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Here are 2 examples in my grammar book, and it says that we use "the+plural noun" when we talk about a group as a whole:

  1. It is difficult for railways to make a profit. (any railways).
  2. The railways are getting more and more unreliable (our well-know railways).

I have a question about the 2nd sentence. Is it correct to use "the+ plural noun" to talk about railways of a city or railways in the world in general as below. Which sentences below are correct to use?

1A. Railways in my city are getting more and more unreliable, compared to airplanes in my city.

1B. The railways in my city are getting more and more unreliable, compared to the airplanes in my city.

2A. Railways in the world are getting more and more unreliable, compared to airplanes (in the world).

2B. The railways in the world are getting more and more unreliable, compared to the airplanes (in the world).

3A. The railway in the world are getting more and more unreliable, compared to the airplane in the world.

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Sentences 1A and 1B are both fine. By including the definite article, 1B addresses the railways and airplanes more specifically. (I'll ignore the fact that airplanes don't usually remain in a single city.)

Sentences 2A and 2B sound unnatural because we don't say "in the world" like that. They would be acceptable if, for example, you changed the preposition "in" to "throughout".

Sentence 3A is incorrect. It doesn't make sense (because there is not a single railway or a single airplane in the world), and the grammmar is wrong (because a singular subject normally requires a singular verb).

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    1A and 1B would make more sense as 'in my country', wouldn't they? Commented Oct 12, 2022 at 7:51
  • @KateBunting Yes. The railways in a specific city e.g. the underground systems in London or Paris are not often referred to as "railways" - though that is what they are. In London it's "the tube", in Paris "the metro". Commented Oct 12, 2022 at 10:22
  • You said “ 1B addresses the railways and airplanes more specifically.” But I still don’t understand what u mean. Can you help me clarify it? Commented Oct 13, 2022 at 14:42
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    @LEHANH I don't really understand the confusion. As you say, "the definite arrticle is to refer to specific items". Therefore, if you just want to refer to trains in general, you wouldn't use the definite article. Commented Oct 16, 2022 at 19:57
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    @LEHANH No, you are talking about specific railways: the ones throughout the world. (Whether you know the railways or not is a separate issue. I could say "the king of Spain probably speaks Spanish" even though I don't know who that is.) Commented Oct 17, 2022 at 15:06

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