I was watching a video where the presenter was talking about multiple meanings of some words, and then she gave an example that I am confused by, because I have no idea why the had been omitted. Here it goes:
Current as a noun refers to the direction and speed of (the) flow of a liquid.
At first I thought it was because the word flow is not generally used with articles, but then I checked the Oxford Dictionary and saw these examples:
...the flow of water into the pond...
The spiral wave inhibits normal waves, just as eddies in a stream inhibit the smooth flow of water.
So what would be correct if I put the in the first sentence? And if not, then why?