use of the definite article

[hela]

Dear teachers,

Would you please tell me why the definite is not used in the following sentence even though the noun is followed by a prepositional phrase ?

King Henry VIII declared himself Ø head of the Church.
F. Mitterand was elected Ø president of France in 1981.

Would you please tell me why there is no capital letter to "head" and "president" ?

Thank you for your help.
Hela

[nelson13]

When these verbs (DECLARE, ELECT, SWEAR, MAKE, etc.) are used in this way and the post is unique, you can leave out THE.

Here are some examples in the OALD:

He was sworn in as president.
We chose Phil McSweeney as/for chairperson.
to be made president of the students' union

But it is grammatical to add THE.

[hela]

Should we capitalize the "p" of "president" ?

[TheParser]

Should we capitalize the "p" of "president" ?

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


There is an enlightening discussion on this topic on the Web. Please go to Google and type:


American English Understanding U.S. President Capitalization


(It should be the first result on the page.)

[hela]

Dear teachers,

1) Would you please tell me why we don't use the definite article in the following phrases ?

a) Half of the country's territory isbelow Ø sea level.

b) While their views may seem appealing at Ø first sight, thet are unfortunately erroneous.


2) In the following sentence would you please tell me if we should use the definite or indefinite article (or both possible ?) and why ?

Many families keep pet animals like dogs. As is pointed out by some scientists, a / the dog needs a balanced diet.

Thank you very much for your help.
Hela