Determiners are words which come before nouns. They contain several classes of words, including pronouns and adjectives. They determine or limit the noun by giving some additional information about it. Determiners show whether a noun refers to is a general or a specific object, person, or place. They indicate which or how many things the noun refers to. Determiners define or limit a noun to the singular or plural. They indicate the amount or quantity. Determiners and nouns together make noun phrases. They make noun phrases with adjectives too. Determiners may precede numerals too.
Basic English Grammar rules can be tricky. In this article, we’ll get you started with the basics of sentence structure, punctuation, parts of speech, and more.
Determiners Exercises With Answers for Class 8 CBSE PDF
A word that determines or limits a noun or a noun phrase is a determiner. Determiners can be divided into two broad categories: specific and general.
Specific determiners are used in noun phrases to talk about or indicate specific people or things.
Examples:
- the, this, that, these, those, my
- our, your, his, her, its, their
We cannot use more than one specific determiner before a noun.
General determiners are used to talk about people or things in a general or an indefinite way.
Examples:
| a an one every many more most much little few either neither nо other each some both any enough all another several |
Determiners include the following:
- articles (a, an, the)
- possessive adjectives (my, our, your, his, her, their)
- demonstrative adjectives (this, that, these, those)
- distributives (each, every, either, neither)
- quantifiers (a few, a little, much, more, some, etc.) and numbers (one, two, forty, second, twenty-fourth, etc.)
- interrogative adjectives (what, whose, which)
Determiners Exercises Solved Examples With Answers for Class 8 CBSE
A. Some determiners have been given in the first column. Write two nouns along with the determiners in the blank columns. One example has been given for each.
| all | all schools | ||
| any | any person | ||
| another | another man | ||
| every | every moment | ||
| more | more advice | ||
| most | most women | ||
| much | much money | ||
| twenty | twenty books |
Answer:
| all | all schools | all players | all houses |
| any | any person | any street | any magician |
| another | another man | another message | another chance |
| every | every moment | every day | every solution |
| more | more advice | more sugar | more events |
| most | most women | most tenants | most Saturdays |
| much | much money | much commotion | much awareness |
| twenty | twenty books | twenty chairs | twenty purses |
ARTICLES
Articles are three in number -‘a’, ‘an’, ‘the’ and are used to determine the specific things about the subject.
They are of two types: Definite (The) Indefinite (A and An) Zero. Article
Example:
- The Ganga originates from the Himalayas.
- I wrote an article on children’s rights.
- There is a big tree in front of my house.
B. Read the short paragraph. Fill in the blanks with a, an or the.
Lina, Mary, Tia and Arpita are in ………………. beautiful city in Karnataka. ……………… city is called Shimoga. They plan to take ………………. taxi from ………………. city to visit ………………. Jog Falls. On their way they will spend ……………… afternoon at a place called Tyavarekoppa.
Their tour guide tells them, “It is …………….. ideal place for …………….. Safari through ……………. forest. We can spot lions, tigers, cheetahs, blackbucks, etc. My brother is ……………… official with the forest department there. He has arranged for ……………… forest official to be with you to make sure you are safe.’.
Answer:
Lina, Mary, Tia and Arpita are in a beautiful city in Karnataka. The city is called Shimoga. They plan to take a taxi from the city to visit the Jog Falls. On their way they will spend an afternoon at a place called Tyavarekoppa.
Their tour guide tells them, ‘It is an ideal place for a safari through die forest. We can spot lions, tigers, cheetahs, blackbucks, etc. My brother is an official with the forest department there. He has arranged for a forest official to be with you to make sure you are safe.’
The omission of the article
We do not normally use articles:
1. with uncountable nouns unless we are referring to a specific item.
Examples:
| a. Water is essential for life. | The water in this pond ………….. |
| b. Gold is expensive. | The gold in the pirate’s chest ………….. |
| c. Paper is used to making books. | The paper used to make this book ………….. |
| d. This juice does not have added sugar. | Please pass me the sugar ………….. |
We do use articles before some uncountable nouns in some contexts.
Examples:
What a pity! What a shame! What a public nuisance!
2. before plural countable nouns used to denote a class or a group. But when we refer to a particular group, we use an article.
Examples:
| a. People should care for one another. | The people of this village suffered the most during the flood. |
| b. Children love to play games. | The children in the orphanage were asleep. |
| c. Computers are useful machines. | The computers in our lab are good. |
3. before most proper nouns.
Examples:
- a. names of people (Mr Shah, Ms Kapoor, Krishnan)
Note: We use articles before proper nouns when they are used as common nouns.
Examples:
- Arjun is Prince Harry of our school. (here, “prince’ means a handsome boy)
- We need a Mother Teresa to teach us to take care of the poor of our city.
- b. names of cities, countries and continents (Mumbai, India, Europe)
- c. names of languages, and branches of knowledge (French, Tamil)
Note: Sometimes, the same word is used to refer to the language and the people of the country. The former does not take an article, the latter takes one.
Example:
- French is spoken by the French.
d. names of schools, colleges, etc. (St Stephen’s, Kendriya Vidyalaya, etc.)
e. names of months and days.
Examples:
- I will see you on Friday.
- December is the twelfth month of the year.
4. with related words like father, mother, brother, uncle, etc. when they act as proper nouns.
Examples:
- Uncle is coming here tomorrow.
- Mother asked me to clean my room.
5. before names of meals, time of day, etc.
Examples:
- breakfast, lunch, dinner, morning, dawn, evening, night, dusk
6. before names of diseases.
Examples:
- chickenpox, typhoid
7. in some phrases.
Examples:
- to send word, to set foot, to set fire, to leave home
8. in some phrases with prepositions.
Examples:
- by train, by bus, at home, on duty
9. in news headlines.
Example:
- Bicycle thief arrested by police. (Instead of The bicycle thief has been arrested by the police.)
C. Write a, an or the where needed. Put X where none of them are needed.
………………. Jog Falls is one of ………………… highest waterfalls in ………………… India. It is made by ……………….. Sharavati river flowing through ……………… Western Ghats. It is surrounded by ………………… beautiful tropical forest. During ………………… summer, there is not much water in …………….. river but during …………….. monsoon, the river is swollen with water and the falls create……………….. fantastic spectacle.
Purnima, Neha, Tina and Bidisha visited the Jog Falls last …………….. Saturday. They were amazed by ………………… beauty of ……………….. falls. Bidisha took some …………. photographs.
Answer:
The Jog Falls is one of die highest waterfalls in X India. It is made by the Sharavati river flowing through die Western Ghats. It is surrounded by a beautiful tropical forest. During the summer, there is not much water in the river but during the monsoon, the river is swollen with water and the falls creates a fantastic spectacle.
Purnima, Neha, Tina, and Bidisha visited the Jog Falls last X Saturday. They were amazed by the beauty of the falls. Lina took some X photographs.
D. Read the following passage. One article has been omitted in each line. Insert a slash (/) where the article must be inserted and write the article in the blank provided. The first one has been done as an example.
It is said that / man who 1. ………………………………………..
is honest always speaks the truth. 2. ………………………………………..
Take the example of great king 3. ………………………………………..
Harishchandra. He was not just king, 4. ………………………………………..
he was also an honourable man who 5. ………………………………………..
always spoke the truth. 6. ………………………………………..
It is said that king 7. ………………………………………..
lived a life of penury. 8. ………………………………………..
But there was not even trace of regret in him. 9. ………………………………………..
Answer:
1. a
2. the
3. the
4. a
5. an
6. die
7. die
8. a
9. a
Possessives
These determiners are used to show the relation between the subjects. They are my, mine, our, your, his, her, their, etc.
Example:
- My classroom is the biggest classroom in the school.
- Her paintings are really beautiful.
E. Fill in the blanks with the correct alternative.
1. We belong to this village. This is ………………………………. (our/his) ancestral home.
2. Nalini is in Shimla. I ran into ………………………………. (his/her) brother at the market yesterday; he told me.
3. Who is that young man? He is ………………………………. (your/its) assistant, I presume.
4. I don’t know where Shreya and Akash live. Let’s ask Kishore. He knows ………………………………. (their/your) address.
5. I lost ………………………………. (their/my) pet dog, Fluffy. Have you seen it? It has a scar on ………………………………. (your/its) left ear.
Answer:
1. We belong to this village. This is our (our/his) ancestral home.
2. Nalini is in Shimla. I ran into her (his/her) brother at the market yesterday; he told me.
3. Who is that young man? He is your (your/its) assistant. I presume.
4. I don’t know where Shreya and Akash live. Let’s ask Kishore. He knows their-(their/your) address.
5. I lost my (their/my) pet dog, Fluffy. Have you seen it? It has a scar on its (your/its) left ear.
F. Fill in the blanks using suitable possessive adjectives. Some nouns have been given in the brackets for reference. The first one has been done for you.
1. This is their house. (Mrs. and Mr. Kumar’s)
2. I said to Simi, “I think this is ………………………………. pen.’ (Simi’s)
3. Please don’t take those. Those are ………………………………. books, not yours. (I)
4. This is ………………………………. car, isn’t it? (Aman’s)
5. The Mehta brothers are wealthy. This is ………………………………. estate. (Mehta brothers’)
6. We bought this piece of land ten years ago. This is ………………………………. plot. (we)
Answer:
1. This is their house. (Mrs and Mr Kumar’s)
2. I said to Simi, ‘I think this is your pen.’ (Simi’s)
3. Please don’t take those. Those are my books, not yours. (I)
4. This is his car, isn’t it? (Aman’s)
5. The Mehta brothers are wealthy. This is their estate. (Mehta brothers’)
6. We bought this piece of land ten years ago. This is our plot, (we)
Quantifiers
These are the determiners used to measure the quantity of a subject. They do not specify the exact amount. They are few, much, many, a few, little, enough, etc.
Example:
- There is enough food for everyone in the party.
- He scored many runs in the match.
Let us look at a few examples:
| With countable nouns | With uncountable nouns | With both |
| many bags | much love | some candy (countable) some sugar (uncountable) |
| several people | a little help | enough books (countable) enough food (uncountable) |
| a few pages | little consolation | any clothes (countable) any cement (uncountable) |
| few years | a bit of a problem | a lot o/biscuits (countable) a lot of fun (uncountable) |
G. Fill in the blanks by choosing the correct options given below.
1. I spent ………………………………. last summer trying to fix my father’s old car.
2. I think there is ………………………………. food for all our guests.
3. This bakery is very popular. ………………………………. the cakes are sold by lunch time.
4. ………………………………. our questions about the mystery were answered at the end of the play.
5. There was ………………………………. moisture in the room.
1. a. both of
b. the whole of
c. enough
d. several
2. a. many
b. both
c. enough
d. each of
3. a. Enough
b. Each of
c. Both of
d. Most of
4. a. All of
b. The whole of
c. Every
d. Several
5. a. most of
b. a good deal of
c. each of
d. the whole of
Answer:
1. I spent b. the whole of last summer trying to fix my dad’s old car.
2. I think there is c. enough food for all our guests.
3. This bakery is very popular, d. Most of the cakes are sold by lunchtime.
4. a. All of our questions about the mystery were answered at the end of the play.
5. There was b. a good deal of moisture in the room.
Few, a few, little, a little
As we see in the table above, few is used with countable nouns, and little is used with uncountable nouns.
Examples:
- There are few flowers on the plant. (hardly any flowers)
- There is little water left. (almost no water left)
Both these words (few and little) have a similar meaning—not many/much. They have a negative meaning. Very few and very little also have similar meanings.
Examples:
- Very few students use the library. (not many)
- There is very little water in the pond. (not much)
When we use the articles a or the before few and little, we change their meaning completely.
A few and a little mean—some, a small amount. They have a positive meaning.
Examples:
- There were a few students in the lab.
- Meera has a little money saved to start a business.
The few and the little mean—not many, but all there are.
Examples:
- The few students who were in the lab helped the attendant to tidy up the place.
- The little help people received from the government also ended when the new party came to power.
H. Fill in the blanks with the correct alternative.
Rohan: Only ………………………………. (a few/little) towns have remained the same with the arrival of the internet. But ………………………………. (few/little) change has come to my village in the past decade, even with its arrival. Most of the time there is
no electricity.
Akshit: ………………………………. (Very few/Very little) villages have the facilities that the cities have. ………………………………. (The few/The little) villages with better road connectivity have facilities like running water and electricity. Only ………………………………. (a few/a little) of those villages have access to the internet.
Answer:
Rohan: Only a few (a few/little) towns have remained the same with the arrival of the internet. But little (few/little) change has come to my village in the past decade, even with the arrival of the internet. Most of the time there is no electricity.
Akshit: Very few (Very few/Very little) villages have the facilities that the cities have. The few (The few/The little) villages with better road connectivity have facilities like running water and electricity. Only a few (a few/a little) of those villages have access to the internet.
Some and any
Some and any can be used with plural countable nouns as well as uncountable nouns to mean a number of or an amount of. Any is most commonly used in a negative sentence and some is used in a positive sentence.
- There isn’t any water left. (any used in a negative sentence)
- There is some water left in this bottle. (water—uncountable noun)
- There are some clothes in the cupboard. (clothes—plural, countable noun)
In yes/no questions, any is used when we think the answer is going to be no, and some is used when we think the answer is going to be yes.
- Kiran: Are there any chocolates left?
Amisha: No, I ate them all. - Would you like some water?
I. Fill in the blanks with some or any.
1. Amita: Do you have ………………………………. money on you, Tina?
Tina: I have ………………………………. money. What do you want to buy?
Amita: I want to buy ………………………………. souvenirs from that shop.
Tina: Here are ………………………………. coins. Will these be enough?
Answer:
Amita: Do you have any money on you, Tina?
Tina: I have some money. What do you want to buy?
Amita: I want to buy some souvenirs from that-shop.
Tina: Here are some coins. Will these be enough?
2. Neeru: Did you have ………………………………. trouble finding my house?
Pallavi: No, not at all.
Answer:
Neeru: Did you have any trouble finding my house?
Pallavi: No, not at all.
Interrogatives
Question words like which, whose, how much, how many are also determiners when they introduce a noun, pronoun or a noun phrase in a question.
Examples:
- Whose purse is that on the table?
- Which cricket team are you supporting this season?
J. Fill in the blanks with appropriate question words.
- ………………………………. party won the Indian parliamentary elections in 1989?
- ………………………………. baskets of mangoes did you collect from the grove?
- ………………………………. filling do you want in your sandwich?
- ………………………………. bag is that pink one?
- ………………………………. milk do you drink a day?
- ……………………………….country does the tennis star Roger Federer play for?
- ………………………………. ice cream do you like better-chocolate or vanilla?
- ………………………………. book are you reading now?
- ……………………………… chapattis did you have for lunch?
- ………………………………. rice should we cook?
Answer:
- Which party won the Indian parliamentary elections in 1989?
- How many baskets of mangoes did you collect from the grove?
- What filling do you want in your sandwich?
- Whose bag is that pink one?
- How much milk do you drink a day?
- Which country does the tennis star Roger Federer play for?
- What ice cream do you like better: chocolate or vanilla?
- Which book are you reading now?
- How many chapattis did you have for lunch?
- How much rice should we cook?
K. Read the short messages given below. Expand them into complete sentences, using appropriate determiners. Some blanks have been filled for you.
1. Interview postponed.
New date not finalized yet. The interview for selection to the Officer category has been postponed. The new date for ………………………………. interview has not yet been finalized.
Answer:
Interview postponed.
New date not finalized yet. The interview for selection to the Officer category has been postponed. The new date for the interview has not yet been finalized.
2. Congratulations!
I congratulate you on ………………………………. achievement.
Answer:
Congratulations!
I congratulate you on the achievement.
3. Exam starts on Monday. Five Admit Cards missing. Send immediately.
………………………………. board examinations for Class X are scheduled to start on Monday.
………………………………. admit cards of five of ………………………………. students are missing. Please send ………………………………. admit cards immediately.
Answer:
Exam starts on Monday. Five Admit Cards missing. Send immediately.
The board examinations for Class X are scheduled to start on Monday. The admit cards of five of the students are missing. Please send the admit cards immediately.
4. School bus out of service. Trip canceled. Refund advance payment.
Since ………………………………. school bus is out of service, we have to cancel ………………………………. trip to ………………………………. mountaineering camp ………………………………. advance payment you have made will be refunded.
Answer:
School bus out of service. Trip cancelled. Refund advance payment.
Since the school bus is out of service, we have to cancel the trip to the mountaineering camp. The advance payment we have made must be refunded.
5. Shortage of essential medicines. Send immediately.
As there is ………………………………. shortage of essential medicines, please send them immediately to ………………………………. dispensary.
Answer:
Shortage of essential medicines. Send immediately.
As there is a shortage of essential medicines, please send them immediately to the dispensary.
L. Read the dialogue. Biju is traveling by train to Chennai. He is talking to a fellow traveler, Rahul. Use suitable determiners and fill in the blanks.
Rahul: Is this …………………… first visit……….. ……… city?
Biju: No, it is ……………………. second trip. I was here years ago.
Rahul: Do you like …………………. city?
Biju: It’s all right for … …….. short visit, but I wouldn’t want to live here. I don’t like big cities.
Rahul: I think you’re right. Life in ………………….. big city is always hard.
Biju: My cousin says …………………. same thing. He has been living in the city for ……………………… long time now.
Rahul: In which part of the city does …………………….. cousin live?
Biju: He lives near …………………… Central Railway Station.
Answer:
Rahul: Is this your first visit to the city?
Biju: No, it is my second trip. I was here a few years ago.
Rahul: Do you like the city?
Biju: It’s all right for a short visit but I wouldn’t want to live here. I don’t like big cities.
Rahul: I think you’re right. Life in a big city is always hard.
Biju: My cousin says the same thing. He has been living in the city for a long time now.
Rahul: In which part of the city does your cousin live?
Biju: He lives near the Central Railway Station.
M. Fill in the blanks with determiners from the box. Some of them will have to be used more than once.
| the, a, more, few, most, some, all, such, this, what |
………………………………. kind of a pencil do you use? Do you use ………………………………. pencil made of wood? Have you wondered why ………………………………. pencils have six sides and ………………………………. pencils are rounded? ………………………………. pencils are made of wood. They can make ………………………………. six-sided pencils out of one piece of wood than rounded pencils.
It is convenient for ………………………………. user as well. The chances of ………………………………. SIX-sided pencil rolling off ………………………………. desk or ………………………………. table are fewer. So ………………………………. pencils break less as compared to rounded ones ………………………………. way, ………………………………. six-sided pencil scores over ………………………………. rounded ones.
Answer:
What kind of pencil do you use? Do you use a pencil made of wood? Have you wondered why most pencils have six sides and a few pencils are rounded? Most pencils are made of wood. They can make more six-sided pencils out of one piece of wood than rounded pencils.
It is convenient for die users as well. The chances of a six-sided pencil rolling off a desk or a table are fewer. So such pencils break less as compared to rounded ones. This way, all six-sided pencil scores over the rounded one.