Hi
I know the is pronounced in two ways. i.e. rhyming with pea and a. Before vowel sounds it rhymes with pea and otherwise it rhymes with a. For a non native speaker it is not always possible to follow this rule always, nor do they worry about it as such. What about native speakers? Do moderators always follow this rule? Would it sound ugly to you if someone says the apple rhyming this the with a instead of pea? I would like to know both AmE and BE versions, please.
Tom
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Tom, the vast majority of native speakers have no idea that there is a “rule” about this at all. 8)
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Try this little test:
Say (out loud) the apple very slowly and clearly, and pronounce the using the “a” sound. Then say the apple again just slightly faster. Then again and again and again — a little bit faster each time.
My bet is this:
By the time you get up to the high speed (the speed of natural speech :lol:), you won’t even be able to say the with an “a” sound anymore (in front of ‘apple’). It will just naturally come out rhyming with “pea”.
Try it and tell me what happens. 
Amy