mardi 28 octobre 2014

Top Tips Grammar: Determiners

Main points

*Determiners are used at the beginning of noun groups.
*You use specific determiner when people know exactly which things or people you are talking about.

 

a) When you use a determiner, you put it at the beginning of a noun group, in front of numbers or adjectives.

- I met the two Swedish girls in London.
- Our main bedroom is through there.
- Have you got another red card?
- Several young boys were waiting.

 

b) When the people or things you are talking about have already been mentioned, or the people you are talking to know exactly which one you mean, you use a specific determiner.

- The man began to run towards the boy.
- Young people don’t like these operas.
- Her face was very red.

The specific determiners are:

The definite article : the
Demonstratives : this, that, these, those
Possessives : my, your, his, her, its, our, their

 

c) When you are mentioning people or things for the first time, or talking about them generally without saying which ones you mean, you use a general determiner.

- There was a man in the lift.
- We went to an art exhibition.
- You can stop at any time you like.
- There were several reasons for this.

The general determiners are:

a both few more other
all each fewer most several
an either less much some
another enough little neither  
any every many no  

 

d) Each general determiner is used with particular types of nouns, such as:

*singular count nouns

a another each every no
an any either neither  

- I got a postcard from Rita.
- He opened another shop.
- Any big tin container will do.

*plural count nouns

all enough many no some
any few more other  
both fewer most several  

- There were few doctors available.
- Several projects postponed.
- He spoke many different languages.

*uncount nouns

all enough little most no
any less more much some

- There was little applause.
- He did not speak much English.
- We need more information.

Remember that the following general determiners can never be used with uncount nouns.

a both every neither
an each few several
another either many  

 

e) Most of the determiners are also pronouns, except ‘the’, ‘a’, ‘an’, ‘every’, ‘no’ and the possessives.

- I saw several in the woods last night.
- There is enough for all of us.
- Have you got any that I could borrow?

You use ‘one’ as a pronoun instead of ‘a’ or ‘an’, ‘none’ instead of ‘no’, and ‘each’ instead of ‘every’.

- Have you got one?
- There are none left.
- Each has a separate box and number.

 

 

 

 

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Top Tips Abz Ingles: Part A    -    Part B
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See also:

Words related to Failure to Cooperate Irregular Verbs list
Common Phrasal Verbs Common Slangs
Common misspellings Regular vs Irregular Verbs
Common Errors Frequently confused words
Common Slangs Lista de Términos Gramaticales
Common Clichés Common Prepositions

 

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