The Grammaring Guide to English Grammar with Exercises

The definite article with adjectives

The definite article can be used before an adjective to refer to all the people described by it. If the + adjective is followed by a verb, it will take a plural form:

The rich

get rich, and

the poor

stay poor.

Only

the brave

are free.

Many adjectives that describe a nationality behave in the same way unless they end in -an:

The English

are famous for being very polite.

The French

eat a lot of cheese.

But:

Canadians

play a lot of hockey.

Quotes:

Fate leads the willing, and drags along the reluctant. - Seneca

It is the familiar that usually eludes us in life. What is before our nose is what we see last. - William Barret