Sign inDemonstrative Determiners for intermediate learners
Demonstrative determiners in English are this, these, that and those. They are used to identify the person or thing that is being referred to.
What Are Demonstrative Determiners?
When we want to point to a particular thing or person, we use demonstrative determiners. These determiners can tell us about the distance and number. In other words, they can indicate whether something is near to us or far from us.
English Demonstrative Determiners
The table below distinguishes between English demonstrative determiners based on their number and distance:
Now, let us examine some examples:
Here, the determiner shows that the girl is near the speaker.
Here, the determiner 'that' shows that the car is far from the speaker.
Here, the determiner shows that the items are close to the speaker.
Here, the determiner shows that the items are far from the speaker.
Warning!
Please note that when these determiners are used alone and are not followed by a noun, they are no longer determiners. Instead, they function as demonstrative pronouns. Take a look at the following examples:
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As you know, pre-determiners, determiners, and post-determiners can be used together to modify a noun. In this lesson, we will learn about their order.
Possessive Determiners
Possessive determiners are types of function words used before a noun to show ownership or possession. In this lesson, we will learn all about them.
Interrogative Determiners
There are three interrogative determiners in English: what, which, and whose. In this lesson, we will go through each one of them.
Indefinite Determiners
Indefinite determiners are determiners that express quantity or the indefinite ideas of quality. They agree in number and gender with the noun they modify.
