Crime is a serious problem nowadays.
The definite article is not used in this sentence with the "crime" since the word means "activities breaking the law" in general, it's uncountable in the sentence given above.
But are the following sentences correct? Can the word "apple" be used with the zero article? I suppose that it can't as "apple" is a countable noun, and the definite article before the "apple" is necessary when speaking about any particular kind of fruit.
Apple is the most common fruit in the region.
Apple is my favourite fruit.(Should be "the apple" in both sentences.)
Please correct me if I'm wrong.
Best Answer
The "zero article", otherwise known as simply not using an article, either indicates a proper name, or an abstract concept.
This cannot be correct, because you are not talking about the abstract concept of an apple, but rather about a very real and concrete object.
This example is closer to correct, because we are now talking about the concept of the apple, but even here, apple is simple to real and concrete to be usable with the zero article. This is also wrong.
Finally, we have come to a correct sentence, thoroughly converting a concrete noun into an abstract concept that I am merely thinking about. But even here, alone, without context, the idea of treating the word "apple" as an abstract concept is so strange that most people would reinterpret the sentence to treat "Apple" as a proper noun instead, especially since there exists a very real and well known company with the proper name of "Apple". But it does work, grammatically, the other way... it's just a very strange idea. You might find it in a philosophy textbook.