DETERMINERS
Determiners are modifying words which act like adjectives. They are placed before nouns about which they imply/ inform something.
Determiners include the following types of words:
a) Articles: a, an, the
b) Demonstratives: this,
these, that, those, such
c) Possessives: my, our,
your, his, her, their, its, Roy’s etc.
d) Indefinite Adjective:
some, any, much, many, little, few, less, etc.
e) Distribute: each, every,
both, all, either, neither, one, other, another, one/
two, etc.
ARTICLES
There are three articles in English grammar: a, an, and the.
“A and An” are
used to discuss non-specific things, person, and place. “A” and “An” are called indefinite articles.
Examples:
i) I’d like a mango.
ii) Let’s go on an adventure trip.
iii) An
H is missing in word.
Neither one of these sentences names a specific mango or a certain
adventure. Without more clarification, any banana or adventure will do.
“The” is called definite article.
It’s the only definite article, and it is used to indicate very specific people
or things:
Examples:
i) Please give me a mango. I’d
like the one with the green stem.
ii) Let’s go on an adventure. The Wonderla sounds
perfect!
INDEFINITE ARTICLES (A / AN)
The indefinite article (a/ an) is used with a singular, countable noun,
It is not used with a plural noun, uncountable and abstract noun.
Examples:
i) A bat, a cargo, a doll, a chocolate
ii) An ice-cream, an orange, an inkpot, an umbrella, an ostrich, an egg
iii) Special cases: an hour, an honest man, a university, a European, a
one-rupee note, etc
‘A’ is used before the nouns beginning with a consonant sound.
Examples:
i) A dog barked at a vendor.
ii) She joins a university
last week.
iii) A monkey snatched his
parcel.
iv) A European met at bus
terminal.
‘An’ is used before the nouns beginning with a
vowel sound (a, e, i, o, u)
Examples:
i) You should solve all problems in an
hour.
ii) He is an honest person.
iii) An owl was caught by
him.
iv) An MBA student scored out
of out marks in his final examination.
Uses of indefinite articles:
1) Indefinite articles are used before a singular countable noun,
mentioned for the first time and referring to no one in particular:
i) I saw a child playing PUBG.
ii) She carries an ostrich
with her.
iii) He catches a bird in the
garden.
2) Indefinite articles are used before a singular countable noun which stands
for a group or class or persons or things:
i) A man has to work to live
(all men have to work to live)
ii) A tiger needs to protect
(all tigers need to protect)
3) Indefinite articles are used in certain expressions of quantity/
number:
i) A lot of people were in
mall.
ii) A dozen oranges were
bought.
4) Indefinite articles are used in expressions of speed, ratio and
price:
i) The bike mileage is thirty kilometers a litre.
ii) I see Tina twice a day.
iii) He sold tomatoes for Rs. 10 a
kilo.
DEFINITE ARTICLE ‘THE’
a)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before the
names of rivers, canals, seas, islands, mountains, deserts, regions, plural, names
of countries:
i) The
Ganga is sacred river of India.
ii) The
Himalayas are so beautiful.
iii) The
U.S.A. plays very vital role in World
Bank growth.
b)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before
unique things or planets as:
i) The
earth has its own satellite.
ii) The
sun generates lot of energy.
iii) The
moon rotates around the earth.
c)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before the
names of sacred and well-known books, magazines, newspapers etc:
i) The
Bible is holy book of Christians.
ii) The
Geeta teaches us to do our duty correctly.
iii) The
Quran guides us to follow right path.
iv) The
Times of India newspaper is popular in North India.
d)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before
well-known ships, buildings, trains, historical events:
i) The
Garib Ratha express connects Karnataka to Rajasthan.
ii) The
Gol Gumbaz has world’s second largest dome.
iii) We travelled to Mumbai to see the India Gate.
e)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before
superlatives and ordinals(first, second) used as adjectives:
i) Carl is the happiest man in our colony.
ii) A car met the worst accident yesterday by bypass.
iii) Everyone receives salary on the first day of the month.
f)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before the
singular noun representing a class of things or animals:
i) The elephant is a huge animal.
ii) The
car is no longer a luxury.
g)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before an
adjective to denote the whole class:
i) The
rich are modernists. (All rich people)
ii) Do not help the poor. (All poor people)
h)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before the
names of races, groups and communities:
i) The
Christians celebrate Christmas on 25th December.
ii) The
Indians are rich in hospitality.
i)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before a
surname to refer to the family: (Mr. & Mrs. & their children)
i) The
Kapoors inaugurated a new film studio.
ii) The
Ambanis welcomed everyone to their firm.
j)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before the
names consisting of a noun + of + a noun:
i) The
Bay of Bengal water is getting polluted.
k)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before a
noun that has already been mentioned:
i) I saw a girl. The girl was carrying a gun.
ii) A boy was in gym. The boy was so strong to lift 150 pounds barrel.
l)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before a
noun made definite with a phrase/clause:
i) Camel is the ship of desert.
ii) The
boy in the concert was arrogant.
m) The
definite article ‘The’ is used before a noun denoting a known person or thing:
i) The
car looks beautiful (the car in showroom)
ii) Pass the
salt, please. (the salt on the table)
n)
The definite article ‘The’ is used before
parallel comparatives:
i) The
higher you go oxygen level will decrease.
ii) That boy was the more ferocious of the two.
OMISSION OF ARTICLES
i) A / an are not used before plural nouns:
Examples: toys, girls, doctors, tables, etc.
ii) A / an are not used before uncountable nouns:
Examples: oil, milk, air, water, etc.
iii) A / an/ the are not used before proper names (nouns):
Examples: Anna, Dinesh, India, Goa, etc.
iv) A / an are not used before the names of metals:
Examples: silver, platinum, gold, etc.
v) A / an/ the are not used before any countable noun when it is
preceded by:
Examples: each, any, another, every, either, some, etc.
vi) A / an are not used when we refer to a public institution or place
named after some particular person or place.
Examples: Oxford University, Taj Hotel
vii) A / an are not used in certain idiomatic phrases.
viii) A / an are not used when a noun denotes, rank, occupation, station,
etc.
ix) A/ an/ the are not used before the names of material nouns used in a
general sense.
Examples:
i) Wheat flour is used to make Chapatis.
ii) Smoking is injurious to health.
x) A/ an / the are not used before the names of abstract nouns used in a
general sense.
Example: Honest is the best policy.
xi) A/ an/ the are not used before the names of languages and games.
Examples:
i) English is spoken almost in all countries.
ii) Football is good game for improving stamina.
xii) A/ an/ the are not used before the names of diseases.
Examples:
i) Corona has broken nerve of everyone.
ii) She is suffering from flu.
xiii) A/ an/ the are not used before the names of flowers, colours in
general sense.
Examples:
i) Blue is my favourite colour.
ii) Marigold has a sweet fragrance.
xiv) A/ an/ the are not used before the names of nature, goddesses,
gods.
DEMONSTRATIVES
Demonstratives are words, which indicate some noun: this/ these, that/
those, such.
Note: This and that are used before singular
nouns. These and those are used before plural nouns.
This/ These show nearness:
i) This is my bike.
ii) This table is nice.
iii) These are the children
who played well in chess competition.
iv) These boys are ready to
run.
v) This bag is mine.
That/ Those indicate distance:
i) Those are some fresh
oranges in the basket.
ii) Get that boy out of the
class.
iii) Those fields are not
mine.
iv) Is that boy arrogant?
v) Those were good mangoes.
Such
i) Such an idea cannot be praised.
ii) Such people are rewarded for their loyalty.
POSSESSIVES
Possessive (my, our, your, his, her, their, its) are also determiners.
They are used before singular or plural nouns:
Examples:
i) Sam is her good brother.
ii) She is proud of her
beauty.
iii) They are proud of their children.
iv) You should respect your
elders.
v) I love my country.
vi) He takes care of his
parents.
Special Note:
(a) The possessives: mine, ours, yours, his, hers, theirs are called
possessive pronouns. Don’t use any noun after possessive pronouns.
Examples:
i) This book is mine.
ii) That computer is yours.
(b) The possessives: my, our, your, his, her, their, are called
possessive adjectives. They are used before a noun:
Examples:
i) This is my laptop.
ii) That is your book.
INDEFINITE ADJECTIVES
Indefinite adjectives are some, any, much, many, little, few, less,
some/ any.
Some and any are used to denote a certain number or amount. They are
used with plural or uncountable nouns.
Some is used {in affirmative sentences, in questions where yes is
expected as answer, in offers and requests}:
Examples:
i) I have some doubts about your
decision.
ii) Would you have some tea?
Any is used {in negative sentences (never, hardly, scarcely, rarely,
fail, deny) in questions where no is expected as answer}:
Examples:
i) He hasn’t got any house.
ii) He has hardly any money to spare.
Some is used before a singular, countable noun (an unknown person/ thing):
Example: Some idiot knocked at her door at 5 in the
morning.
Any may mean all (of them) and no one is particular.
Example: Any of them
could answer the question.
Little/ a little/ the little are used with uncountable nouns. Few/ a
few/ the few are used with plural nouns.
Little and few indicates lack of something:
Examples:
We had little money left (almost
no money).
He had few friends and felt
lonely (almost no friend).
A little/ A few denotes a small amount or number.
Examples:
I have a little work to do. Wait for half an hour.
A few of her songs are popular.
The little/ the few is followed by a relative
clause in which that is often omitted:
Examples:
The little time (that) we had was spent in shopping.
The few girls who came to see the match soon went away.
Much/ many gives the idea of ‘a lot of’. Much
is used with uncountable nouns and many with plural nouns:
Examples:
i) Much money is needed for
the project.
ii) Many people were present
in the hall.
DISTRIBUTE
Distribute are the words which convey a sense
of distribution.
(Each, every, both, all, either, neither,
one, another, other, one/two, etc)
Each/ every: used with singular countable
nouns, each or every indicates all persons or things considered individually.
Each is a pronoun and adjective. Every is an adjective.
Examples:
i) Each
ticket costs Rs. 10. Or Every ticket
costs Rs.10
ii) Each
did his work well. (Every cannot be used here)
Note:
each and every take a singular verb.
Both: Both conveys the
sense of ‘one and other’ and takes a plural verb. It can be used alone, or with
a noun, or with of + objective pronoun, or after a personal pronoun.
Examples:
i) Both
did it well.
ii) Both
girls were pretty.
iii) Both
of us belong to Amritsar.
iv) We both
went to see him.
‘Both’ indicates a
combination of two nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc.
Examples:
i) He is both
a poet and painter.
ii) Subash Gahi both produces and directs films.
All: All indicates all
the people or things considered as a group, and the whole of something:
Examples:
i) Have you eaten all the apples?
ii) All
the town was present to see the show.
Either,
neither: Either means ‘one of the two’ whereas neither means ‘not one and not
the other’. Either can be followed by or, and neither by nor. Both these determiners
take singular verb:
Examples:
i) Either
of these two tables will do.
ii) You can either write or phone to get a copy.
iii) He is either French or Swiss.
iv) Neither
of them was present in the class.
v) Neither
the students nor the teachers were
present.
