Determiners

Determiners are words such as this, those, my, their, which. They are special adjectives that are used before nouns. 
 
The Articles :
 
The words a, an and the belong to this group of words called determiners. 
The words a and an are called indefinite articles. You  can use them with singular nouns to talk about any  single person or thing.  
The article an is usually used before words beginning with vowels. The article a is used before words beginning with consonants.
 
  • This is a picture of an elephant. 
  • Rudy is reading a book. 
  • Mom bought me a new dress today. 
  • You will need an umbrella when you go out.  
  • She eats an apple a day.

The word the is called the definite article.  Use the  before a noun when you are talking about a certain person or thing. 

You also use the before a noun when there  is only one.

For example: 

the sun         the moon         the sky         the front door of my house

  • Granny is sitting in the garden. 
  • The street is very busy today. 
  • The sky is getting dark.

Demonstrative Determiners :

The words this, that, these and those are determiners. They are used to tell which thing or person you mean. These words are called demonstrative determiners, or demonstrative adjectives.

You use this and these to point to people or things near you. 

You use that and those to point to people or things that are farther from you. 

You use this and that before singular nouns. 

You use these and those before plural nouns. 

Here’s a table to help you remember the rules: 

Singular             Plural 

this                     these 

that                     those

  • This ice cream is delicious. 
  • How much is that racket? 
  • What is that animal? 
  • Bring me that ball. 
  • Would you like these apples?

 

Interrogative Determiners :

Use the words what, which and whose before nouns to ask about people or things. These words are called interrogative determiners or interrrogative adjectives.

  • What time is it? 
  • What color is her hair? 
  • What kind of clothes do you like to wear? 
  • Which school do you go to? 
  • Which doll is your favorite? 
  • Which road leads to the zoo? 
  • Which runner is the winner? 
  • Do you know which girl won the prize? 
  • Whose footprints are these? 
  • Whose baby is this? 
  • Whose dog was barking in the middle of the night?

 

Possessive Determiners :

The words my, your, his, her, its, our, their are called possessive determiners or posessive adjectives. Use these words before nouns to say who something  belongs to.

  • Is this your house? 
  • Robert, your handwriting is difficult to read. 
  • Michael is showing his tortoise to his friends. 
  • My sister lost her way in the city. 
  • The lion is chasing its prey.

Here is a table to help you remember the possessive determiners.  

                                                Singular              Plural 

First person                                my                      our 

Second person                          your                    your 

Third person                              his                      their  

                                                  her                      their

                                                  its                       their

Exercise 1 

 

Fill in the blanks with a , an or the .
 

1   __________ owl                      7  __________ moon 

2 __________ rocket                    8  __________ Missouri River 

3  __________ apron                    9  __________ mango 

4  __________ sun                       10  __________ animal 

5 __________ page                      11  __________ eagle 

6  __________ computer             12  __________ baby


 Exercise 2 

 Write a , an or the in the blanks to complete the sentences.    

1  There is ________ rainbow in ________ sky. 

2  Who is ________ man outside ______ gate? 

3  ________ doctor gave Jane ________ injection. 

4  Paul opened ________ door to let ________ dog in. 

5  Mark is ________ only child in  _______ family. 

6  What’s  ______ largest animal in ________ world? 

7  There’s ________ nest in ________ tree. 

8  Sue is writing ________ letter to her grandfather. 

9  Jack has ________ brother and ________ sister. 

10  We reached ________ top of ______ hill in two hours.

 

Exercise 3  

Fill in the blanks with the correct demonstrative adjectives .
 

1  Come and look at ________ insects. 

2  Stop ________ man! 

3  I was in fifth grade last year. I am in sixth grade   ________ year. 

4  Bring ________ chairs here. 

5  ________ ice cream is delicious. 

6  Can you see ________ stars in the sky?