Determiners are function words used to specify the

kind of referecence a noun has.

Types of determiners:
• Articles
• Possesive determiners
• Demonstrative determiners
• Quantifying determiners
• Numerals determiners
• Semi determiners
• Wh determiners
 The article
 The most common determiners are the
articles the and a/an, wich signal definite
and indefinite meaning. When no
determiner occur before the noun, it is
useful to say that there is a zero article.
 The definit and indefinite article both take a
different spoken form when the word
begins with a vowel:
/ə/ a house, a UFO - /ən/ an hour, an MP
/ðə/ the house - /ðɪ/ the apple
Indefinite meanings expressed by
a/an
The indefinite article a/an is used only with singular countable
nouns. It narrows down the reference of the head noun to
one indefinite memer of the class.

The specific used to a/an The indefinite article is used to

Unspecific used of a/an
Classifying or generic used of
a/an
introduce a new specific entity into
the discourse
Is used where the noun phrase
does not refer to any specific
individual
The indefinite article can also serve
ton classify an entity, or to refer
generically to what is typical of any
member of the class
Indefinited meaning with the
zero article
 Like a/an with singular countable nouns,
the zero article signals indefiniteness
with uncountable nouns and plural
countable nouns.
 Zero article phrases commonly express
non-specific or generic reference. But
there also some special uses of the zero
article with singular countable nouns.
The definite article the
the goes with both countable and
uncountable nouns. It marks the noun as
referring to something or someone
assumed ti be know to speaker and
addressee (or writer and reader)
Possesive determiners
Possesive determiners specify the noun
phrase by relating it to the speaker/writer
or other entities. The possesive
determiners correspond to personal
pronouns:
possessive determiner: my our your his
her its their
personal pronoun: I we you he she it they
Demonstrative determiners

The demonstrarive determines are

this/these and that/those. They specify
whether referent is singular or plurar (this v
these )and whether the referent is ‘near’ or
‘distant’ in relation to the speaker. (this v
that).
Quantifying determiners
(quantifiers)
Some determiners specify nouns in terms
of quantity or amount and are therefore
called quantifying determiners (or simply
quantifiers).
o with uncountable nouns
all money – much money
o with countable nouns
all girls – many girls
Numerals as determiners
Like most quantifiers, numerals can occur
in determiner position or in head position in
a noun phrase:
You owe me ten bucks, Mary
Tomorrow I have to get up at seven
When the two types occur togheter in one
noun phrase, ordinal numerals normally
precede cardinal numeras:
The first three pages were stuck together with
the young man’s blood
Semi-determiners
words like same, other, another, last and
such have some adjective characteristics
and some determiner characteristics. We
call these words semi-determiners:
 The same person was there with almos
exactly the same message.
 Such functions are not symmetrical.
 He’s living with her and another girl,
and another boy.
Wh-determiners

Wh-determiners are used to introduce

interrogative clauses and relative clauses:
 Which way are we going?.
 I had a girl whose dog was the
bridesman.