THE: When we “the” a plural or uncountable noun, we are talking about specific things or people.
Example:
- The books you ordered have arrived. (with plural noun)
- All the information you asked for is in this file of paper. (with uncountable noun)
ZERO ARTICLE: In generalization we use “zero article”, but not “the”, with plural or uncountable nouns.
Example:
- Before you put them on, always check your shoes of spiders.
- I’m studying geography at university.
- I can smell smoke!
COMPARE:
- Flowers really brighten up a room. (= flowers in general) and
- The flowers you bought me are lovely. (= particular flowers)
- Industry is using computers more and more. (= industry in general) and
- The tourism industry is booming in Malaysia. (= particular industry)
- Children should be given a sense of how business works. (= business in general) and
- The aerospace business actually lost $6 billion this year. (= particular business)
- She’s an expert on Swedish geology. (= among other Swedish things) and
- She’s an expert on the geology of Sweden. (= specifically of Sweden)
