leave town vs. leave the town. | WordReference Forums

leave town vs. leave the town.

hydsky

Senior Member
korean
I am confused whether I should put 'the' in front of town.

I was talking with my friends about my town that there is a big whole sale shopping mall which sells everything so cheap that most of local shops went out of business.

and I said, 'the big shopping mall will eventually kick the local vendors out of town.' 'I'm sure the local vendors will leave town.'


Then, I thought... because I'm talking about a specific town (the town that I live now), shouldn't I use 'the' in front of town? like 'leave the town' and 'kick them out of the town.'
But in this case, my friend and I both know which town I am talking about...

So, I guess I should use no article there...

can someone help me?
 
  • I am confused whether I should put 'the' in front of town.

    I was talking with my friends about my town that there is a big whole sale shopping mall which sells everything so cheap that most of local shops went out of business.

    and I said, 'the big shopping mall will eventually kick the local vendors out of town.' 'I'm sure the local vendors will leave town.'


    Then, I thought... because I'm talking about a specific town (the town that I live now), shouldn't I use 'the' in front of town? like 'leave the town' and 'kick them out of the town.'
    But in this case, my friend and I both know which town I am talking about...

    I think "leave town" is used regardless of whether the town has been specifically mentioned or not.

    The only place where I can imagine saying "leave the town" is (maybe) when you want to be specific about leaving the town, rather than some other location.
     
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