In English, “definite” really means presumed known to the listener, whether by prior knowledge (“ 'the' man you met yesterday”), uniqueness in the universe (“ 'the' sun is setting”), uniqueness in a given setting (“ 'the' battery is dead-cars do not usually have more than one battery), or general knowledge that a named class exists (“ 'the' dog is the friend of man”).
- Bickerton (1981), a pag.147