Determiners · Year 5
A determiner comes before a noun and tells us which one, whose, or how many: this book, my bag, some apples, every pupil. The articles a, an and the are determiners too. Choosing the right one depends on whether the noun is singular or plural, near or far, and whose it is.
Key facts
- this and these are for things that are near; that and those for things that are far away. this and that go with one thing, these and those with more than one.
- Possessive determiners say whose it is: my, your, his, her, its, our, their. Its has no apostrophe: it's means it is.
- some goes in positive sentences, offers and requests; any in most questions and negatives; no means not any.
- every and each go with a singular noun: every pupil has, each door is. each also works for two things.
- all and both go with plural nouns: all the children, both girls.