex , you are so kind .

asala

Thank you. I hope you found the lesson to be useful.

Alex

thank you for this important lesson.

sinda

thanx

krona

Any time! Thanks for clicking!

Alex

wow..
I’v never understand this grammer befor in such a clear way.
Thank you so so much.

azzah3

It helped! Thank you so much.

Ekieen

thanks ^^

haneen24

The transcripts of these great classes should exist

mhouse35

100You got 10 correct out of 10.
:D

salsabil95

very useful…..the lesson is very clearly and help me very much.

thucloi

You’re welcome!

Just remember: we say, “The lesson was very clear.”

Clear is an adjective. It can modify a noun.
Clearly is an adverb. It can modify a verb, adjective, or another adverb.

“I can see clearly” is okay because “see” is a verb.

“The lesson is clearly” is not okay because “the lesson” is a noun and it needs an adjective.

Alex

Thank you Alex, I hope this is not the last lesson, you know, tomorow is 12/21/2012. :)

willdinh

that`s right, i have a mistake.Thank you ,Alex

thucloi

ohh, Thanh you very much Mr Alex. It’s help me so much. You are enthusiastic teacher.

Huyền

Thank you Alex;)

From Shibuya.

tomoebi

Dear Alex,
I am a Pharmacist. Actually I live in the USA but I am in back and forth,despite my country where I am very busy in, when I am in the USA I do have a lot of time and I fill mostly my free time with completing my English considering that’Sky’s the limit’.
I owe a big thank you to all your cast, the lessons are useful and personally I learned a lot from this site, you are very polite and you have a down to earth personality which is very appreciable. Good luck for what you are doing and thanks again

Sharareh

Very good lesso , thank you

dinasoraya

nice one! new learning! its a necessity to know it..

euryjhin

Did you get my message?

sharareh

Do we use the on beach like virgia beach or the virginia beach?beach is a part of ocean so acording to the lesson obove we should say ( the virgiia beach)but it sounds very weird.

Cuong ta

MANY THANKS. I WOULD LIKE TO EXPLAINE LOOK FOR, LOOK AFTER AND LOOK OUT PLEASE IF DO NOT MINDE.

khalid

Look for = to search (“I’m looking for a new apartment.”

Look after = to take care of (“I’m looking after my baby brother tonight.”

Look out = pay attention (usually used as an imperative…”Look out for that car!”)

Alex

Dear ALEX! It is very good explanation. SHORT AND CLEAR

yury1

Thank you for the lesson, I keep improve English, helped for engVid course, and all the teachers, they are fabulous.

Evaldo Goncalves Jr

Thanhks Mr.Alex. I like you

Huyền

Thanks!

Anna

lin siew ong

Hi Alex! Thanks for video! Lake Geneva goes without articles, but If I mentioned about Lake Geneva before in conversation! Can I say?: I saw Lake Geneva yesterday. The/… Lake Geneva is beautiful.

serykbolsin92

You can simply say:

“I saw Lake Geneva yesterday. The lake is beautiful.”

I checked it on eng wikipedia, and there is no such a thing like “the lake Geneva” — there is only “the lake” or “lake Geneva”. xD

morfik

Interesting topic, instead.

Berber

yes i did it

stela13

That was a piece of cake.
Thanks.

bonhob

thank mr allex , for your lesson

Eng Adam

Thanks Alex, the video are very interesting.

feli

gorgeous Alex ,,,, extremely informative
thanks a bundle xD xD

hisham77

Hi Alex, I don’t understand one thing about a question in the Quiz. If the Caspian Sea isn’t is a sea, and I knew it, then, why I must say “The” Caspian Sea?
Regards from Tenerife,

Carmen

Thank you so much Alex! I have know more English now..

somonia

Hi Alex, as usual, you are very kind and your lesson is clear. You have helped me a lot! I like your way of teaching. Thank you very much!

Sally S

Not a problem! Thank you very much!

Alex

You got 10 correct out of 10.
:D
thanks

Samer

Good,thank you very much

aslanzade

Thank you teacher Alex.

adrian

It’s very clear so I can understand easily..thank you so much

Supj San

Thank you, Alex!

Alex, it would be nice if you added a lesson on using “the” or zero article with posts, for example, President, Director, Director General and so on.

alice12

very helpful thanks!!

bigboy85

tank you for all teachers because lessons are very good

rachid

No problem with this lesson.
Only Lakes and waterfalls without the, but why?
That’s English.

ramoncarrasco

hello DR alex
for this lesson but I don’t understand why you don’t use “the ” in lakes and waterfall I wante to understand the cause of useing and don’t useing ” the” in this words

basma

Thanks

ubiracymafra

wohoooooooo, I got 100 :D thanks!

maryam83

thanks, Alex. very helpful lesson. bye

Daniel C Herculano

Thanks a lot, Alex, with this lesson I want to improve each time my English…..

henry24

guys guys I heard some nonsense
about the end of the word and,, the apocalypse and such these things
21/12/2012 ^^^THE END OF THE WORLD ^^^
Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha * read this to know more
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/20/world/asia/doomsday-chatter-makes-chinese-government-nervous.html?ref=world

oh my gosh ,,,,,, really some Chinese people get maniac .

hisham77

You should hear what happened in Michigan, US.

Meanwhile, here’s what actual Mayans are doing.

engVid Moderator

Is there any rule to not use “the” before lakes and waterfalls names?

nane09

We can use “the” if we’re talking about a body/group of lakes. For example, “the great lakes” in Ontario, Canada. Generally, if the lake has a proper name, we omit “the.” For rivers with proper names, we keep “the.”

The Mississippi/The Nile/The St. Lawrence/The Seine/The Ganges/The Thames/The Amazon/etc.

Alex

ALex did ^^the^^ with oceans and river and sea
consider as determiner ,, or it`s a part of the name .

hisham77

gooooooood lesson. you’re the best teacher. you can explane very clearly

google4747

Thanks Alex for this lesson.
It was very clear and helpfull…….

Amarsohal

it seems im perfect at this.

martin

thanks for your replay Alex , i want you to make lessons for TOEFL if you can because i am so confused and nervous for the test please try to help me .
have a good day mister

asala

Dear Alex!

Could you tell if the following sentence is correct?
“I’ve already visited Ontario two times.”

I shouldn’t use “the” before Ontario, should I?

johnmckho

That’s correct. :)

Alex

Thanks Alex for this lesson and we look forward for the follow up on the street names, shops so on so forth. I’ve noticed that you have very few ads on your site. You should increase the revenue from this site, since you are creating a lot of value for us, meaning we will always come back!! Regards!

Crashbandicoot

Thank you very much Alex.
This lesson was very useful because it talked about a very important rule in English.
catch you later.

yazan

thanks alot

salma

Thanks Alex you’re a good teacher ,have a great day .

Momndad

The article’s lesson was useful. I learnt one more thing. Thank you.

Silva

It was a lesson of useful. Thanks.

Silva

This is “the” exact problems I have for many years and I couldn’t figure it out. I can imagine if I’m master in “the”, then I am confident English writing. Pls, Alex help us to master in the article “the”, this is very very complicated and hard. This is always confused. Please bring more examples and explanation on this topic and help us to clear 100%, and teach us how to improve / master in this topic.
Thanks.

Tamil EElavan

thank you
j’m new

gerardo

Thanks a lot for your explaination. Making the quizz I saw something. You write Indian ocean but not Geneva lake… So, when it is Indian ocean you have to put “the” before an when you write lake Geneva you needn’t “the”. It’s because lake is before Geneva.
I don’t know if I am clear…

jg94110

Thank you for this lesson

aliataf

This is it! an easy and simple way to master English!

phael2472

Thanks for the class…

Victor

It has always been my weak point, but thanks to your lesson it is clear for me now! Thank YOU, Alex, very much! Best regards!

katerynakoziar

Thanks!
I’m from Poland. I like THE Baltic Sea ;)

carramba

hello Alex, I’m new here, I just want say thank you for wonderful lessons

alifromrussia91

Thank you all teachers of EngVid, I enjoy your lessons

alifromrussia91

Thanx for information

TEREBIN

tks Mr. Alex, interessting class

abdelouahab

I have a problem with the words who and whom i do not know when to use one of them could you help me please I am waiting for answer

anais13

The rule is that you use “whom” when you’re talking about the object of the sentence. The quick way is to see if “he” or “him” sounds right. If it’s “him”, you should use “whom”.

For example: “I got a letter!” “From who/whom?” You’d say “from him”, not “from he”—so it should be From whom?

In spoken or casual English, or if you’re not sure what to use, just say “who”. Chances are that someone will correct you if you’re wrong, and end up sounding pedantic because *whispers* most people don’t really care. “From who?” is technically wrong, but to a native speaker it sounds normal.

Here’s a more detailed lesson on pronouns like who and whom.

engVid Moderator

I don’t use “whom” at all. :)

morfik

Articles are always very troublesome. We can only build up a little at a time. Whenever I watch engvid I can add some to my English. Thanks endvid and all the teachers and staff. Happy holidays.

endeavor

thank you for your teaching. very useful for me.

zoe

You got 10 correct out of 10.
:D

iloveooz

Thank you!

mihahunter

Thanks, your lessons are very clear…

samuel

(First time posting)
Hello Mr. Alex.
First of all, I wanna thank u for all work u’ve made. it’s awesome. i daresay u’re the best teacher on engvid, i mean the way explain is the best one. but anyway…

I looked for anything that relates “Can’t help” in grammar section but didn’t find anything
My groupmates and I were discussing how to use “can’t help” with gerunds and infinitives.
While browsing the web, I’ve mostly encountered the gerund usage.
However, I happen to see a discussion thread from one website stating infinitive uses.

I am confused
I can’t help doing
means I cannot refrain/prevent myself from doing… (this one I am sure)

I need help with these 7 sentences
1) I can’t help do the dishes (means – i can’t help with this action?)
2) I can’t help to do the dishes (is this even legal?)
3) I can’t help her do the dishes (I can’t help her with doing the dishes?)
4) I can’t help her to do the dishes (not legal right?)
5) I can’t help but to do the dishes
6) I can’t help but doing the dishes
7) I can’t help but do the dishes

Which of these sentences are legal and what do they mean?

Please help me with this. (personally, I prefer using gerund with can’t help or use [can’t help but + V])

By the way it’d be nice if u make a lesson on it with title like:

Can’t help doing vs Can’t doing

peple

I found this: http://www-personal.umich.edu/~jlawler/aue/canthelp.html

It looks like that “can’t help” can be used also as an idiom. And actually, it has two forms:

I can’t help but think…
I can’t help thinking…

morfik

Hey!! Great Class! I want to be a great teacher like you !

mhouse35

I got 100%

thank you very much mr.Alex

hamody97

I got 100

Your accent is best such as emma, rebecca, john and adm.

Thank you teacher i love you.

pranav9061

thank mr allex , for your lesson

ahmed

Please,
How can I get the had copy of your lesson?

KARAMAGE Claude

Hi Alex. I have a doubt about the following: Why I use the word lake before the name of the lakes, but I use the words ocean or river after the name of them? Thanks Alesx.

Elisa

I’ve got 10 correct out of 10, yes!

rafael710

9/10 :)

chanchal17

Thanks for the useful lesson. I’ve got 10/10. Don’t you mind if I ask you when to use “bored” and ” boring”? Thanks again!

badien

I have 10 correct out of 10

omar

muchas gracias!

Shing mang tun

thank you so much Alex

iliass

Alex, I learned a lot with your lessons…I made all exercices…thanks

Homero

thank you xo xo much

lapyae

You got 10 correct out of 10.
:D

Student

I like the way you teach because you are naturally talented

camilos556

THanx a lot, Alex. But I’ve got a question about THE with THE NAMES OF lakes. When we say ‘Lake Bajkal’ we don’t use the article, but we say ‘Baikal is the deepest lake in th world’? should we use THE BAYKAL?

juliastrekoza

You used `the` to modify the adjective `deepest,` which just makes a superlative and does not relate to the lake.

Alex

Hello, Alex! I`m from Russia. Maybe my question is similar to juliastrekoza`s one, but nevertheless can we say the Baikal, the Ontario etc.? E.g. There are a lot of beautiful lakes in the world. They are the Baikal, the Superior, the Loch Ness and so on…
Thank you!

Anastassija

I really enjoyed your way of teaching and gave all correct answers.Please send the feedback to encourage me for English is not my native tongue.I am glad to be encouraged and helped at the same time Mr.Alex.
Regards.
Fazl-e-Rabbi

Fazl-e-Rabbi

thank you for explaning “THE” I got 10 correct out of 10

Can DEMİRCİOĞLU

I don’t know why Ican’t receive your lessones ? could you help me ?

mehri

i usually say Toba Lake, a famous lake in Indonesia. I just know that Lake Toba. Is it correct?

arunha310

Hey alex, thank you very much.
i got 9, hehe

muzafar

Thanks Alex, you expain very clear.

Ozzy

thank you. very well explained!

hoda

Thank you very much for the information.

hedaya

Dear EngVID it is really nice thanks a lot for your support

mh.kotb

Alex, thanks a lot. The use of THE articule in this context is now very clear for me.

Carlos

Thanks you all lesson

Try

thanks Alex for this short and sweet lessons.I’ve got 10 correct out of 10 .

sadeqsadeq

thank you so much you a best teac me perfect

cenk

thank you; you are really a great teacher

Hamza

Thank you ^^

sweetrose77

I´m very satisfied with these lessons, for I have improved a lot. just to assess my progress I made a test in the site of Englishtown and got the grades: 70 for grammar, 80 for listening and 80 for reading. next time I try I hope to get grades enough to be considered advanced.

jorge luiz

:( Sorry, Mr.Alex, I haven’t got this lesson, I’ll watch it again and again until I understood.

vuinguyen169

Hi, Alex – thank you so much at the lessons. But I am a beginner and wery slowly /old/ E.student. God bless You and God bless the Queen ! bye Steve

smreky

Thank you so much,Alex! It’s very useful.

hameii

Thanks Alex for this useful lesson.
I am learning a lot with the remarks made by the students. All The comments are helping me to increase my knowledge.

anselmo

That was a good lesson! Tks, teacher Alex

gabchris

hello sir , i am always confuse about the word ” would” could you advice me about it sir please.

nishen

Dear mam..
i hope you’d like to help me with this prob which is irrelevant to this lesson..this is a very important grammar point which nobody of my friends could explain of…

mam i know how to use ”where”with other ways..

how to use where with words like these??

1 That is the RELATIONSHIP where one thing makes a change in another.

2 if you have gone to a WEBSITE where you have to create an account for yourself..

3 This procedure should be followed in CASES where dishonesty has been alleged.

4 Due to the volume of emails we receive we are unable to respond to the EMAILS where the answer can be found on our web site itself.

5 I got to the STAGE where I wasn’t coping any more.

These are a few sentences i have a lot..please explain to me with some of your own sentences how to use ”where” with these words.

THANKING YOU

ROYSTAN

roystanbonzo

Hi Alex,
There is one exception of the rules inside the test which mislead the person who makes the test. Actually The Dead Sea is not a sea. It’s a lake near Jordan and Israel. If we follow the rules we shouldn’t put “The” in front of The Dead sea :)

hypnotic

You’re right, it isn’t really a sea! But because we call it a sea, we have to follow the rules.

(I have always wanted to swim in the Dead Sea, which I’ve read is so salty that you just float on top.)

engVid Moderator

thank you, Alex,I’ve enjoyed watching this video. By the way, it was a discovery for me, that we should use the names of waterfalls without any articles, as I thought we considered them to be a part of the water surface, so thanks for the clarification. By the way, could you help me, what if when naming a lake we omit this very word “lake”, like : “I’ve never swimmed in the Baikal”. In this case should we put the article? thanks for your respond in advance:)

dasha22

grrrr.. i got 8 out of 10 . i’m poor for english language

joyalisoso

Yes Alex,sure I got 100 % and I am enjoy because have finished Gjeography University.

alpido24

geography….(sorry)

alpido24

thanks i am getting confident… thanks a lot..

lakshu008

100% Thank you teacher!!

pafsilipoclub

Hello teacher I had a doubt about this, since today I don’t have more!I thank you for that great job!

bezerra

Thank you! Articles are always confusing for me ((

kenzoll

5. Which sentence is correct?
1.Toronto overlooks Lake Ontario.
2.Toronto overlooks the Lake Ontario.
how “the” used above 2nd sentence?
sir reply must

sachin5454

Thanks Alex. good work…

wiltoncleiton

as usually – many thanks for teacher and all team of ENGVID

yury1

hmmmm good job,,, Gb ^_^

sundu

that was a very good lesson! i got 10 :) thanks teacher Alex..

DesM

thanks…we use ‘the’ very popularly. i think your lesson help me very much.

haituan1001

hi, I like your lesson but I have a question.
The deepest lake in the world is THE Lake Baikal in Russia.
don’t we use THE+adjective+est with superlative? why it’s wrong??

gbvrnee

My score was 100%. Ya~y! Thank you Alex :D

Happy04

thx Alex ,the lesoon was very clear

biila

I got 10 correct out of 10. :D

liona

Thanks sir I got 90% because I do not know about Nile. It is a river in northeastern Africa. Now I have known.

Abdul Qayum

I’ve got almost 9 out of 10.
Aha! We use ‘Dead sea’ without THE.
Thanks Alex! ;-D

Matilda03

Thank u Alex, I’ve got 9 out of 10…… get in progress!!

luis123

I had a dificult to write a email today with this exaclty problem. It help me so muck. Thank you Alex :D

danielecunha

thank you))))

Faridka

thanks a lot Alex, I got 90% from 10 question

yusuf-nabotov

Thanks Alex!!!!!

Tomas1010

Hello Alex may I say I would like to visit Geneva laks or Geneva,s lake ?????

preemy

informative lesson, i have 100%

moezbesbes

I like that you don’t complicate information

Yakushina

Thank you. It’s useful

Nadir

i got full mark:P
thank you alex:D

emilo

Hi Alex. The use of the article “the” in reference to rivers and streams came up in conversation this morning. We are in Maine, USA.

We will say “The Kennebec” in reference to the Kennebec River, or we might say “the Kennebec River”, but we don’t say Kennebec River without the article “the”.

However, we never say “The Lemon” in reference to Lemon Stream, nor do we say “The Lemon Stream”, but when referring to it, we will say “Lemon Stream” (without the article).

To complicate matters, though, for some of the larger streams, we do just refer to them as “The Kenduskeag” in reference to Kenduskeag Stream. But we’d never say The Kenduskeag Stream.

Is there a rule here? Thanks!

LisaSaint

Now that I think of it, Toronto’s main rivers are often called “the Humber” and “the Don”, but Taddle Creek is always just Taddle Creek. Perhaps it’s the relative size of the river/stream?

engVid Moderator

I was thinking it might have to do with relative size. I thought I caught a Canadian twang in your video!

Nice job on that. I can see how some of this can be confusing to people for whom English is not their first language. (or is that confusing for people…)? Good to have a resource like this.

LisaSaint

done it! 10 correct out of 10 :)

Turana

I got 100 great ! thank you very much. I just discovered you was born in Poland, great I was too. But I’m living in France and I’m learning English. So thank you very much, very good job.