What are determiners?

A determiner is used to modify a noun. It indicates reference to

something specific or something of a particular type. This function is
usually performed by articles, demonstratives, possessive determiners,
or quantifiers.
Determiners vs pronouns
Determiners are followed by a noun.

 The man
 This book
 Some people

Subject pronouns (I, you, he, etc.) and possessive pronouns (mine,

yours, his, etc.) cannot be determiners because they can never be
followed by a noun.
Types of determiners

Articles

The definite and indefinite articles are all determiners.

 Definite article - the

 Indefinite article - a or an (a is used before a consonant
sound; an is used before a vowel sound.)

Examples:
Close the door, please.
I've got a friend in Canada.

Demonstratives

There are four demonstrative determiners in English and they

are: this, that, these and those
Note that demonstrative determiners can also be used as
demonstrative pronouns. When they are used as determiners, they are
followed by the nouns they modify. Compare:
This is my camera. (Demonstrative used as a pronoun; subject of the
verb is)
This camera is mine. (Demonstrative used as a determiner modifying
the noun camera.)

Possessives

Possessive adjectives - my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their
- modify the noun following it in order to show possession.
Possessive determiners are different from possessive
pronouns - mine, his, hers, yours, ours, theirs.

 Possessive pronouns can stand alone and are not followed by

nouns.
 Possessive determiners, on the other hand, are followed by
nouns.

Compare:
This is my house. (my is a possessive determiner. It is followed by
the noun house which it modifies).
Is that car yours? (yours is a possessive pronoun. It is not followed
by a noun.)

Quantifiers

Quantifiers are followed by nouns which they modify. Examples of

quantifiers include:
some, any, few, little, more, much, many, each, every, both, all,
enough, half, little, whole, less etc.
Quantifiers are commonly used before either countable or
uncountable nouns.
He knows more people than his wife.
Little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
 Determiners
Determiners are words placed in front of a noun to make it clear what
the noun refers to. Use the pages in this section to help you use
English determiners correctly.

Determiners in English

 Definite article : the

 Indefinite articles : a, an
 Demonstratives: this, that, these, those
 Pronouns and possessive determiners : my, your, his, her, its,
our, their etc.
 Quantifiers : a few, a little, much, many, a lot of, most, some,
any, enough
 Numbers : one, ten, thirty
 Distributives : all, both, half, either, neither, each, every
 Difference words : other, another
 Pre-determiners : such, what, rather, quite

What Is a Determiner?

What is a determiner? Simply put, in English, a determiner is a word

that introduces a noun. It always comes before a noun, not after, and it
also comes before any other adjectives used to describe the noun.
Determiners are required before a singular noun but are optional when
it comes to introducing plural nouns. For example, consider the
placement and usage of the common determiner the in the sentences
below:
 The bunny went home.
 I ate the chocolate cookie for dessert.
 Metal cans are recyclable.
 The metal cans are recyclable.
 In every example, the determiner is placed before the noun or noun
phrase, regardless of whether the noun in the subject or predicate. In
the first example, it comes directly before the noun, but in the second
example, it comes before the adjective ("chocolate") that describes the
noun ("cookie").

Note also that in the third example there is no determiner, as

determiners are optional for plural nouns and noun phrases. When you
want to discuss the noun in general (i.e., all metal cans), you don't
need a determiner for plural nouns. However, the fourth example
shows that you may add a determiner to refer to specific nouns (i.e.,
the metal cans right here).

There are four different types of determiners in English:

articles, demonstratives, quantifiers, and possessives.

Articles
Articles are among the most common of the determiners. There are
three singular articles: a, an, and the. Articles specify (or determine)
which noun the speaker is referring to. A and an are indefinite
articles and are used when you are talking about a general version of
the noun. For example:
 A dog is a good pet.
 An ostrich would beat a chicken in a race.
In these examples, the sentence is talking about dogs or ostriches in
general, meaning any dog. When your meaning is general, use an
indefinite article. Note that a is used before words that begin with
consonants while an is used before words beginning with vowels.
On the other hand, the is a definite article, meaning the speaker is
referring to a specific noun. For example:
 We went to the best restaurant in town.
 The dog is barking too loudly.

Here the speaker is referring to a particular dog and a particular

restaurant. It's not a general category, but only one animal or place
that's important. When your meaning is specific, use a definite article.
 Demonstratives
Demonstrative pronouns are also used as determiners in English.
There are four of them: this, that, these and those. Demonstratives are
used in a situation in which the speaker can point to the item they
mean, making them even more specific than a definite article. For
example:
 Do you want this piece of chicken?
 I don't want to go to that movie.
 These black raspberries are sour.
 He wanted those boys to go away.
This and these refer to items nearby; that and those refer to items far
away.
Note also that this and that are singular while these and those are
plural.

Quantifiers
Quantifiers are determiners that indicate how much or how little of
the noun is being discussed. They include words such as all,
few and many. For example:
 He took all the books.
 She liked all desserts equally.
 Few children like lima beans, so the cafeteria stopped serving
them.
 Many kittens are taught to hunt by their mothers.
Note that all can be used with other determiners to specify which
particular items are meant (i.e. all the books in this pile). In this case,
the quantifier always comes before the article or demonstrative. It's
also possible to use all alone to refer to items generally, as in the
second example.

Possessives
When referring to a noun that belongs to someone or something, you
can use possessive pronouns to show ownership. Possessive pronouns
include my, your, his, her, its, our, and their. For example:
 Where is your car?
 The dog growled and showed its teeth.
 My best friend is a cat.
 Which one is his house?
 Honesty is her best quality.
 The tree shed its leaves.
 It's our secret recipe.

As always, the determiner comes before the noun and any modifying
adjectives. In English, you can use the same possessive whether the
noun it references is singular or plural.

Using Determiners Correctly

How should you choose which determiner to use? For native English
speakers, determining which determiner to use is second nature, since
determiners are so often used in front of nouns.

For people learning English as a second language, it's helpful to

remember a few rules:

 Determiners always come first in the noun phrase.

 Determiners are required with singular nouns.
 To speak about a singular noun generally, use an indefinite
article (a or an).
 To speak about a plural noun generally, do not use a determiner.
 To speak about a singular noun specifically, use a definite
article, demonstrative pronoun, possessive pronoun or quantifier.
 To speak about a plural noun specifically, use a definite article,
demonstrative pronoun, possessive pronoun or quantifier.
Once you learn the dictionary definition of each determiner as you
study English vocabulary, it becomes easy to select the determiner
that best expresses your meaning, whether you want to show
ownership, quantity or relative location.
Determiners
A Determiner is a word or a group of words that introduces a noun. It
is an important noun modifier that introduces and provides context to
a noun. Determiners in English precede a noun or noun phrase and
include articles, numerals, demonstrative pronouns, possessive
pronouns and indefinite adjectives.
Articles are among the most common of the determiners. ‘A and an’
are the indefinite articles. ‘The’ being the definite article expresses the
specificity of a noun.
For example: A student is reading the textbook. The client is waiting
since morning. “This, that, these and those” are demonstrative
pronouns. It requires a frame of reference in which an individual can
point out the entities referred to by a speaker or a writer.

For example: This is my office building. I want that white dress for
the party.

Possessive pronouns show ownership. They can stand alone and are
not followed by nouns. It includes my, mine, our, ours, its, his, her,
hers, their, theirs, your and yours.

For example: This is your room and that is hers.

A quantifier is a word or phrase which is used before a noun to

indicate the amount or quantity. 'Some', 'many', 'a lot of', most,
enough and 'a few' are examples of quantifiers.

For example: All the students assembled in the prayer hall.

Numerals are determiners when they appear before a noun. In this

position, cardinal numerals express quantity. For example: one tree,
five tress and twenty trees. In the same position, ordinal numerals
express sequence. For example: first opportunity, second year and
fifth house.

Distributive determiners refer to a group of people or things and to

individual members of the group. They show different ways of
looking at the individuals within a group and they express how
something is distributed, shared or divided. For example: all, both,
half, either, each, every etc.   
Definition of Determiners - Determiners are those words that are
prefixed before nouns to determine their meaning. They can be
divided into the following types:
1) Articles- a, an, the
2) Demonstratives- this, that, these, those
3) Possessives- my, your, our, his, her, its, their
4) Indefinite Adjectives- some, any, much, many, little, few, less
5) Others- all, each, every, both, neither, either, other, another,
enough, most, several, one, two, etc.
Let us discuss each of them one by one -

Articles
The two indefinite articles in English language are ‘a’ and ‘an’. The
definite article in English language is ‘the’. For indefinite articles, you
can use either of them depending upon the sound of the first letter of
the next word. This is done for pronunciation reasons.
Use of ‘a’ takes place in the following instances -
1. In places where the following word starts with a consonant sound,
the determiner ‘a’ is used. 2. Also, ‘a’ is used where the following
word is a singular countable noun.
The determiner ‘an’ also does the same work as ‘a’ but is used in the
following instances -
1. places where the following word is a singular countable noun and
starts with a vowel sound (a, e, i, o, u).
‘The’ is mostly used before both singular and plural nouns. Its main
function of use is that it is used to specify a person, place or thing.
Uses of Articles with Rules and Examples:
‘a’ and ‘an’ (Indefinite Determiners) are used before the following-
1) A singular countable noun which is being mentioned for the first
time. The rule can be understood with the help of the following
example sentences -

i. I have never seen a gun.

ii. I saw a sports bike at the store today.

 
2) A singular countable noun or adjective beginning with a consonant
sound. The rule can be understood with the help of the following
example sentences -

i. I ate a banana.
ii. I saw a tall girl today.

 
3) A singular, countable noun which is an example of a class of
things. The rule can be understood with the help of the following
example sentences -

i. A pet needs love. (Class of things is pets)

ii. A father deserves to be respected by his children.

 
4) The noun to express a quantity. The rule can be understood with
the help of the following example sentences -
 i. I need a dozen bananas.
ii. I need to buy a couple of books.

 
5) The units of price, speed, ratio, weight etc. The rule can be
understood with the help of the following example sentences -

i. This bike gives 35 kilometers a liter.

ii. You can run a mile in just 5 minutes.

 
6) Certain numbers or monetary units. The rule can be understood
with the help of the following example sentences -

i. I want to earn a billion dollars by the age of 40.

ii. Can you lend me a hundred rupees?

 
7) The expression of frequency. The rule can be understood with the
help of the following example sentences -

i. Put these ear drops twice a day.

ii. Wash your face three times a day in summers.

 
8) Certain exclamatory expressions. The rule can be understood with
the help of the following example sentences -

i. What a beautiful morning!

ii. What a cute dog!

A Few Important rules to remember about the use of indefinite

determiners:

i. The spelling of the word following the determiner is not

important only the sound is important. Few words given below
start with vowel letters but do not have vowel sounds. So, the
determiner ‘a’ is attached to them. For example:
A union, A one-rupee coin, etc.

i. There are a few words that start with consonant letters but have
vowel sounds. They are preceded by the determiner ‘an’. For
example:

An honest man, An honour.

i. Indefinite determiners are mostly prefixed before the noun that

does not refer to any particular person, place or thing. For
example:

A cat, a boy, an hour

i. Indefinite determiners can be used before uncountable nouns if

the noun is used in a particular sense. For example:

I always have a tea after my lunch.

She is a great pianist.

i. Indefinite determiner can be attached before the adjective if the

adjective is followed by a countable noun. For example:

It is a red coloured T-shirt.

He is a hardworking man.
‘The’ (Definite Determiners) is used before the following-
1) A singular noun when it refers to a particular class or group.  The
rule can be understood with the help of the following example
sentences -

i. The luxury car is a rich man’s vehicle.

ii. My brother has joined the NDA.

 
2) Names of rivers, ranges of mountains, gulfs, seas, oceans, groups,
islands, ships, etc.

i. The Jamuna river

ii. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
iii. The Titanic
iv. The Shivalik range of mountains.

3) Countries with plural names.

i. The Philippines
ii. The Maldives

4) Books of religion (Religious books).

i. The Shrimad Bhagavad Gita

ii. The Holy Quran

5) Names of hotels, museums, and certain building names

i. The Oberoi group of Hotels

ii. The Burj Khalifa.

6) Last names of families in the plural.

i. The Madans
ii. The Malhotras

7) Names of newspapers and magazines.

i. The Top Gear

ii. The Hindustan Times

8) Superlatives of adjectives.

i. The best boy in the class.

ii. The tallest building in the world.

9) Descriptive adjectives referring to a whole group or class.

i. The working class.

ii. The middle class.

10) The names of races and communities.

i. The Hindu
 ii. The Christian

11) Few expressions of the English language.

i. All the colleagues.

ii. Both the sisters.

i. Few Places where the definite determiner ‘The’ should not be

used are as follows -

i. ‘The’ should not be used before abstract nouns, plural nouns,

proper nouns, names of meals, colours, materials when they are
being used in general sense.

i. They should not be used before the name of games.

i. The expression like all day, by road, by air.

Demonstratives
The demonstrative determiners in the English language are this, that,
these, those.

i. The demonstrative determiner ‘That’ (Plural- Those) is used to

avoid repetition of a preceding noun.  The rule can be
understood with the help of the following example sentences -

i. My shorts are better than those of my brother.

ii. Our defence academies are better than those of Afghanistan.

i. The demonstrative determiner ‘This (Plural- These)’ is used to

refer to a person/ persons or thing/ things near to the speaker. 
 The rule can be understood with the help of the following
example sentences -

i. This is the best coffee I have had.

ii. These magazines are very good.

i. The demonstrative determiner ‘That (Plural- Those)’ refers to a

person/ persons or thing/ things far from the speaker.  The rule
can be understood with the help of the following example
sentences -

 Get that dog out of the house.

 Throw away those shoes in the garbage.
 

Possessives
The possessive determiners in the  English language are my, your,
our, his, her, its, their. These are used to show or determine the
ownership of a certain thing.
Personal Pronouns Possessive Possessive
(Subject) Adjective Pronoun

I My Mine

You Your Yours

He His His

She Her Hers

It Its -

We Our Ours

They Their Theirs

Few examples of Possessive determiners are as follows -
1) This is my bike.
2) It is their house.
 

Indefinite Adjectives
Below mentioned is the use of Indefinite Adjectives along with
formulas and examples-

i. Some
ii. The indefinite adjective ‘Some’ is generally used in affirmative
sentences with uncountable and plural countable nouns.  The
rule can be understood with the help of the following example
sentences -

            There is some proof that he is guilty.

I have some good ideas on the project.

i. It can also be used in question where ‘Yes’ is expected as an

answer.  The rule can be understood with the help of the
following example sentences -

 
Would you like some tea?
Could you give me some food?

i. Any
ii. It is used in questions when you want to ask whether something
exists or not. It is also used in negative sentences where we want
to say that something does not exist.  The rule can be understood
with the help of the following example sentences -

I don’t need any help.

Do you have any advice on the matter?

i. It is also used in affirmative sentences before plural nouns and

uncountable nouns when it refers to a quantity of something
which may or may not exist. The rule can be understood with
the help of the following example sentences -
 
You can stop at any point you like.

i. Little and Much

ii. These are used to refer to amount or quantity. Little is used to
emphasize that there is a small amount of something whereas
‘Much’ is used for emphasizing on large quantities. Both of
them are used with uncountable nouns. Little is also used in
reference to small amount of something without any emphasis.
The rule can be understood with the help of the following
example sentences -

I want to spend a little time in Dubai.

I have studied very little for my exam.
Do you like to watch much television?

i. Few and Many

ii. These are mostly used to refer to a number. They are used
before plural countable nouns. Few emphasizes a smaller
number and many refer to more numbers. The rule can be
understood with the help of the following example sentences -

Few students came for the class today.

Many people went to welcome the Indian Cricket team.
They stayed in the U.S.A for a few days.

i. More, Less and Fewer

ii. They are mostly used as comparative determiners. ‘More’ is
used before plural and uncountable nouns (with than) to refer to
a quantity or amount which is greater than another quantity or
amount. It is also used to refer to an additional quantity of
something. Less is used to refer to an amount that is less than
another amount. Fewer is used where we refer to a group of
things that are smaller than another group before plural nouns.
The rule can be understood with the help of the following
example sentences -
            He does much more cardio than I do.
The poor have less access to cleanliness.
There are fewer cars here.

i. Others
ii. There are many other determiners that are used in the English
language and can not be put under any fixed category. So we
have put them all one by one and then given along are their rules
for using them in sentences along with examples.
iii. All
iv. All is mostly used with a plural verb when followed by a
countable plural noun. It includes all the persons or things of a
particular kind. Another rule for it is that it requires a singular
verb when it is followed by an uncountable noun. The rule can
be understood with the help of the following example sentences
-

All children cannot be treated in the same manner.

i. Both
ii. This determiner is mostly used to talk about two things of the
same kind. It is used to show that two persons or things are
involved rather than one and is often followed by ‘and’. The rule
can be understood with the help of the following example
sentences -

Both Raman and Raghav went out for a movie.

He held oranges in both his hands.

i. Either and Neither

ii. These determiners usually refer to two persons or things but
show that one out of the two is or is not involved in a situation.
Neither is used mostly with singular nouns and by either, it can
mean both of two things especially when it is used with ‘end’ or
’side’. The rule can be understood with the help of the following
example sentences -

Take either side of the bed, both are the same.

Neither of them is speaking the truth.
 i. Each and Every
ii. These determiners are used to refer to all members of a group,
persons or things. When we talk about members as individuals,
we use ‘each’ and when we make a statement about all of them
we use ‘every’. They are to be prefixed before a singular
countable noun and the verb attached with them should be
singular. The rule can be understood with the help of the
following example sentences -

Each and every board member was present in the meeting.

Today a laptop and air conditioner can be seen in each house.
Every child is said to have his/ her own special abilities.
 

i. One
ii. This determiner is used when we are talking or writing about a
group and we want to say something about a particular member
of the group. It is used in place of ‘a’ or ‘an’ and it explains
things more clearly. The rule can be understood with the help of
the following example sentences -

            I know one resturant where you can get amazing Chinese
food.
One man was falsely framed in a murder case.

i. Another
ii. It can be used with a singular countable noun to talk about an
additional person or thing of the same type. The rule can be
understood with the help of the following example sentences -

Can I have another cup of coffee?

He opened another branch last month.

i. Other
ii. This determiner is used with plural nouns or sometimes with
uncountable nouns. The rule can be understood with the help of
the following example sentences -
Other people might not have thought like this.
The students are busy in other activities rather than participating in
the math class.

i. Enough
ii. The determiner ‘enough’ is used before uncountable nouns or
plural nouns to say that there is something that is sufficient and
enough as much as needed. The rule can be understood with the
help of the following example sentences -

            The hotel had enough rooms for all the guests.
They did not have enough storage to store all that they had ordered
for.

i. Most
ii. ‘Most’ is used to indicate nearly all of an amount or of a group.
The rule can be understood with the help of the following
example sentences -

Most of the people do not recover from this fatal disease.

Most of the people in India are working class.

i. Several
ii. It is usually used to indicate an imprecise number that is not
very large but more than two. The rule can be understood with
the help of the following example sentences -

            There were several deaths during the floods in U.P.

There were several cases of fraud pending against him in the court.
 

Exercises based on Determiners-

Fill in the blanks with suitable determiners:
1) ________ house is not mine.
2) I have ________ more files to complete.
3) She doesn’t like him ________.
4) Nidhi answered ________ the questions wrong.
5) ________ the girls had to carry their own luggage.
6) I shall not buy ________ oranges. These are rotten.
7) I have bought ________ cycle.
8) I drive 10 Kms ________ day to reach my school.
9) We are expecting ________ guests tonight.
10) ________ of my answers were correct. So I passed.
11) Hello! ________is Nipun. Can I speak to Aman?
12) He spends ________ time on video games.
13) What is your sister doing ________ days?
14) I can speak ________ Hindi.
15) He had built ________ unique house.
 

Answers:
1)      That
2)      Some
3)      Much
4)      All
5)      All
6)      These
7)      A
8)      Every
9)      Several
10)   Most
11)   This
12)   More
13)   These
14)   Little
15)   A

ARTICLES, DETERMINERS,
AND QUANTIFIERS
Definition

Articles, determiners, and quantifiers are those little

Jump to
words that precede and modify nouns:
Articles
the teacher, a college, a bit
of honey, that person, those people, whatever purpose, eith
er way, your choice

Sometimes these words will tell the reader or listener whether

we're referring to a specific or general thing (the garage out
back; A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!); sometimes they
tell how much or how many (lots of trees, several books, a great deal
of confusion). The choice of the proper article or determiner to
precede a noun or noun phrase is usually not a problem for writers
who have grown up speaking English, nor is it a serious problem for
non-native writers whose first language is a romance language such as
Spanish. For other writers, though, this can be a considerable obstacle
on the way to their mastery of English. In fact, some students from
eastern European countries — where their native language has either
no articles or an altogether different system of choosing articles and
determiners — find that these "little words" can create problems long
after every other aspect of English has been mastered.

Determiners are said to "mark" nouns. That is to say, you know a

determiner will be followed by a noun. Some categories of
determiners are limited (there are only three articles, a handful of
possessive pronouns, etc.), but the possessive nouns are as limitless as
nouns themselves. This limited nature of most determiner categories,
however, explains why determiners are grouped apart from adjectives
even though both serve a modifying function. We can imagine that
the language will never tire of inventing new adjectives; the
determiners (except for those possessive nouns), on the other hand,
are well established, and this class of words is not going to grow in
number. These categories of determiners are as follows: the articles
(an, a, the — see below; possessive nouns (Joe's, the priest's, my
mother's); possessive pronouns, (his, your, their, whose, etc.);
numbers (one, two, etc.); indefinite pronouns (few, more, each, every,
either, all, both, some, any, etc.); and demonstrative pronouns.
The demonstratives (this, that, these, those, such) are discussed in
the section on Demonstrative Pronouns. Notice that the possessive
nouns differ from the other determiners in that they, themselves, are
often accompanied by other determiners: "my mother's rug,"
"the priests's collar," "a dog's life."

This categorization of determiners is based on Understanding English

Grammar by Martha Kolln. 4rth Edition. MacMillan Publishing
Company: New York. 1994.

Some Notes on Quantifiers

Like articles, quantifiers are words that precede and modify

nouns. They tell us how many or how much. Selecting the correct
quantifier depends on your understanding the distinction
between Count and Non-Count Nouns. For our purposes, we will
choose the count noun trees and the non-count noun dancing:

The following quantifiers will work with count nouns:

      many trees
      a few trees
      few trees
      several trees
      a couple of trees
      none of the trees

The following quantifiers will work with non-count nouns:

      not much dancing
      a little dancing
      little dancing
      a bit of dancing
      a good deal of dancing
      a great deal of dancing
      no dancing
 The following quantifiers will work with both count and non-count
nouns:
      all of the trees/dancing
      some trees/dancing
      most of the trees/dancing
      enough trees/dancing
      a lot of trees/dancing
      lots of trees/dancing
      plenty of trees/dancing
      a lack of trees/dancing

In formal academic writing, it is usually better to

use many and much rather than phrases such as a lot of, lots
of and plenty of.

There is an important difference between "a

little" and "little" (used with non-count words) and between "a
few" and "few" (used with count words). If I say that Tashonda has a
little experience in management that means that although Tashonda is
no great expert she does have some experience and that experience
might well be enough for our purposes. If I say that Tashonda
has little experience in management that means that she doesn't have
enough experience. If I say that Charlie owns a few books on Latin
American literature that means that he has some some books — not a
lot of books, but probably enough for our purposes. If I say that
Charlie owns few books on Latin American literature, that means he
doesn't have enough for our purposes and we'd better go to the library.

Unless it is combined with of, the quantifier "much" is reserved

for questions and negative statements:

 Much of the snow has already melted.

 How much snow fell yesterday?
 Not much.

Note that the quantifier "most of the" must include the definite

article the when it modifies a specific noun, whether it's a count or a
non-count noun: "most of the instructors at this college have a
doctorate"; "most of the water has evaporated." With a general plural
noun, however (when you are not referring to a specific entity), the
"of the" is dropped:

 Most colleges have their own admissions policy.

 Most students apply to several colleges.

Authority for this last paragraph: The Scott, Foresman Handbook for

Writers by Maxine Hairston and John J. Ruszkiewicz. 4th ed.
HarperCollins: New York. 1996. Examples our own.

An indefinite article is sometimes used in conjunction with the

quantifier many, thus joining a plural quantifier with a singular noun
(which then takes a singular verb):

 Many a young man has fallen in love with her golden hair.

 Many an apple has fallen by October.

This construction lends itself to a somewhat literary effect (some

would say a stuffy or archaic effect) and is best used sparingly, if at
all.

Predeterminers

The predeterminers occur prior to other determiners (as you

would probably guess from their name). This class of words includes
multipliers (double, twice, four/five times . . . .); fractional expressions
(one-third, three-quarters, etc.); the words both, half, and all; and
intensifiers such as quite, rather, and such.

The multipliers precede plural count and mass nouns and occur

with singular count nouns denoting number or amount:

 This van holds three times the passengers as that sports car.

 My wife is making double my / twice my salary.
 This time we added five times the amount of water.
 In fractional expressions, we have a similar construction, but here
it can be replaced with "of" construction.

 Charlie finished in one-fourth [of] the time his brother took.

 Two-fifths of the respondents reported that half
the medication was sufficient.

The intensifiers occur in this construction primarily in casual

speech and writing and are more common in British English than they
are in American English. The intensifier "what" is often found in
stylistic fragments: "We visited my brother in his dorm room. What a
mess!"

 This room is rather a mess, isn't it?

 The ticket-holders made quite a fuss when they couldn't get
in.
 What an idiot he turned out to be.
 Our vacation was such a grand experience.

Half, both, and all can occur with singular and plural count

nouns; half and all can occur with mass nouns. There are also "of
constructions" with these words ("all [of] the grain," "half [of] his
salary"); the "of construction" is required with personal pronouns
("both of them," "all of it"). The following chart (from Quirk and
Greenbaum) nicely describes the uses of these three predeterminers:
The Articles
The three articles — a, an, the — are a kind
of adjective. The is called the definite
article because it usually precedes a specific or
previously mentioned noun; a and an are
called indefinite articles because they are used to
refer to something in a less specific manner (an
unspecified count noun). These words are also
listed among the noun
markers or determiners because they are almost
invariably followed by a noun (or something else
acting as a noun).
CAUTION! Even after you learn all the
principles behind the use of these articles,
you will find an abundance of situations
where choosing the correct article or choosing
whether to use one or not will prove chancy. Icy
highways are dangerous. The icy highways are
dangerous. And both are correct.

The is used with specific nouns. The is required when the noun it

refers to represents something that is one of a kind:

The moon circles the earth.

The is required when the noun it refers to represents something in the

abstract:

The United States has encouraged the use of the private automobile as

opposed to the use of public transit.

The is required when If you would the noun it refers to represents

something named like help with earlier in the text. (See below..)

We use a before the distinction singular count-nouns that begin

with consonants (a between count cow, a barn, a sheep); we
use an before and non-count singular count-nouns that begin
nouns, please
refer to Count
and Non-
Count Nouns.
with vowels or vowel-like sounds (an apple, an urban blight, an open
door). Words that begin with an h sound often require an a (as
in a horse, a history book, a hotel), but if an h-word begins with an
actual vowel sound, use an an (as in an hour, an honor). We would
say a useful device and a union matter because the u of those words
actually sounds like yoo (as opposed, say, to the u of an ugly
incident). The same is true of a European and a  Euro (because of that
consonantal "Yoo" sound). We would say a once-in-a-lifetime
experience or a one-time hero because the words once and one begin
with a w sound (as if they were spelled wuntz and won).

Merriam-Webster's Dictionary says that we can use an before

an h- word that begins with an unstressed syllable. Thus, we might
say an hisTORical moment, but we would say a HIStory book. Many
writers would call that an affectation and prefer that we
say a historical, but apparently, this choice is a matter of personal
taste.

For help on using articles with abbreviations and acronyms

(a or an FBI agent?), see the section on Abbreviations.

First and subsequent reference: When we first refer to

something in written text, we often use an indefinite article to modify
it.

A newspaper has an obligation to seek out and tell the truth.

In a subsequent reference to this newspaper, however, we will use the

definite article:

There are situations, however, when the newspaper must determine

whether the public's safety is jeopardized by knowing the truth.

Another example:
    "I'd like a glass of orange juice, please," John said.
    "I put the glass of juice on the counter already," Sheila replied.

Exception:
When a modifier appears between the article and the noun, the
subsequent article will continue to be indefinite:
    "I'd like a big glass of orange juice, please," John said.
    "I put a big glass of juice on the counter already," Sheila replied.

Generic reference: We can refer to something in a generic way

by using any of the three articles. We can do the same thing
by omitting the article altogether.

 A beagle makes a great hunting dog and family

companion.
 An airedale is sometimes a rather skittish animal.
 The golden retriever is a marvelous pet for children.
 Irish setters are not the highly intelligent animals they used
to be.

The difference between the generic indefinite pronoun and the normal
indefinite pronoun is that the latter refers to any of that class ("I want
to buy a beagle, and any old beagle will do.") whereas the former (see
beagle sentence) refers to all members of that class.

Proper nouns: We use the definite article with certain kinds of

proper nouns:

 Geographical places: the Sound, the Sea of Japan, the

Mississippi, the West, the Smokies, the Sahara (but
often not when the main part of the proper noun seems to be
modified by an earlier attributive noun or adjective: We
went swimming at the Ocean Park)
 Pluralized names (geographic, family, teams): the
Netherlands, the Bahamas, the Hamptons, the Johnsons, the
New England Patriots
 Public institutions/facilities/groups: the Wadsworth
Atheneum, the Sheraton, the House, the Presbyterian
Church
 Newspapers: the Hartford Courant, the Times
 Nouns followed by a prepositional phrase beginning with
"of": the leader of the gang, the president of our club
 Abstract nouns: Abstract nouns—the names of things that are not
tangible—are sometimes used with articles, sometimes not:

 The storm upset my peace of mind. He was missing just one

thing: peace of mind.
 Injustice was widespread within the judicial system itself.
He implored the judge to correct the injustice.
 Her body was racked with grief. It was a grief he had never
felt before.

Zero articles: Several kinds of nouns never use articles. We do

not use articles with the names of languages ("He was learning
Chinese." [But when the word Chinese refers to the people, the
definite article might come into play: "The Chinese are hoping to get
the next Olympics."]), the names of sports ("She plays badminton and
basketball."), and academic subjects ("She's taking economics and
math. Her major is Religious Studies.")

When they are generic, non-count nouns and sometimes plural

count-nouns are used without articles. "We like wine with our dinner.
We adore Baroque music. We use roses for many purposes." But if an
"of phrase" comes after the noun, we use an article: "We
adore the music of the Baroque." Also, when a generic noun is used
without an article and then referred to in a subsequent reference, it
will have become specific and will require a definite article: "The
Data Center installed computers in the Learning Center this
summer. The computers, unfortunately, don't work."

Common count nouns are used without articles in certain special

situations:

idiomatic We'll go by train. (as opposed to

expressions "We'll take the train.)
using be and go He must be in school.

with seasons In spring, we like to clean the house.

with institutions He's in church/college/jail/class.

 Breakfast was delicious.
with meals
He's preparing dinner by himself.

He's dying of pneumonia.

Appendicitis nearly killed him.
She has cancer
with diseases
(You will sometimes hear "the
measles," "the mumps," but these,
too, can go without articles.)

We traveled mostly by night.

with time of day
We'll be there around midnight.

Principles of Choosing an Article

Choosing articles and determiners: Briefly defined, a

determiner is a noun-marker: when you see one, you know that what
follows is a noun or noun phrase. There is a list of such words in the
table below. When you place your mouse-cursor over a word or pair
of related words (such as either/neither), you will see in the right-hand
frame an image describing the kinds of words that word can modify.

Zero article (see table below) means either that no article would be

appropriate with that kind of noun or that that kind of noun can be
used (in that context) without an article.
If you would like to see these images listed on one page, click HERE.

Notice that there is a difference between a

"stressed" some or any and an "unstressed" some or any. Consider the
words in ALL CAPS as shouted words and you will hear the
difference between these two:

 That is SOME car you've got there!

 I don't want to hear ANY excuse!

As opposed to. . .

 We have some cars left in the lot.

 Isn't there any furniture in the living room?

In terms of the words they usually modify, the

unstressed some and any do not modify singular count nouns.