How do you pronounce by the way?
How is the number 6 pronounced?
Why is the pronounced two ways?
The word “the” has two sounds as it is pronounced differently with vowel and consonant; “Thu” and “Thee”. Normally, we pronounce the with a short sound (like “thuh”). But when the comes before a vowel sound, we pronounce it as a long “thee”. It is the sound that matters, not the letter used in writing a word.