DETERMINERS

Study the following phrases

an

occasion for
celebration
that mat in his trick
a mat weaver
our birthstones

Determiners are
words that
introduce a noun
and provide some
information about
it (but do NOT
describe it).
Examples: the ball,

Articles
Demonstratives
Possessives
Possessive

pronoun
Possessive Noun
Quantifiers

There are only three

articles in English:

The, a, an

the is called the

Definite Article:
It normally introduces a
noun that is familiar to the
listener. Example: The
earth is round.
the may introduce
either a singular or a

a or an are called the

Indefinite Article:
a or an normally
introduce a noun that is not
yet familiar to the listener.
Example:
movie.

I saw a new

a or an may only

What is the
difference between
a and an?

_______ chicken

____ egg

___book

__apple

a precedes words that

start with a consonant
sound.
Examples: a table, a
chair,
an precedes words
that start with a vowel
sound.

Demonstratives
Demonstratives are words that
are used to point at someone or
something (whether its
concrete or abstract).
Examples: that book; this time;
these ideas; those chairs
There are only four
demonstratives in English:

Singular Demonstratives:
This
That
Plural Demonstratives:
These
Those

In order to be called a
DETERMINER, a
demonstrative MUST
be followed by a
noun-phrase:

1. I like this room.

2. I like this.

1. I like this room.

this is a determiner
2. I like this.
this is NOT a determiner
How do we know?
Because determiners need to
precede noun-phrases! In sentence
(2) no noun-phrase follows the word
this

Is the underlined word a

determiner?

John likes that movie.

2. That is the best.
3. That guy is nice.
4. John thinks that apples are
tasty.
1.

Is the underlined word a

determiner?
John likes that movie.
2. That is the best.
3. That guy is nice.
4. John thinks that apples are tasty.
1.

that in (4) is NOT a determiner,

because it is not used to point at
apples!

Possessives
Possessives are words
that usually indicate
possession or
belonging of a noun.
Examples: his
birthday, Sams book,
her idea, New Yorks

There are two kinds of

possessives:
1. possessive
determiner pronouns
2. possessive
determiner proper
nouns

Possessive Pronouns

There are only seven

possessive determiner
pronouns:
my; your; his ; her ; its ;
our ; their

In order to be
called a
DETERMINER, a
possessive pronoun
MUST be followed
by a noun-phrase:

1. His essay was the best.

2. His was the best essay.

1. His essay was the best.

His is a determiner
2. His was the best essay.
His is NOT a determiner

1. His essay was the best.

His is a determiner
2. His was the best essay.
His is NOT a determiner
How do we know?
Because determiners need to
precede noun-phrases! In
sentence (2) no noun-phrase
follows the word his.

Possessive Proper Nouns

A proper noun with
apostrophe s is a
possessive proper noun
Examples:
Marys car, CUNYs students,
Mr. Smiths wife
(Note: These are Determiners,

Quantifiers
Quantifiers are words that indicate the
quantity or amount of a noun.
Examples: three pencils; all countries; some
books; little time; each story.
Common Quantifiers:
All, any, both, each, either, enough, every,
few, little, most, much, neither, no,
several, some, any number (e.g. five,
twelve, etc.)

To conclude
The Determiners are:

Articles
Demonstratives
Possessives
Quantifiers

Identify the determiners and say

what kind of determiner it is:

1. Many New Yorkers

spend the winter in
Florida.
2. His grandmother came
to the U.S. on a boat.
3. Jerry is an

4. My son has outgrown

those shoes.
5. We bought these gifts in
that store.
6. Those people should be
ashamed of themselves.
7. Last night, my son and
his girlfriend picked up

1. Deltas pilots received a well-deserved

salary raise.
2. Janets biggest fear is that her car would
break down
on the highway
3. A basic principle of investing is that you
dont put all your money in one basket.
4. Neither team was able to score a goal at
the game.
5. The hurricane broke seven windows in the
basement

Homework

ALL the exercises of

unit 3 Determiners.