English Learning Notes

Determiner

Determiners are words such as themythissometwentyeachany , which are used before nouns. Determiners include the following common types:

Articles:aanthe

Demonstratives:thisthatthesethose

Possessives:myyourhisher , etc.

Quantifiers:(a) fewsomemany , etc.

Numbers:onetwothree , etc.


Definite Article and Indefinite Article
The determiners a/an and the are called "articles". They are the most common of all determiners. They come at the very beginning of a noun phrase.

demonstrative determiners
The demonstrative determiners this/that, these/those point to something that is close or distant.

Possessive Determiners
We use possessive determiners to show who owns or "possesses" something. The possessive determiners are:my, your, his, her, its, our, their

Graded Quantifiers
All quantifiers are determiners that express quantity, sometimes exact. But with graded quantifiers we can express approximate quantity on a relative scale (rising ➚ and falling ➘).

some, any, no
The quantifiers some, any and no are a kind of determiner.

either, neither
The quantifiers either and neither are a kind of determiner. We use them to talk about possible choices between two people or things.

each, every
The quantifiers each and every are a kind of determiner. They have similar but not always identical meanings. We always use them with a singular countable noun.

Quantifiers
We use some quantifiers only with countable nouns. We use some other quantifiers only with uncountable nouns. And we use some with countable or uncountable nouns.

Numbers
Numbers are one kind of determiner. In terms of meaning, numbers are similar to quantifier determiners, but most grammarians treat them separately.

Interrogative Determiners
The interrogative determiners are: what, which, whose

ZERO Article
Sometimes it is possible to have a noun phrase with NO article—the so-called "ZERO article".

Order of Determiners
Determiners go at the front of a noun phrase, but which determiners go in what order?

Determiners vs Pronouns
Many determiners are also pronouns, and it's important to understand the difference.

What is a Determiner?
Determiners are one of the nine parts of speech. They are words like the, an, this, some, either, my or whose. All determiners share some grammatical similarities