Webster's English Dictionary

the

1. the \th* (before consonant & esp South sometimes vowel sounds),\ da [ME, 
   fr. OE the-, masc. demonstrative pron. & definite article, alter.] the- 
   (before vowel sounds); 1k is often 'the- (influenced by oblique cases - as 
   ths, gen. - & neut., tht) of se-; akin to Gk ho, masc. 
   demonstrative pron. & definite article - more at THAT 1a: - used as a 
   function word to indicate that a following noun or noun  equivalent refers 
   to someone or something previously mentioned or clearly understood from the 
   context or the situation {put ~ cat out} or to indicate that a following 
   noun or noun equivalent refers to someone or something that is unique or 
   exists as only one at a time {~ Lord} 1b: - used as a function word before 
   nouns that designate natural phenom ena or points of the compass {~ night 
   is cold} 1c: - used as a function word before a title or a class name to 
   designat e the particular holder of that title or the particular member of 
   that class that is most familiar {~ President} 1d: - used as a function 
   word before a noun denoting time to indicate re ference to what is present 
   or immediate or is under consideration {in ~ future} 1e: - used as a 
   function word before names of some parts of the body or  of the clothing as 
   an equivalent of a possessive adjective {how's ~ arm today} 1f: - used as a 
   function word before the name of a branch of human endea vor or proficiency 
   {~ law} 1g1: in, to, or for each {a dollar ~ bottle}  1g2: EACH, EVERY 
   {eighty crackers to ~ box}  1g3: - used as a function word in prepositional 
   phrases to indicate that  the noun in the phrase serves as a basis for 
   computation {sold by ~ dozen} 1h: - used as a function word before the 
   proper name of a ship or a well -known building {~ Mayflower} 1i: - Used as 
   a function word before the plural form of a numeral that i s a multiple of 
   ten to denote a particular decade of a century or of a person's life {life 
   in ~ twenties} 1j: - used as a function word before the name of a commodity 
   or any fami liar appurtenance of daily life to indicate reference to the 
   individual thing, part, or supply thought of as at hand {talked on ~ 
   telephone} 1k: - used as a function word to designate one of a class as the 
   best, m ost typical, or most worth singling out {this is ~ life} 1l: ENOUGH 
   {didn't have ~ time to write}  2a1: - used as a function word with a noun 
   modified by an adjective or b y an attributive noun to limit the 
   application of the modified noun to that specified by the adjective or by 
   the attributive noun {~ right answer Peter ~ Great} 2a2: - used as a 
   function word before an absolute adjective {nothing b ut ~ best} 2b: - used 
   as a function word before a noun to limit its application to  that 
   specified by a succeeding element in the sentence {~ poet Wordsworth ~ days 
   of our youth} 3a: - used as a function word before a singular noun to be 
   understood ge nerically {courtesy distinguishes ~ gentleman} {good for ~ 
   soul} 3b: - used as a function word before a singular substantivized 
   adjective  to indicate an abstract idea {an essay on ~ sublime} 4: - used 
   as a function word before a noun or a plural substantivized ad jective to 
   indicate reference to a group as a whole {~ elite}
2. the av [ME, fr. OE thy- by that, insturmental of tht that] 1: than 
   before : than otherwise - used before a comparative {none R@ wiser for 
   attending} 2a: to what extent {~ sooner the better}  2b: to that extent 
   {the sooner ~ better}  3: beyond all others {calls this ~ best}