The Russian or the Russians??

[ieasy]

Hi,

Can I write "the Russians" when I use the plural, or should I write "the Russians" in any case ?

[BobK]

Originally Posted by ieasy

Hi,
Can I write "the Russians" when I use the plural, or should I write "the Russians" in any case ?

It's best to use "the Russians" when you're talking about the people as a whole . There are a few (more or less obscure) contexts where the singular works, but they're not really worth spending time on (I'd only confuse the issue ).

b
ps - I'm thinking about singular as against plural. Naturally "a Russian" is fine in many contexts.

[Humble]

Hi, Ieasy,
The nationalities with endings -sh, -ch, -ese do not take -s:
the French = French people
the Welsh
the Japanese
The others do:
(the) Russians, Americans Germans etc.
Cheers

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by ieasy

Hi,

Can I write "the Russians" when I use the plural, or should I write "the Russians" in any case ?

When one is referring to Russian people as a whole, one would not usually use an article. However, if you are referring to a specific group of Russians, the article is required.

Russians tend to be hard-working people.
Russians enjoy drinking vodka.

During the peace talks, the Russians were the first to walk out.
The Russians beat the Norwegians in the final hockey match.

[Humble]

Hi,
Very well explained, Mike. I'll only add a bit to make it clearer. When you mean a country as a political entity, use the:
The ****ans want to rule the world.
The ****ans refuse to yield to the pressure.
When you're talking abt some typical traits, no article:
Ukrainians are believed to be boastful.
Germans are hard-working and frugal.
Rgs

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by Humble

Hi,
Very well explained, Mike. I'll only add a bit to make it clearer. When you mean a country as a political entity, use the:
The ****ans want to rule the world.
The ****ans refuse to yield to the pressure.
When you're talking abt some typical traits, no article:
Ukrainians are believed to be boastful.
Germans are hard-working and frugal.
Rgs

Yes, good addition.

[ieasy]

¨Thank you all

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by ieasy

¨Thank you all

You're welcome.