The noun - Introduction to the noun group

Introduction to the noun group

1.1 At its simplest, we use language to talk about people and things. We do this by using words in a variety of ways, for example to make statements, to ask questions, and to give orders. The words we choose are arranged into groups, either around a noun or around a verb. They are called noun groups and verb groups.

Noun groups tell us which people or things are being talked about. Verb groups tell us what is being said about them, for example what they are doing.

Chapters 1 and 2 of this grammar deal with noun groups. For information about verb groups, see chapter 3.

position in clause 1.2 A noun group can be the subject, object, or complement of a clause. Or the object of a preposition.

Women tend not to have as much money as men.

I couldn't feel anger against him.

They were teachers.

Let us work together in peace.

common nouns and proper nouns 1.3 You can use a noun group to refer to someone or something by naming them. You do this by using a general name, called a noun or common noun, or by using a specific name, called a proper noun.

Proper nouns are mainly used for people, places, and events.

Mary likes strawberries.

I went to Glasgow University and then I went down to London to work for a psychiatrist.

I worked in Woolworths at Christmas one year.

See paragraphs 1.53 to 1.59 for more information about proper nouns.

determiners with common nouns 1.4 If you use a common noun, you are saying that the person or thing you are talking about can be put in a set with others that are similar in some way.

If you just want to say that the person or thing is in that set, you use a general determiner with the common noun.

I met a girl who was a student there.

Have you got any comment to make about that?

There are some diseases that are clearly inherited.

If you want to show which member of a set you are talking about, you use a specific determiner with a common noun.

I put my arm round her shoulders.

the destruction of their city.

She came in to see me this morning.

See paragraphs 1.161 to 1.236 for more information about determiners, and paragraphs 1.14 to 1.93 for more information about nouns.

personal and demonstrative pronouns 1.5 You may decide not to name the person or thing and to use a pronoun rather than a proper noun or common noun.

You usually do this because the person or thing has already been named, so you refer to them by using a personal pronoun or a demonstrative pronoun.

Reagan's American, isn't he?

'Could I speak to Sue, please?''I'm sorry she doesn't work here now.'

I've got two boys, and looking at them I can see a little bit of myself.

This led to widespread criticism.

See paragraphs 1.96 to 1.109 for more information about personal pronouns, and paragraphs 1.123 to 1.126 for more information about demonstrative pronouns.

indefinite pronouns 1.6 You may decide not to name the person or thing at all, for example because you do not want to, you think it is not important, you do not know or you want to be vague or mysterious while telling a story. In such cases you use an indefinite pronoun, which does not refer to any particular person or thing.

I had to say something.

In this country nobody trusts anyone.

A moment later, his heart seemed to stop as he sensed the sudden movement of someone rushing into the hut.

See paragraphs 1.127 to 1.140 for more information about indefinite pronouns.

noun group choice 1.7 In the relation between language and the world, these different types of noun group show a range of choices between a very clear identification of someone or something, and a very clear decision not to identify. The range can be set out as follows, resulting from the choices that have just been explained.

modifiers and qualifiers 1.8 If you want to give more information about the person or thing you are talking about, rather than just giving their general or specific name. You can use modifiers and qualifiers.

Anything which you put in front of a noun is called a modifier. Anything which you put after a noun is called a qualifier.

modifiers 1.9 Most adjectives are used as modifiers. Nouns are also often used as modifiers.

a big city

blue ink

He opened the car door.

the oil industry.

See paragraphs 2.2 to 2.173 for more information about adjectives, and paragraphs 2.174 to 2.179 for more information about noun modifiers.

qualifiers 1.10 The use of qualifiers allows us great freedom in expanding the noun group. Qualifiers can be prepositional phrases, relative clauses, adverts of place or time, or 'to'-infinitives.

.. a girl in a dark grey dress.

the man who employed me.

The room upstairs.

the desire to kill.

Adjectives and participles are also sometimes used as qualifiers, usually in combination with other words.

the Minister responsible for national security.

the three cards lying on the table.

See paragraphs 2.289 to 2.320 for more information about qualifiers.

1.11 In particular, prepositional phrases beginning with 'of' are very common, because they can express many different kinds of relationship between the two noun groups.

strong feelings of jealousy.

a picture of a house.

the destruction of their city.

the daughter of the village cobbler.

problems of varying complexity.

the arrival of the police.

For more information about the use of 'of' in the noun group see paragraphs 2.294 to 2.300.

coordination 1.12 If you want to refer separately to more than one person or thing, of you want to describe them in more than one way. You can link noun groups, modifiers, or qualifiers using the conjunctions 'and', 'or', or 'but'. Sometimes you can use a comma instead of 'and', or just put one word next to another.

a table and chair.

his obligations with regard to Amanda, Robert and Matthew.

some fruit or cheese afterwards.

her long black skirt.

See paragraphs 8.159 to 8 189 for more information about the use of conjunctions to link noun groups and words within noun groups.

numbers and quantifiers 1.13 If you want to say how many things you are talking about, or how much of something there is, you use numbers and quantifiers.

Last year I worked seven days a week fourteen hours a day.

She drinks lots of coffee.

Numbers are dealt with in paragraphs 2.225 to 2.256, and quantifiers are dealt with in 2.193 to 2.210.

Identifying people and things: nouns

1.14 A noun is used to identify a person or thing. in this chapter we describe six main types of noun. They are classified according to whether they have a plural form, whether they need a determiner in front of them, and whether they occur with a singular verb or a plural verb when they are the subject of the verb.

The six types are:

Many nouns have a number of different meanings, and so can be, for example, a count noun for one meaning, an uncount noun for another, and a singular noun for another.

There are a few other groups of nouns with special features. These are dealt with in paragraphs 1.60 to 1.93.

capital letters 1.18 Most nouns do not begin with a capital letter, unless they are used to start a sentence. However, the following types of nouns are always spelled with a capital letter:

proper nouns or names

my sister Elizabeth.

Play some more Chopin.

I'll be in the office on Monday.

I thought he'd gone to London.

For more information on proper nouns, see paragraphs 1.53 to 1.59. Proper nouns that are time expressions are dealt with in Chapter 5, and those that are place names in Chapter 6.

nouns which identify people of a particular nationality, or languages

Can you think of some typical problems that confront Germans learning English?

nouns which are the name of a particular product

If the figures are all correct, then you win a Volkswagen.

Put a bit of Sellotape across it.

Things which can be counted: count nouns

1.16 Many nouns have two forms, the singular form, which is used to refer to one person or thing, and the plural form, which is used to refer to more than one person or thing.

These nouns refer to people or things which can be counted. You can put numbers in front of them.

bookbooks.

daydays.

three brothers.

ten minutes.

These nouns make up the largest group of nouns in English. They are called count nouns or countable nouns.

noun-verb agreement 1.17 When you use the singular form of a count noun as the subject of a verb, you use a singular verb. When you use the plural form of a count noun as the subject, you use a plural verb.

A dog likes to eat far more meat than a human being.

Bigger dogs cost more.

use of determiners 1.18 Count nouns have a determiner in front of them when they are used in the singular.

He got into the car and started the motor.

They left the house to go for a walk after tea.

When you use the plural form of a count noun to refer to something in general, you do not use a determiner.

It has very large rooms.

Most classrooms have computers.

However, if you are specifying a particular instance of something, you need to use a determiner.

The rooms at Watermouth are all like this.

Our computers can give you all the relevant details.

list of count nouns 1.19 Here is a list of some common count nouns

Note that many of these nouns have some meanings in which they are uncount nouns, but they are count nouns in their commonest meanings.

singular and plural forms 1.20 For most count nouns the plural form has '-s' at the end, which distinguishes it from the singular form.

bedbeds.

car cars.

Some count nouns have other differences between the singular and plural forms.

busbuses.

ladyladies.

calfcalves.

manmen.

mousemice.

For full information about the plural forms of count nouns, see the Reference Section.

same form for singular and plural 1.21 Some count nouns have the same form for both singular and plural.

a sheep

nine sheep.

Many of these nouns refer to animals or fish, others are more varied in meaning:

singular form with plural meaning 1.22 The names of many animals and birds have two forms, one singular and one plural. However, when you are referring to them in the context of hunting or when you are saying that there are large numbers of them, it is quite common to use the form without '-s'. Even though you are referring to several animals or birds.

They hunted gazelle.

Note that the plural form of the verb is used when several animals or birds are the subject of the sentence, even if you use the form without '-s'.

Zebra are a more difficult prey.

Similarly, when you are referring to a large number of trees or plants growing together, you can use the singular form of their name. When you are referring to a small number or to individual trees or plants, you usually use the form with '-s'.

the rows of willow and cypress which lined the creek.

the poplars and willows along the Peshawar Road.

productive feature 1.23 Although some names of animals, birds, trees, and plants are commonly used in the singular form with plural meaning, in fact all such names can be used in this way. This is a productive feature of English. Productive features are explained in the introduction.

Things not usually counted: uncount nouns

1.24 Some nouns refer to general things such as qualities, substances, processes, and topics rather than to individual items or events. These nouns have only one form, are not used with numbers, and are not usually used with the determiners 'the', 'a', or 'an'.

a boy or girl with intelligence.

The donkey needed food and water.

new techniques in industry and agriculture.

I talked with people about religion, death, marriage, money, and happiness.

These nouns are called uncount nouns or uncountable nouns.

noun-verb agreement 1.25 When you use an uncount noun as the subject of a verb, you use a singular form of the verb.

Fear begins to creep slowly into their hearts.

They believed that local democracy was essential to good government.

Electricity is potentially dangerous.

list of uncount nouns 1.26 Here is a list of some common uncount nouns:

WARNING 1.27 There are some words which are uncount nouns in English, but which refer to things that are considered countable in other languages.

Here is a list of the most common uncount nouns of this type:

quantifying 1.28 Although uncount nouns refer to things which cannot be counted and are not used with numbers, you often want to refer to an amount of something which is expressed by an uncount noun. Sometimes, you can do this by putting a general determiner such as 'all', 'enough', 'little', or 'some' in front of the noun.

It gave him little lime.

There's some chocolate cake over there.

For more information on general determiners which can be used with uncount nouns, see paragraph 1.210.

You can also put a quantifier in front of the noun. For example, when you refer to water you can say 'drops of water', 'a cup of water', 'four gallons of water', and so on.

The use of quantifiers with uncount nouns is explained in paragraphs 2.193 to 2.210.

mass nouns 1.29 When you are sure that your reader or hearer will understand that a quantity of something is being referred to, you do not need to use a quantifier.

For example, in a restaurant you can ask for 'three cups of coffee', but you can also ask for 'three coffees' because the person you are talking to will know that you mean 'three cups of coffee'. In this way, the uncount noun 'coffee' has become countable.

Nouns used in this way are called mass nouns.

1.30 Mass nouns are often used to refer to quantities of a particular kind of food or drink.

We spent two hours talking over coffee and biscuits in her study.

We stopped for a coffee at a small cafe.

1.31 Similarly, some uncount nouns can be mass nouns when they refer to types of something. For example, 'cheese' is usually an uncount noun but you can talk about 'a large range of cheeses'.

plentiful cheap beer.

profits from low-alcohol beers.

We were not allowed to buy wine or spirits at lunch time.

I like wines and liqueurs.

Mass nouns referring to different types of a substance are mainly used in technical contexts. For example 'steel' is nearly always an uncount noun, but in contexts where it is important to distinguish between different kinds of steel it can be a mass noun.

imports of European steel.

the use of small amounts of nitrogen in making certain steels.

list of mass nouns 1.32 the following is a list of frequently used mass nouns:

nouns that are uncount and count 1.33 There are also some other nouns that can be uncount nouns when they refer to a thing in general, and count nouns when they refer to a particular instance of it.

Some nouns are commonly both uncount nouns and count nouns. For example, 'victory' refers to the idea of winning in general but 'a victory' refers to a particular occasion when someone wins.

Just as we gained fame in victory we lost nothing in defeat.

She is still waiting and yearning for her first victory.

Many parents were alarmed to find themselves in open conflict with the church.

Russia had been successful in previous conflicts.

Some uncount nouns are rarely or never counts nouns: that is, they do not occur in a plural form, or with a number.

a collection of fine furniture.

We found Alan weeping with relief and joy.

He saved money by refusing to have a telephone.

uncount nouns ending in '-s' 1.34 Some nouns which end in '-s' and look as if they are plural are in fact uncount nouns. This means that when they are the subject of a verb, the verb is in the singular.

These nouns refer mainly to subjects of study, activities games and diseases.

Physics is fun.

Politics plays a large pan in village life.

Economics is the oldest of the social sciences.

Billiards was gradually replaced by bridge.

Measles is in most cases a relatively harmless disease.

Here are three lists of uncount nouns ending in '-s'.

These nouns refer to subjects of study and activities:

Note that some of these nouns are occasionally used as plural nouns, especially when you are talking about a particular person's work or activities.

His politics are clearly right-wing.

These nouns refer to games:

These nouns refer to diseases:

When there is only one of something: singular nouns

1.35 There are certain things in the world that are unique. There are other things which you almost always want to talk about one at a time. This means that there are some nouns, or more often some meanings of nouns, for which only a singular form is used.

When a noun is used with such a meaning, it is called a singular noun. Singular nouns are always used with a determiner, because they behave like the singular form of a count noun.

noun-verb agreement 1.36 When you use a singular noun as the subject of a verb, you use a singular form of the verb.

The sun was shining.

The atmosphere is very relaxed.

things that are unique 1.37 Some singular nouns refer to one specific thing and therefore are used with 'the'. Some of these nouns, in fact, refer to something of which there is only one in the world.

There were huge cracks in the ground.

The moon had not yet reached my window.

Burning tanks threw great spirals of smoke into the air.

He's always thinking about the past and worrying about the future.

using the context 1.38 Other singular nouns can be used to refer to one thing only when it is obvious from what the context you are referring to. For example, if you are in Leeds and say 'I work at the university', you will almost certainly mean Leeds University.

However, in the following examples we cannot be sure exactly who or what the singular noun refers to, because we do not have enough context.

In many countries the market is small numerically

Their company looks good only because the competition looks bad.

You've all missed the point.

Unless we are told which goods or products are being talked about, we cannot be sure which group of potential buyers 'the market' refers to. Similarly we do not know exactly which company or group of companies 'the competition' refers to in the last example, the speaker or writer is presumably going to tell us what he or she thinks 'the point' is.

used with delexical verbs 1.39 There are some activities which you do not usually do more than once at a time. The nouns that refer to them are usually the object of a verb, and are used with the determiner 'a'.

In this structure the verb has very little meaning and the noun carries most of the meaning of the whole structure. The verbs in such structures are called delexical verbs. For more information about these, see paragraphs 3.33 to 3.46.

I went and had a wash.

Bruno gave it a try.

Some singular nouns are used so regularly with a particular verb that they nave become fixed phrases and are idiomatic.

I'd like very much for you to have a voice in the decision.

Isn't it time we made a move?

singular noun structures 1.40 There are two special kinds of structure in which a singular noun is used.

A singular noun is sometimes used with the determiner 'a' as the complement of a clause. See paragraphs 3.127 to 3.182 for more information about complements.

Decision-making is an art.

The quickest way was by using the car. It was a risk but he decided it had to be taken.

They were beginning to find Griffiths' visits rather a strain.

A singular noun is sometimes used with the determiner 'the', followed by a prepositional phrase beginning with 'of'.

Cultivate the art of reading upside down.

Old diesel locomotives will be replaced by newer ones to reduce the risk of breakdown.

He collapsed under the strain of a heavy workload.

This group includes nouns used metaphorically; see paragraph 1.65 for more details.

Some singular nouns are always used to refer to one particular quality or thing, but are rarefy used alone; that is, they need to be specified in some way by the use of supporting material. They can be used with a number of different determiners.

There was a note of satisfaction in his voice.

Bessie covered the last fifty yards at a tremendous pace.

Simon allowed his pace to slacken.

She was simply incapable of behaving in a rational and considered manner.

their manner of rearing their young.

Nouns which are rarely used alone without supporting material are discussed in detail in paragraphs 1.60 to 1.66

usage note 1.41 Some nouns are used in the singular with a particular meaning only in an idiomatic phrase. They have the appearance of singular nouns, but they are not used as freely as singular nouns.

What happens down there is none of my business.

It's a pity I can't get to him.

Referring to more than one thing: plural nouns

1.42 There are some things which are thought of as being plural rather than singular, so some nouns have only a plural form. For example, you can buy 'goods', but not 'a good'. These nouns are called plural nouns.

Other nouns have only a plural form when they are used with a particular meaning. For example, an official meeting between American and Russian leaders is usually referred to as 'talks' rather than as 'a talk'. In these meanings, these nouns are also called plural nouns.

Union leaders met the company for wage talks on October 9.

It is inadvisable to sell goods on a sale or return basis.

Take care of your clothes.

The weather conditions were the same.

All proceeds are going to charity.

Employees can have meals on the premises.

Note that some plural nouns do not end in '-s'; for example 'clergy', 'police', 'poultry', and 'vermin'.

noun-verb agreement 1.43 When you use a plural noun as the subject form of the verb, you use a plural form of the verb.

Expenses for attending meetings are sometimes claimed.

The foundations were shaking.

Refreshments were on sale in the cafe.

Attempts were made where resources were available.

use with modifiers and qualifiers 1.44 You do not usually use numbers in front of these nouns. You can, however, use some general determiners such as 'some' or 'many'. For more information about the general determiners which can be used with plural nouns, see the section beginning at paragraph 1.208.

Some plural nouns usually have a specific determiner in front of them, because they are specific; some never have a determiner at all, because they are very general; and some are rarely used alone without a modifier or qualifier, because they need supporting material.

The lists in the following two paragraphs contain some common plural nouns which are frequently used in one of these ways. Many of them have other meanings in which they are count nouns.

with or without determiners 1.45 Some plural nouns are most commonly used with 'the'.

Things are much worse when the rains come.

The authorities are concerned that the cocaine may be part of an international drug racket.

He considered taking Mrs Burns to the pictures to see 'Gone with the Wind'.

Here is a list of plural nouns that are most commonly used with 'the':

Some plural nouns are most commonly used with a possessive determiner such as 'my' or 'his'.

It offended her feelings.

My travels up the Dalmatian coast began in Dubrovnik.

The last thing she will do is add to her troubles.

Here is a list of plural nouns that are most commonly used with a possessive determiner:

Some plural nouns are most commonly used without a determiner.

There were one or two cases where people returned goods.

There is only one applicant, which simplifies matters.

Several of the men were covered in vermin.

Here is a list of plural nouns that are most commonly used without a determiner:

Some plural nouns can be used both with or without determiners.

The city was dominated by clergy.

He had summoned the clergy.

A luxury hotel was to be used as headquarters.

General Boris Gronov arrived at his headquarters yesterday.

We didn't want it to dampen spirits which were required to remain positive.

Jessica has been keeping up the spirits of her family and friends.

Here is a list of plural nouns that can be used with or without a determiner:

other modifiers and qualifiers 1.46 Some plural nouns are rarely used alone without a modifier or qualifier, because they need supporting material.

It did wonders for one's own good manners.

the hidden pressures of direct government funding.

Naval forces are excluded from the talks.

Here is a list of plural nouns that are rarely used alone without a modifier or qualifier:

typical meanings: clothes and tools 1.47 Two special groups of nouns are usually plural nouns referring to clothes and some other things that people wear, and nouns referring to tools and some other things that people use.

This is because some clothes and tools, such as 'trousers' and 'scissors' are made up of two similar parts.

She wore brown trousers and a green sweater.

He took off his glasses.

using the pliers from the toolbox.

When you want to refer to these items in general, or to an unspecified number of them, you use the plural form with no determiner.

Never poke scissors into a light bulb socket.

The man was watching the train through binoculars.

Here is a list of some plural nouns which refer to clothes and other things that people wear:

Here is a list of plural nouns which refer to tools and other things that people use:

When you want to refer to a single piece of clothing or a single tool, you can use 'some' or 'a pair of' in front of the noun. You can refer to more than one item by using a number or a quantifier with 'pairs or'.

I got some scissors out of the kitchen drawer.

I was sent out to buy a pair of scissors.

He was wearing a pair of old grey trousers.

Liza has three pairs of jeans.

You can also use 'a pair of' when you are talking about things such as gloves, shoes, and socks which typically occur in twos.

a pair of new gloves.

A possessive determiner such as 'my' can be used instead of 'a'.

his favourite pair of shoes.

When you use 'a pair of' with a noun in the plural form, the verb is singular if it is in the same clause. If the verb is in a following relative clause, it is usually plural.

It is likely that a new pair of shoes brings more happiness to a child than a new car brings to a grown-up.

I always wear a pair of long pants underneath, or a pair of pyjamas is just as good.

He put on a pair of brown shoes, which were waiting there for him.

He wore a pair of earphones, which were plugged into a tape-recorder.

You use a plural pronoun after 'a pair of'.

She went to the wardrobe, chose a pair of shoes, put them on and leaned back in the chair.

He brought out a pair of dark glasses and handed them to Walker.

Referring to groups: collective nouns

1.48 There are a number of nouns in English which refer to a group of people or things. These nouns are called collective nouns. They have only one form, but many collective nouns have other meanings in which they are count nouns with two forms.

singular or plural verb 1.49 When you use a collective noun, you can use either a singular verb or a plural verb after it.

You choose a singular verb if you think of the group as a single unit, and a plural verb if you think of the group as a number of individuals.

Our little group is complete again.

A second group are those parents who feel that they were too harsh.

Our family isn't poor any more.

My family are perfectly normal.

I like to know what the enemy is thinking.

The enemy were visibly cracking.

His arguments were confined to books which the public was unlikely to read.

The public were deceived by the newspapers.

The names of many organizations are collective nouns, and can be used with a singular or a plural verb.

The BBC is sending him to Tuscany for the summer.

The BBC are planning to use the new satellite next month.

England was leading 18-0 at half-time.

England are seeking alternatives for their B ream.

If you want to refer back to a collective noun, you choose a singular pronoun or determiner if the previous verb is singular, and a plural pronoun or determiner if the previous verb is plural.

The government has said it would wish to do this only if there was no alternative.

The government have made up their minds that they're going to win.

USAGE NOTE 1.50 Note that the words 'bacteria', 'data', and 'media' are now often used as collective nouns, that is with either a singular or a plural verb and no change in form. Some careful speakers think they should only be used with a plural verb because they have the rare singular forms 'bacterium', 'datum', and 'medium' and are therefore count nouns.

Medieval Arabic data show that the length of the day has been increasing more slowly than expected.

Our latest data shows more firms are hoping to expand in the near future.

WARNING 1.51 Although you can use a plural verb after a collective noun, these nouns do not behave like the plural forms of count nouns. For example, you cannot use numbers in front of them. You cannot say 'Three enemy were killed'. You have to say 'Three of the enemy were killed'.

list of collective nouns 1.52 Here is a list of common collective nouns:

Some collective nouns are also partitives. For example, you can talk about 'a flock of sheep' and 'a herd of cattle'. See paragraph 2.215 for more information about these.

Referring to people and things by name: proper nouns

1.53 When you refer to a particular person, you can use their name. Names are usually called proper nouns.

People's names are spelled with a capital letter and do not have a determiner in front of them.

Michael Hall.

Jenny.

Smith.

Ways of using people's names when you are speaking to them directly are explained in paragraph 10.132.

1.54 Sometimes a person's name can be used to refer to something they create. You can refer to a painting, sculpture, or book by a particular person by using the person's name like a count noun. You still spell it with a capital letter.

In those days you could buy a Picasso for 300.

I was looking at their Picassos and Matisses.

I'm reading an Agatha Christie at the moment.

You can refer to music composed or performed by a particular person by using the person's name like an uncount noun.

I remembered it while we were listening to the Mozart.

instead of playing Chopin and Stravinsky all the time.

relationship nouns 1.55 Nouns that refer to relationships between the people in a family, such as 'mother', 'dad', 'aunt', 'grandpa', and 'son', can also be used like names to address people or refer to them. They are then spelled with a capital letter.

I'm sure Mum will be pleased.

titles 1.56 Words which show someone's social status or job are called titles. They are spelled with a capital letter.

You use a title in front of a person's name, usually their surname or their full name, when you are talking about them in a fairly formal way or are showing respect to them.

Doctor Barker

Lord Curzon

Captain Jack Langtry

Mrs Ford.

Here is a list of the most common titles which are used before names:

A few titles, such as 'King', 'Queen', 'Princess', 'Sir', and 'Lady', can be followed just by the person's first name.

Queen Elizabeth.

Lady Diana's wedding dress.

Sir Michael has made it very clear indeed.

Ways of using titles when you are speaking to people directly are explained in paragraphs 10.131 to 10.134.

titles used without names 1.57 Determiners, other modifiers, and qualifiers are sometimes used with titles, and the person's name is omitted.

Her Majesty the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.

the Archbishop of Canterbury.

the President of the United States.

the Bishop of Birmingham.

titles used as count nouns 1.58 Most words which are titles can also be count nouns usually without a capital letter.

lawyers, scholars, poets, presents, and so on.

a foreign prince.

Maybe he'll be a Prime Minister one day.

Other proper nouns 1.59 The names of organizations, institutions, ships, magazines, books, plays, paintings, and other unique things are also proper nouns and are spelled with capital letters.

British Rail

Birmingham University.

They are sometimes used with 'the' or another determiner.

the United Nations the Labour Party the University of Birmingham the Queen Mary the Guardian the Wall Street Journal.

The determiner is not spelled with a capital letter, except in the names of books, plays, and paintings.

The Grapes of Wrath

A Midsummer Night's Dream.

Some time expressions are proper nouns, and are dealt with in Chapter 5.

Nouns which are rarely used alone

1.60 There are some nouns which are rarely used alone, because they need supporting material. They cannot be used without a modifier or qualifier, because the meaning of the noun would not be clear. Some of these nouns have many meanings, others have very little meaning on they own.

For example, you cannot usually refer to someone as 'the head' without saying which organization they are head of. Similarly, you cannot say that there was 'a note' someone's voice without describing it as, for example, 'a triumphant note' or 'a note of triumph'.

These nouns can be used on their own only if it is obvious from the context what is meant. For example, if you have just mentioned a mountain and you say 'the top', it is clear that you mean the top of that mountain.

used with modifiers 1.61 If a modifier is added to one of these nouns, the modifier is usually an adjective or another noun.

her wide experience of political affairs.

I had detected an apologetic note in the agents voice.

He was stripped of his Soviet citizenship.

Check the water level.

For more information on modifiers, see Chapter 2.

used with qualifiers 1.62 If the noun is followed by a qualifier, the qualifier is usually a prepositional phrase beginning with 'of'.

at the top of the hill.

There he saw for himself the extent of the danger.

Ever since the rise of industrialism, education has been geared towards producing workers.

this high level of interest.

For more information on qualifiers, see paragraphs 2.289 to 2.320.

always used with modifiers 1.63 Some nouns are always used with a modifier. For example, it is pointless to say that someone is 'an eater' because all people eat, but you may want to say that he or she is 'a meal eater' or 'a messy eater'.

Similarly, if you use 'range' to refer to a particular set of values, you have to specify which set you mean by referring to a particular 'price range' or 'age range'. If you use 'wear' to mean 'clothing', you have to say what sort of clothing, for example 'sports wear' or 'evening wear'.

Tim was a slow eater.

the other end of the age range.

The company has plans to expand its casual wear.

always used with possessives 1.64 Some nouns are almost always used with a possessive, that is a possessive determiner, 's, or a prepositional phrase beginning with 'of', because you have to indicate who or what the thing you are talking about relates to or belongs to.

He has been associated with Everyman Opera since its inception.

Advance warning of the approach of enemies must have been of the greatest importance.

the portrait of a man in his prime.

metaphorical uses 1.65 Nouns which are being used metaphorically often have a modifier or qualifier to indicate what is really being referred to.

the maze of politics.

He has been prepared to sacrifice this company on the altar of his own political ambitions.

He has worked out a scheme for an economic lifeline by purchasing land.

Lloyd's of London is the heart of the world's insurance industry.

those on the lower rungs of the professional ladder.

list of nouns rarely used alone 1.66 Many nouns have some meanings which require supporting material and other meanings which do not. For example, most nouns can be used metaphorically. However, there are some nouns which very typically need supporting material in most or all of their meanings. Here is a list of these nouns:

Sharing the same quality: adjectives as headwords

1.67 When you want to talk about groups of people who share the same characteristic or quality, you often choose an adjective rather than a noun as a headword.

You do this by using the appropriate adjective preceded by 'the'. For example, instead of saying 'poor people', you say 'the poor'.

the help that's given to the blind.

No effort is made to cater for the needs of the elderly.

the task of rescuing the injured.

men and women who would join the sad ranks of the unemployed.

Working with the young is stimulating and full of surprises.

providing care for the sick, the aged, the workless and the poor.

Note that you never add '-s' to the headword, even though it always refers to more than one person.

PRODUCTIVE FEATURE 1.68 Although some adjectives are commonly used in this way, in fact it is possible to use almost any adjective in this way. This is a productive feature of English. Productive features are explained in the introduction.

noun-verb agreement 1.69 When the adjective being used as headword is the subject of a verb, you use a plural form of the verb.

The rich have benefited much more than the poor.

being more specific 1.70 In order to refer to a more specific group of people, you can put a submodifier or another adjective in front of the headword. For more information about submodifiers, see paragraph 2.145 to 2.173.

In this anecdote, Ray shows his affection for the very old and the very young.

the highly educated

the urban poor.

If you mention two groups, you can sometimes omit 'the'.

a study that compared the diets of rich and poor in several nations.

to help break down the barriers between young and old.

With a few words such as 'unemployed' and 'dead', you can say how many people you are referring to by putting a number in front of them.

There are 3 million unemployed in this country.

qualities 1.71 When you want to refer to the quality of something rather than to the thing itself, you can use the appropriate adjective with 'the'.

Don't you think that you're wanting the impossible?

He is still exploring the limits of the possible.

This policy is a mixture of the old and the new.

colours 1.72 All colour adjectives can also be used as headwords.

patches of blue.

brilliant paintings in reds and greens and blues.

Clothing of a particular colour can be referred lo simply by using the colour adjective.

The men wore grey.

the fat lady in black.

USAGE NOTE 1.73 Nationality adjectives which end in '-ch', '-sh', '-se', or '-ss' can be used in a similar way, unless there is a separate noun for the people. For example, French people are referred to as 'the French' but Polish people are referred to as 'the Poles'.

For many years the Japanese have dominated the market for Chinese porcelain.

Britons are the biggest consumers of chocolate after the Swiss and the Irish.

Nouns referring to males or females

1.74 English nouns are not masculine, feminine, or neuter in the way that nouns in some other languages are. For example, most names of jobs, such as 'teacher', 'doctor', and 'writer', are used for both men and women.

But some nouns refer only to males and others only to females.

For example, some nouns indicating people's family relationships, such as 'father', 'brother', and 'son', and some nouns indicating people's jobs, such as 'waiter' and 'policeman', can only be used to refer to males.

In the same way 'mother', 'sister', 'daughter', 'waitress', 'actress', and 'sportswoman' can only be used to refer to females.

'-ess' and '-woman' 1.75 Words that refer to women often end in '-ess', for example 'actress', 'waitress', and 'hostess'. Another ending is '-woman', as in 'policewoman' and 'needlewoman'.

his wife Susannah, a former air stewardess.

A policewoman dragged me out of the crowd.

Margaret Downes, who is this year's chairwoman of the examination committee.

'-man' and '-person' 1.76 Words ending in '-man' are either used to refer only to men or to both men and women. For example, a 'postman' is a man, but 'spokesman' can be a man or a woman.

Some people now use words ending in '-person', such as 'chairperson' and 'spokesperson', instead of words ending in '-man', in order to avoid appearing to refer specifically to a man.

USAGE NOTE 1.77 Most names of animals are used to refer to both male and female animals, for example 'cat', 'elephant', 'horse', 'monkey', and 'sheep'.

In some cases there are different words that refer specifically to male animals or female animals, for example a male horse is a 'stallion' and a female horse is a 'mare'.

In other cases the general name for the animal is also the specific word for males or females: 'dog' also refers more specifically to male dogs, 'duck' also refers more specifically to female ducks.

Many of these specific words are rarely used, or used mainly by people who have a special interest in animals, such as farmers or vets.

Here is a list of some common specific words for male and female animals:

Referring to activities and processes: '-ing' nouns

1.78 You often want to refer to an action, activity, or process in a general way. When you do, you can use a noun which has the same form as the present participle of a verb.

These nouns are called different things in different grammars: gerunds, verbal nouns, or '-ing' forms. In this grammar we call them '-ing' nouns.

It is sometimes difficult to distinguish an '-ing' noun from a present participle, and it is usually not necessary to do so. However, there are times when it is clearly a noun, for example when it is the subject of a verb, the object of a verb, or the object of a preposition.

Singing's one of my interests I belong to a choir.

They were at school when the emphasis was on teaching rather than learning.

He told how hard the days of walking had been, how his muscles had ached.

The coming of the transistor could not have been foreseen.

Some people have never actually done any computing.

The spelling of '-ing' forms is explained in the Reference Section. The use of '-ing' adjectives is explained in paragraphs 2.67 to 2.80.

uncount nouns 1.79 Because '-ing' nouns refer to activities in a general way, they are usually uncount nouns; that is, they have only one form, cannot be used with numbers, and do not usually have a determiner in front of them.

For more information on uncount nouns, see paragraphs 1.24 to 1.34.

1.80 You often use an '-ing' noun because it is the only noun form available to; certain verbs, such as 'eat', 'hear', 'go', 'come', and 'bless'. Whereas other verbs have related nouns that are not '-ing' nouns: for example 'see' and 'sight', 'arrive' and 'arrival', 'depart' and 'departure'.

Eating, unlike fighting, is a pursuit in which both sexes freely indulge.

loss of hearing in one ear.

Only 6 per cent of children receive any further training when they leave school.

used with adjectives 1.81 If you want to describe the action expressed by the noun, you can use one or more adjectives or nouns in front of it.

The fight against reckless driving is directed extremely skilfully.

Better training is one of the big challenges of the 1930s.

He called for a national campaign against under-age drinking.

1.82 A small number of '-ing' nouns, most of which refer to sporting or leisure activities, are much more common than their related verbs. In some cases there is at the moment no verb, although it is always possible to invent one. For example, you are more likely to say 'We went caravanning round France' than 'We caravanned round France'.

Here is a list of the commonest of these nouns:

Although these words are not always associated with a verb, most of them can be used as present participles.

He fell fully-clothed into the lake while boating with a girt-friend.

I spent the afternoon window-shopping with Grandma.

count nouns 1.83 Some '-ing' nouns which are related to verbs are count nouns. They generally refer to the result of an action or process, or to an individual instance of it. Sometimes their meaning is not closely related to that of the verb.

Here is a list of the commonest of these nouns:

For more information on count nouns, see paragraphs 1.16 to 1.23.

Specifying more exactly: compound nouns

1.84 A single noun is often not sufficient to refer clearly and unambiguously to a person or thing. When this is the case, a compound noun can be used. A compound noun is a fixed expression which is made up of more than one word and which functions in the clause as a noun.

Some people write out a new address book every January.

How would one actually choose a small personal computer?

Where did you hide the can opener?

a private swimming pool.

Once it is clear what you a re referring to, it is sometimes possible to use just the second word of a two-word compound noun. For example, after mentioning 'a swimming pool', you can just refer to 'the poor'.

Most compound nouns consist of two words, but some consist of three or more words.

a vase of lily of the valley.

use of hyphens 1.85 Some compound nouns are written with hyphens instead of spaces between the words.

The only experience I've got of foreign languages is pen-friends.

Can't you find a baby-sitter and come over for dinner?

Judy's brother-in-law lived with his family.

Some are written with either a hyphen or a space between the words. For example, both 'air-conditioner' and 'air conditioner' are widely used.

A few compound nouns which consist of more than two words are written partly with hyphens and partly with spaces, for example 'back-seat driver' and 'bring-and-buy sale'.

children from one-parent families.

Another route is by active participation in a Parent-Teacher Association.

lists of compound nouns 1.86 Compound nouns may be countable, uncountable, singular, or plural.

Here is a list of some common countable compound nouns:

address book air conditioner air raid alarm clock assembly line baby-sitter back-seat driver bank account bird of prey book token blood donor bride-to-be bring-and-buy sale brother-in-law burglar alarm bus stop can opener car park come-on compact disc comrade in arms contact lens cover-up

credit card dining room drawing pin driving licence estate agent fairy tale film star fire engine fork-lift trick frying pan guided missile health centre heart attack high school human being letter-box lily of the valley looker-on musical instrument nervous breakdown news bulletin old hand one-parent family

package holiday Parent-Teacher Assosiation parking meter passer-by pen-friend personal computer polar bear police station post office runner-up sleeping bag summing-up swimming pool T-shirt tea bag telephone number traveller's cheque tea-table washing machine X-ray youth hostel zebra crossing

1.87 Here is a list of some common uncountable compound nouns:

1.88 Here is a list of some common singular compound nouns:

1.89 Here is a list of some common plural compound nouns:

composition of compound nouns 1.90 Most compound nouns consist of two nouns, or adjective and a noun.

I listened with anticipation to the radio news bulletin.

a big dining room.

She came in and sat down at the tea-table.

He was still a freshman in the high school, although he was nearly sixteen.

Old age is sickness only if one makes it so.

However, a few compound nouns are related to phrasal verbs. There are often written with a hyphen.

The President was directly invoked in the Watergate cover-up.

The registry office is famous for its turn-over of fashionable weddings.

For more information about phrasal verbs, see paragraphs 3.84 to 3.117

USAGE NOTE 1.91 In some cases, the meaning of a compound noun is not obvious from the words it consists of.

For example, someone's 'mother-tongue' is not the tongue of their mother but the language they learn as a child, and an 'old hand' is not a hand which is old but a person who is experienced at doing a particular job.

In other cases, the compound noun consists of words which do not occur on their own, for example 'hanky-panky', 'hodge-podge', and 'argy-bargy'. These nouns are usually used in informal conversation rather than formal writing.

The rest of your question I find rhetorical hocus-pocus.

She is invariably up to some sort of jiggery-pokery.

plural forms 1.92 The plural forms of compound nouns vary according to the type of words that they consist of. If the final word of a compound noun is a count noun, the plural form of the count noun is used when the compound noun is plural.

Air raids were taking place every night.

health centres, banks, post offices, and police stations.

Shrill voices would be heard through letter-boxes.

the refusal of dockers to use fork-lift trucks.

For full information about the plural forms of count nouns, see the Reference Section.

Compound nouns that are directly related to phrasal verbs usually have a plural form ending in '-s'.

Nobody seems disturbed about cover-ups when they are essential to the conduct of a war.

Naturally, I think people who drive smarter, faster cars than mine are a bunch of low-grade show-offs.

A few compound nouns are less directly related to phrasal verbs, and consist of a count noun and an adverb. In these cases, the plural form of the count noun is used before the adverb when the compound noun is plural.

For example, the plural of 'looker-on' is 'lookers-on', and the plural of 'summing-up' is 'summings-up'.

He stopped passers-by and offered it for sale.

Compound nouns which consist of two nouns linked by the prepositions 'of' or 'in', or a noun followed by 'to-be', have a plural form in which the first noun in the compound is plural.

I like birds of prey and hawks particularly.

brothers whom I had considered my comrades in arms.

The veil places brides-to-be at a distinct advantage.

Some compound nouns have been borrowed from other languages, mainly French and Latin, and therefore do not have normal English plural forms.

aided by agents provocateurs sent into our midst.

while the nouveaux riches of younger states built themselves palatial mansions.

1.93 Compound nouns are fixed expressions. However, nouns can always be used in front of other nouns in order to refer to something in a more specific way. For the use of nouns as modifiers, see paragraphs 2.174 to 2.179.

Referring to people and things without naming them: pronouns

1.94 When we use language, both in speech and writing, we constantly refer to things we have already mentioned or are about to mention.

We can do this by repeating the noun group, but unless there is a special reason to do so we are more likely to use a pronoun instead.

Pronouns make statements less repetitive while showing how the subjects and objects of a clause or a series of clauses are connected.

John took the book and opened it.

Deborah recognized the knife as hers.

Shilton was pleased with himself.

This is a very busy place.

However, if you have mentioned two or more different things, you usually have to repeat the noun group to make it clear which thing you are now talking about.

Leaflets and scraps of papers were scattered all over the floor. I started to pick up the leaflets.

I could see a lorry and a car. The lorry stopped.

For other ways of talking about things that have already been mentioned, see cohesion in paragraphs 9.2 to 9.40.

types of pronoun 1.95 There are several different types of pronoun:

personal pronouns. See paragraphs 1.96 to 1.109.

possessive pronouns. See paragraphs 1.110 to 1.114.

reflexive pronouns. See paragraphs 1.115 to 1.122.

demonstrative pronouns. See paragraphs 1.123 to 1.126.

indefinite pronouns. See paragraphs 1.127 to 1.140.

reciprocal pronouns. See paragraphs 1.141 to 1.144.

relative pronouns. See paragraphs 1.145 to 1.149.

interrogative pronouns. See paragraphs 1.150 to 1.152.

There are a few other words which can be used as pronouns. For more information about these, see paragraphs 1.153 to 1.160.

Referring to people and things: personal pronouns

1.96 You use personal pronouns to refer to yourself, the people you are talking to, or the people or things you are talking about.

There are two sets of personal pronouns: subject pronouns and object pronouns.

subject pronouns 1.97 Subject pronouns are used to refer to the subject of a clause.

Here is a table of subject pronouns:

'I' 1.98 You refer to yourself by using the pronoun 'I'. 'I' is always written with a capital letter.

I don't know what to do.

I think I made the wrong decision.

May I ask why Stephen's here?

'you' 1.99 You refer to the person or people you are talking to as 'you'. Note that the same word is used for the singular and the plural.

You may have to wait a bit.

Would you come and have a drink?

How did you get on?

'You' is also used, especially in spoken English to refer to people in general rather than to the person you are talking or writing to.

You can't predict what these things are going to do.

You get some old people who are very difficult.

Note that 'you' is also an object pronoun. For more information on this see paragraphs 1.104 to 1.106.

'he' and 'she' 1.100 You refer to a man or a boy as 'he', and to a woman or a girl as 'she'.

My father is fathe weighs over fifteen stone.

Billy Knight was a boxer, wasn't he?

Mary came in. She was a good-looking woman.

'Is Sue there?''I'm sorry, she doesn't work here now.'

'it' 1.101 You use 'it' to refer to anything which is not male or female; for example, an object, place, or organization, or something abstract.

I've just bought Murdoch's new book. It's a very long novel.

'Have you been to London?' 'Yes, it was very crowded.'

How many people saw the BBC when it started broadcasting in 1937?

It is not an idea that has much public support.

'If' is often used to refer to an animal when its gender is not knowing or not considered to be important. Some people also refer to babies in this way.

The bear came at Patrick; it had thick fur.

If the shark is still around it will not escape.

How Winifred loved the baby! And how Stephanie hated it!

You also use 'it' in general statements, for example to refer to a situation, the time, the date, or the weather.

It is very quiet here.

It is half past three.

It is January 19th.

It is rainy and cold.

For more information on the use of 'it' in general statements, see paragraphs 10.31 to 10.45.

Note that 'it' is also an object pronoun. For more information on this, see paragraphs 1.104 to 1.107.

'we' 1.102 You use 'we' to refer to a group of people which includes yourself. The group can be:

you and the person or people you are talking to.

Where shall we meet, Sally?

you and the person or people you are talking to and one or more others not there at the time.

We aren't exactly gossips, you and I and Watson.

you and one or more other people, but not including the person or people you are talking to.

I do the washing; he does the cooking; we share the washing-up.

any group which you feel yourself to be part of, such as a school, your local community, or even mankind as a whole.

We are in fact a multicultural society.

We all need money.

'they' 1.103 You use 'they' to refer to a group of things, or to a group of people not including yourself or the person or people you are talking to.

All the girls think he's great, don't they?

Newspapers reach me on the day after they are published.

Winters here vary as they do elsewhere.

'They' is also often used to refer to people in general.

Isn't that what they call love?

'They' can also refer to a group of people whose identity does not need to be stated. For example, in the sentence 'They've given John another pay rise' it is clear that 'they' refers to John's employers.

'Don't worry', I said to Mother, 'they are moving to you from this ward soon.'

object pronouns 1.104 Object pronouns refer to the same sets of people or things as the corresponding subject pronouns.

Here is a table of object pronouns:

position in clause 1.105 Object pronouns are used as the object of a clause.

The nurse washed me with cold water.

He likes youhe said so.

The man went up to the cat and started stroking it.

They can be the indirect object of a clause.

Send us a card so we'll know where you are.

A man gave him a car.

The children asked Simon if he would give them some money.

They can also be the object of a preposition.

There was a humorous article by me on the first page.

Madeleine, I want to talk to you immediately.

We were all sitting in a cafe with him.

1.106 Object pronouns can also be used after link verbs. For example, you can say 'It was me', 'It's her'. However, in formal or written English, people sometimes use a subject pronoun after a link verb. For example, 'It was I', 'It is she'.

For more information on link verbs, see paragraphs 3.127 to 3.182.

USAGE NOTE 1.107 Although 'it' is used as both a subject pronoun and an object pronoun to refer to something that is not male or female, 'she' and 'her' are often used to refer to ships, cars, and countries.

When the repairs had been done she was a fine and beautiful ship.

Mr Gerasimov has a high regard for Britain and her role in Europe.

USAGE NOTE 1.108 Sometimes, you may not want to specify whether a person you are talking about is male or female.

One way of doing this is to use 'they' or 'them'. This use is very common after indefinite pronouns such as 'someone' or 'anyone'. These are explained in paragraphs 1.127 to 1.140. Note that the plural form of the verb is always used after 'they', even when it refers to only one person.

If anyone wants to be a child minder, they must attend a course.

If I think someone may take an overdose, I will spend hours talking to them.

Another way is to use 'he' or 'she' instead of 'they', and 'him' or 'her' instead of 'them'. This is often used in formal of written English.

'Would a young person be able to get a job in Europe?' 'That would depend on which country he or she wanted to go to'.

The student should feel that the essay belongs to him or her.

Some people consider it wrong to use 'they' and 'them' to refer to one person. It is, however, clumsy to repeat 'he or she' and 'him or her'. When you want to make a general statement you can avoid this problem by using a plural noun instead of a singular noun.

For example, instead of staying 'As soon as a child goes to school he or she is taught to read', you could say 'As soon as children go to school they are taught to read'.

Some people use 'he' and 'him' in general statement or after indefinite pronouns, but many people object to this use because it suggests that the person being referred to is mate.

'one' as a personal pronoun 1.109 'One' is sometimes used as a singular personal pronoun, but this use is considered formal. The same form is used as both the subject pronoun and the object pronoun.

'One' is used to make statements about people in general which also apply to yourself.

One has to think of We practical side of things.

Going round Italy, one is struck by the number of opera houses there are.

This scene makes one realize how deeply this community has been afflicted.

Other uses of 'one' as a pronoun are explained in paragraphs 1.157 to 1.160.

Mentioning possession: possessive pronouns

1.110 When you are talking about people or things, you often want to say in what way they are connected with each other. There are several different ways in which you can do this, but you most often do it by using a possessive pronoun to indicate that something belongs to someone or is associated with them.

1.111 Here is a table showing possessive pronouns:

Note that 'its' cannot be used as a possessive pronoun.

1.112 You use possessive pronouns when you are talking about the same type of thing that has just been mentioned but want to indicate that it belongs to someone else.

For example, in the sentence 'Jane showed them her passport, then Richard showed them his', 'his' refers to a passport and indicates that it belongs to Richard.

Possessive pronouns are often used to contrast two things of the same type which belong to or are associated with different people. For example 'Sarah's house is much bigger than ours'.

Her parents were in Malaya, and so were mine.

He grinned at her and laid his hand on hers.

Is that coffee yours or mine?

My marks were higher than his.

Fred gambled his profits away while Julia spent hers all on dresses.

the difference between his ideas and ours.

It was his fault, not theirs.

1.113 Possessive pronouns can be used in prepositional phrases beginning with 'of' to qualify a noun group. This structure suggests that you are talking about one or a group of things.

For example, if you say 'a friend of mine' you are talking about one of a numbers of friends whereas if you say 'my friend' you are talking about one friend in particular.

He was an old friend of mine.

A student of yours has just been to see me.

David Lodge? I've just read a novel of his.

It was hinted to him by some friends of hers.

The room was not a favourite of theirs.

1.114 For other ways of indicating that something belongs to someone or is associated with them, see paragraphs 2.180 to 2.192.

Referring back to the subject: reflexive pronouns

1.115 When you want to show that the object or indirect object of a verb is the same person or thing as the subject of the verb, you use a reflexive pronoun.

Some verbs are very frequently used with reflexive pronouns. For information about these, see paragraphs 3.27 to 3.32.

Here is a table of reflexive pronouns:

WARNING 1.116 Unlike personal pronouns and possessive pronouns, there are two forms of the reflexive pronoun used for the second person. You use 'yourself' when you are talking to one person. You use 'yourselves' when you are talking to more than one person, or referring to a group which includes the person you are talking to.

used as object 1.117 You can use a reflexive pronoun to make it clear that the object of a verb is the same person or thing as the subject of the verb, or to emphasize this.

For example, 'John killed himself' means that John did the killing, and he was also the person who was killed.

He forced himself to lie absolutely still.

She stretched herself out flat on the sofa.

I'm sure history repeats itself.

All of us shook hands and introduced ourselves.

The men formed themselves into a line facing the boys.

the questions you had to ask yourselves.

You can also use reflexive pronouns to indicate or emphasize that the indirect object of a verb is the same person or thing as the subject of the verb. For example, in the sentence 'Ann poured herself a drink'. Ann did the pouring and she was also the person who the drink was for.

Here's the money, you can go and buy yourself a watch.

WARNING 1.118 Reflexive pronouns are not usually used with actions that people normally do to themselves, such as washing, dressing, or shaving. So you do not usually say 'He shaves himself every morning'.

You can, however, sometimes use reflexive pronouns with these actions for emphasis, or to indicate a surprising event, such as a child or invalid doing something that they were not previously able to do.

1.119 If the subject of a clause and the object of a preposition refer to the same person and the clause does not have a direct object, you use a reflexive pronoun after the preposition.

I was thoroughly ashamed of myself.

Barbara stared at herself in the mirror.

We think of ourselves as members of the local community.

They can't cook for themselves.

However, if the clause does have a direct object, you usually use a personal pronoun after the preposition.

I will take it home with me.

They put the book between them on the kitchen table.

I shivered and drew the rug around me.

Mrs Bixby went out, slamming the door behind her.

Note that if the clause has a direct object and it is not obvious that the subject of the clause and the object of the preposition refer to the same person, you use a reflexive pronoun. For example, 'The Managing Director gave the biggest pay rise to himself'.

1.120 Especially in speech, people sometimes use reflexive pronouns rather than personal pronouns as the object of a preposition, in order to emphasize them.

My first pupil today is a Pole like myself.

the following conversation between myself and a fifteen-year-old girl.

The circle spread to include himself and Ferdinand.

People like yourself still find new things to say about Shakespeare.

There is always someone worse off than yourself.

With the exception of a few Algerians and ourselves everyone spoke Spanish.

1.121 You can use reflexive pronouns in addition to nouns or personal pronouns. You usually do this in order to make it clear or to emphasize who or what you are referring to.

We ourselves have got to build our own strength.

Sally herself came back.

You can also use a reflexive pronoun to compare or contrast one person of thing with another.

His friend looked as miserable as he felt himself it felt himself.

It is not Liverpool I miss, but England itself.

The reflexive pronoun can follow the noun or pronoun that it relates to.

Sally herself came back.

It is hot in London: but I myself can work better when it's hot.

The town itself was so small that it didn't have a priest.

The lane ran right up to the wood itself.

It can also be placed at the end of the clause.

I am not a particularly punctual person myself.

You'll probably understand better when you are a grandparents yourself.

It is rare for Governments to take the invitation themselves.

1.122 You can use a reflexive pronoun to emphasize that someone did something without any help or interference from anyone else. In this use, the reflexive pronoun is normally placed at the end of the clause.

She had printed the card herself.

I'll take it down to the police station myself.

Did you make these yourself?

Referring to a particular person or thing: demonstrative pronouns

1.123 When 'this', 'that', 'these', and 'those' are used as pronouns, they are called demonstrative pronouns. They can be used as the subject or the object of a clause, or the object of a preposition.

Demonstrative pronouns are rarely used as the indirect object of a clause, because the indirect object is usually a person and demonstrative pronouns normally refer to things.

'this' and 'that' 1.124 'This' and 'that' are usually used as pronouns only when they refer to things. You use them instead of a singular count noun or an uncount noun.

This is a list of the rules.

This is the first truly British fast food.

The biggest problem was the accent. That was difficult for me.

That looks interesting.

1.125 'This' and 'that' can be used as pronouns to refer to a person when you are identifying someone or asking who they are.

Who's this?

He paused at a photograph which stood on the dressing table. 'Is this your wife?'

Was that Patrick on the phone?

When you are introducing people, you can say 'This is Mary' or 'This is Mr and Mrs Baker'. Note that you use 'this' even when you are introducing more than one person.

'these' and 'those' 1.126 'These' and 'those' can be used as pronouns instead of a plural count noun. They are most often used to refer to things, although they can be used to refer to people.

'I brought you these.' Adam held out a bag of grapes.

Vitamin tablets usually contain vitamins A, C, and D. These are available from any child health clinic.

These are no ordinary students.

It may be impossible for them to pay essential bills, such as those for heating.

Those are easy questions to answer.

There are a great number of people who are seeking employment, and a great number of those are married women.

'This', 'that', 'these', and 'those' can also be specific determiners. For more information, see paragraphs 1.182 to 1.191. See also cohesion in Chapter 9.

Referring to people and things in a general way: indefinite pronouns

1.127 When you want to refer to people or things but you do not know exactly who or what they are, or their identity is not important, you can use an indefinite pronoun. An indefinite pronoun indicates only whether you are talking about people or about things, rather than referring to a specific person or thing.

I was there for over an hour before anybody came.

Jack was waiting for something.

Here is a list of indefinite pronouns:

Note that all indefinite pronouns are written as one word except 'no one' which can also be spelled with a hyphen: 'no-one'.

1.128 You always use singular verbs with indefinite pronouns.

Is anyone here?

Everybody recognizes the importance of education.

Everything was ready.

Nothing is certain in this world.

1.129 You use the indefinite pronouns ending in '-thing' to refer to objects, ideas, situations, or activities.

Can I do anything?

Jane said nothing for a moment.

1.130 You use the indefinite pronouns ending in '-one' and '-body' to refer to people.

It had to be someone like Dan.

Why does everybody believe in the law of gravity?

1.131 Although you use singular verbs with indefinite pronouns, if you want to use a pronoun to refer back to an indefinite pronoun, you use the plural pronouns 'they', them', 'their', or 'themselves'.

Ask anyone. They'll tell you.

There's no way of telling somebody why they've failed.

Everyone put their pens down.

No one liked being young as they do now.

Everybody's enjoying themselves.

See paragraph 1.108 for more information about 'they' used to refer to one person.

1.132 In more formal English, some people prefer to use 'he', 'him' or 'himself' to refer back to an indefinite pronoun, but many people object to this use because it suggests that the person being referred to is male.

Somebody shouted and other voices joined him.

Everybody has his dream.

Everybody determines his own rates.

For other ways of using pronouns when you do not want to specify whether the person you are talking about is male or female, see paragraph 1.108.

1.133 You can add 's (apostrophe s) to an indefinite pronoun to refer to things that belong to or are associated with people.

She was given a room in someone's studio.

That was nobody's business.

I would defend anyone's rights.

Everything has been arranged to everybody's satisfaction.

WARNING 1.134 You do not usually add 's to indefinite pronouns referring to things. So, for example, you would be more likely to say 'the value of something' than 'something's value'.

qualifiers 1.135 When you want to give more information about the person or thing referred to by an indefinite pronoun, you can do so by using a qualifier, for example a prepositional phrase or a relative clause.

I changed the plan and made the talks open to everyone over twelve.

He would much rather have somebody who had a background in the humanities.

For more information about qualifiers, see paragraphs 2.289 to 2.320.

use of adjectives 1.136 You can also use adjectives to add information. Note that adjectives are placed after the indefinite pronoun rather than in front of it, and that you do not use a determiner. You do not say 'an important someone', you say 'someone important'.

What was needed was someone practical.

They are doing everything possible to take care of you.

There is nothing wrong with being popular.

used with 'else' 1.137 If you have already mentioned a person or thing and you want to refer to a different person or thing, or an additional one, you can use 'else' after an indefinite pronoun.

Somebody else will have to go out there.

She couldn't think of anything else.

Everyone knows what everyone else is doing.

He held his job because nobody else wanted it.

Note that if you want to indicate association or possession with an indefinite pronoun and 'else', you add the 's to 'else'.

Did you take this photograph or was it someone else's photograph?

No one has control over anyone else's career.

structures used with 'some-' and 'every-' 1.138 Like all noun groups, indefinite pronouns are used as the subject, object, or redirect object of clauses. They can also be used as the objects of prepositions. The indefinite pronouns beginning with 'some-' and 'every-' are most often used in affirmative clauses.

Everything went according to plan.

I remember somebody putting a pillow under my head.

'Now you'll see something,' he said.

I gave everyone a generous helping.

I want to introduce you to someone who is helping me.

Have you seen Frank? Is everything all right?

They are sometimes used as the subject of a negative clause.

He could tell that something wasn't right.

Everyone hadn't arrived yet.

Note that the indefinite pronouns beginning with 'some-' cannot be used as the object of a negative clause, unless they are followed by a qualifier, usually a prepositional phrase or a relative clause.

He wasn't someone I admired as a writer.

I wouldn't forget something that I finished reading only half an hour ago.

1.139 Indefinite pronouns beginning with 'any-' can be used as the object or indirect object of a question or a negative clause.

I couldn't kill anybody, Dr Marlowe.

You still haven't told me anything.

Take a good look and tell me if you see anything different.

I haven't given anyone their presents yet.

They are often used as the subject of both negative and affirmative questions. Note that they are not used as the subject of a negative statement. That is, you do not say 'Anybody can't come in'.

Does anybody agree with me?

Won't anyone help me?

If anything unusual happens, could you can me on this number?

Note that when you are making an affirmative statement, 'anyone' and 'anybody' are used to refer to people in general and not to only one person.

Anybody who wants to can come in and buy a car from me.

1.140 Indefinite pronouns beginning with 'no-' are always used with the affirmative form of a verb, and they make the clause negative. For more information on negative statements, see paragraphs 4.43 to 4.94.

Nobody left, nobody went away.

There was nothing you could do, nothing at all.

She was to see no one, to speak to nobody, not even her own children.

Note that they are sometimes used in questions. When this is the case, the answer to the question is usually expected to be 'no'.

'Is there nothing I can do?' 'Not a thing'.

'Is there nobody else?' 'Not that I know of'.

Showing that two people do the same thing: reciprocal pronouns

1.141 The reciprocal pronouns 'each other' and 'one another' are used to indicate that people do the same thing, feel the same way, or have the same relationship.

For example, if your brother hates your sister and your sister hates your brother, you can say 'My brother and sister hate each other' or 'They hate one another'.

Reciprocal pronouns are not used as the subject of a clause. You can use them as the object or indirect object of a verb.

We help each other a lot.

You and I understand each other.

I listened to the stags answering one another from hill to hill.

They sent each other gifts from time to time.

You can also use them as the object of a preposition.

Terry and Mark were jealous of each other.

two lights moving towards one another.

They didn't dare to look at one another.

Some verbs are very commonly used with reciprocal pronouns. For more information about these, see paragraphs 3.69 to 3.73.

1.142 Note that there is very little difference between 'each other' and 'one another'. They can both be used to refer to two or more people or things, although some people prefer the use of 'each other' when there are only two people or things, and 'one another' when there are more than two.

'each' as subject 1.143 In formal written English, you can also use 'each' as the subject of a clause and 'the other' as the object of a clause or preposition. So a more formal way of saying 'They looked at each other' is 'Each looked at the other'. Note that 'each' is always followed by a singular verb.

Each is inextricably in the debt of the other.

Each appears to be unwilling to learn from the experience of the others.

'Each' can also be a determiner. For more information about this, see paragraph 1.228.

's 1.144 You can add 's (apostrophe s) to 'each other', 'one another', and 'the other' to form possessives.

I hope that you all enjoy each other's company.

Apes spend a great deal of time grooming one another's fur.

The male shelducks fight fiercely, each trying to seize the other's long neck in its beak.

Joining clauses together: relative pronouns

1.145 When a sentence consists of a main clause followed by a relative clause introduced by 'who', 'whom', 'which', or 'that', these words are known as relative pronouns.

Relative pronouns do two things at the same time. Like other pronouns, they refer to somebody or something that has already been mentioned. At the same time they are conjunctions, because they join clauses together.

For more information about conjunctions, see Chapter 8.

For more information about relative clauses, see paragraphs 8.83 to 8.116.

'who' and 'whom' 1.146 'Who' and 'whom' always refer to people.

'Who' can be the subject of a relative clause.

mathematicians who are concerned with very difficult problems.

a man who I met recently.

In the past, 'whom' was normally used as the object of a relative clause. Nowadays, 'who' is more often used, although some careful speaker of English think that it is more correct to use 'whom'.

There's a woman over there who I can't help noticing.

He's the man who I saw last night.

two girls whom I met in Edinburgh.

'Who' is sometimes used as the object of a preposition when the object is separated from the preposition. Some careful speakers think that it is more correct to use 'whom'.

That's the man who I gave it to.

those whom we cannot talk to.

'Whom' is almost always used when the object comes immediately after the preposition.

Lord Scarman, a man for whom I have immense respect.

1.147 'Which' always refers to things. It can be used as the subject or object of a relative clause, or as the object of a preposition.

a region which was threatened by growing poverty.

two horses which he owned.

the house in which I was born.

Note that 'which' cannot be used as the indirect object of a clause.

1.148 'That' can refer to either people or things. It can be used as the subject or the object of a relative clause or the object of a preposition.

the games that politicians play.

He's the boy that sang the solo last night.

It was the first bed that she had ever slept in.

'That' cannot be used as the indirect object of a clause.

1.149 'Whose' shows who or what something belongs to or is connected with. Note that it cannot be used by itself, but must come in front of a noun.

'Whose' is often included with relative pronouns, although it is in fact a kind of possessive determiner. For more information on determiners, see paragraphs 1.161 to 1.235.

the thousands whose lives have been damaged.

There was a chap there whose name I've forgotten.

predictions whose accuracy will have to be confirmed.

sharks, whose brains are minute.

Asking questions: interrogative pronouns

1.150 One way of asking questions is by using an interrogative pronoun.

The interrogative pronouns are 'who', 'whose', 'whom', 'what', and 'which'. They can be used as the subject or object of a clause, or as the object of a preposition. 'Whose' and 'which' can also be determiners. Other words, such as 'where', 'when', 'why', and 'how', can also be used to ask questions.

Interrogative pronouns are not used as the indirect object of a clause.

Who was at the door?

'There's a car outside.' 'Whose is it?'

A duel, Pa? Whom did he fight?

What are you doing?

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

For more information about structures in which interrogative pronouns are used, see paragraphs 4.10 to 4.30

1.151 Interrogative pronouns refer to the information you are asking for.

'Who', 'whose', and 'whom' are used when you think that the answer to the question will be a person.

'He lost his wife.' 'Who? Terry?'

He looked at the cat. 'Whose is it? Have you ever seen it before?'

'To whom, if I may ask, are you engaged to be married?' 'To Daniel Orton.'

'Which' and 'what' are used when you think that the answer to the question will be something other than a person.

'Is there really a difference? Which do you prefer?

'What did he want?' 'Maurice's address.'

reported questions 1.152 Interrogative pronouns are also used to introduce reported questions.

I asked her who she had been talking to.

He wondered what Daintry would do now.

For more information about reported questions, see paragraphs 7.29 to 7.35.

Other pronouns

1.153 Many other words can be pronouns, provided that it is clear what is being talked about, because it is then unnecessary to repeat the headword.

For example, most general determiners can also be pronouns. For more information about general determiners, set paragraphs 1.208 to 1.233.

Here is a list of general determiners which are also pronouns:

Like all noun groups, they can be used as the subject, direct object, or indirect object of a clause, or the object of a preposition.

Both were offered jobs immediately.

Discuss it with your female colleagues, if you have any.

I saw one girl whispering to another.

1.154 Although 'a', 'an', 'even', and 'no' are general determiners, they cannot stand alone as pronouns.

To refer back to a noun group which includes the determiner 'a' or 'an', you can use the pronoun 'one'. Similarly, you use 'each' to refer back to a noun group which includes 'every' and 'none' to refer back to a noun group which includes 'no'.

Note that 'another' and 'others' are pronouns, bat 'other' cannot be a pronoun.

'all', 'both', and 'each' for emphasis 1.155 'All', 'both', and 'each' for emphasis, in a similar way to the use of reflexive pronouns described in paragraphs 1.120 to 1.122.

The brothers all agreed that something more was needed.

He loved them both.

Ford and Duncan each had their chances.

They can also come after main verbs, as auxiliary verb, a modal, or 'be', rather than directly after the noun or pronoun.

They were both still working at their universities.

The letters have all been signed.

The older children can all do the same things together.

'Each' can also come at the end of the clause.

Three others were fined 200 each.

1.156 Cardinal numbers can also be pronouns. For example, the answer to the question 'How many children do you have?' is usually 'Three' rather than 'Three children'.

'How many people are there?''Forty five.'

Of the other women, two are dancers.

They bought eight companies and sold off five.

For more information on cardinal numbers, see paragraphs 2.230 to 2.248.

1.157 The number 'one' is a special case. Like other cardinal numbers, it can be used to refer to one of a group of things.

'One' is also used to refer back to a noun group with the determiner 'a'.

Could I have a bigger one, please?

It can also be used for emphasis after another determiner.

There are systems of communication right through the animal world; each one is distinctive.

'One' can be used as a personal pronoun. This use is explained in paragraph 1.109.

1.158 Note that 'the one' and 'the ones' can be used to refer to a noun alone, rather than to the whole of the noun group. They are nearly always used with a modifier such as an adjective, or a qualifier such as a prepositional phrase.

'Which poem?' 'The one they were talking about yesterday.'

the road comes up from the south and meets the one from Lairg.

He gave the best seats to the ones who arrived first.

1.159 You use 'the other', 'the others', 'others', or 'another' to refer to different members of a group of things or people.

Some writers are greater than others.

He is deceived. The others cannot bear his burden for him.

1.160 If you want to say something about a member of a group of people or things you can use 'one'. You can then refer to the rest of the group as 'the others'.

The bells are carefully installed so that disconnecting one will have no effect on the others.

They had three little daughters, one a baby, the others twins of twelve.

You can use 'the one' and 'the other' to refer to each of a pair of things.

The same factors push wages and prices up together, the one reinforcing the other.

If you do not wish to specify exactly which of a group you are talking about, you can refer to 'one or other' of them.

It may be that one or other of them had fears for their health.

Identifying what you are talking about: determiners

1.161 In English, there are two main ways in which you can use a noun group. You can use it to refer to someone or something, knowing that the person you are speaking to understands which person or thing you are talking about. This can be called the specific way of referring to someone or something.

The man began to run towards the boy.

Young people don't like these operas.

Thank you very much for your comments.

Gertrude was sitting on a seat near the Rosetta Stone.

Alternatively, you can use a noun group to refer to someone or something of a particular type, without saying which person or thing you mean. This can be called the general way of referring to someone or something.

There was a man in the lift.

It stood as tall as an elephant.

Any doctor would say she didn't know what she was doing.

In order to distinguish between these two ways of using a noun group, you use a special class of words called determiners. There are two types of determiner, specific determiners and general determiners. You put them at the beginning of a noun group.

The specific way: using 'the'

1.162 'The' is the commonest specific determiner: it is sometimes called the definite article.

'This', 'that', 'these', and 'those' are often called demonstratives or demonstrative adjectives. For more information on these, see paragraphs 1.182 to 1.191.

'My', 'your', 'his', 'her', 'its', 'our' and 'their' are possessive determiners. They are also sometimes called possessive adjectives or just possessives. For more information about these, see paragraphs 1.192 to 1.207.

Here is the list of specific determiners:

Note that in English you cannot use more than one specific determiner before a noun.

1.163 Because 'the' is the commonest specific determiner, you can put 'the' in front of any common noun.

She dropped the can into the grass.

The girls were not in the house.

In these examples, the use of 'the can' means that a can has already been mentioned; 'the grass' is probably definite because it has already been stated that 'she' is outside, and the presence of grass may also have been stated or is presumed; 'the girls' , like 'the can', must have  been mentioned before, and 'the house' means the one where the girls were staying at the time.

pronouncing 'the' 1.164 'The' always has the same spelling, but it has three different pronunciations:

/ when the following word begins with a consonant sound.

the dictionarythe first actthe big box.

/ when the following word begins with a vowel sound.

the exhibitionthe effectthe impression.

iː/ when it is emphasized.

You don't mean the Ernest Hemingway?

See paragraph 1.179 for more information about emphatic uses of 'the'.

1.165 You can use a noun group consisting just of 'the' and a noun when you are referring to a specific person or thing, or to a specific group of people or things, and you know that the person you are talking or writing to will understand which person, thing, or group you are referring to.

The expedition sailed out into the Pacific.

We are going to miss you in the university.

He stopped the car in front of the bakery.

1.166 Some nouns are normally used with 'the' because they refer to only one person, thing, or group. Some of these are specific names or proper nouns, for example titles such as 'the Pope', unique things such as 'the Bastille', and place names such as 'the Atlantic'.

The Shah has been deposed.

We went on camel rides to the Pyramids.

See paragraphs 1.53 to 1.59 for more information about proper nouns.

Some are singular nouns, that is they refer to something of which there is only one in the world, such as 'the ground', or 'the moon'.

The sun began to turn crimson.

In April and May the wind blows steadily.

See paragraphs 1.35 to 1.41 for more information about singular nouns.

1.167 Other nouns are used to refer to just one person, thing, or group in a particular place or organization, so that if you are talking about that place or organization or talking to someone in it, you can use just 'the' and the noun.

For example, if there is only one station in a town, the people who live in the town will talk about 'the station'. Similarly, people living in Britain talk to each other about 'the economy' meaning 'the British economy', and people working for the same organization might talk about 'the boss', 'the union', or 'the canteen' without needing to specify the organization.

Mrs Robertson heard that the church had been bombed.

There's a wind coming off the river.

We've had to get rid of the director.

The mayor is a forty-eight-year-old former labourer.

What is the President doing about all this?

1.168 Another group of nouns which can be used with just 'the' are nouns which are normally count nouns but which are used in the singular to refer to something more general.

For example, you can use 'the theatre' or 'the stage' to refer to all entertainment performed in theatres. Similarly, 'the screen' refers to films in general and 'the law' refers to the system of laws in a country.

For him, the stage was just a way of earning a living.

He was as dashing in real life as he was on the screen.

They do not hesitate to break the law.

Some nouns which normally refer to an individual thing or person can be used in the singular with 'the' to refer generally to a system or service in a particular place. For example, you can use 'the bus' to refer to a bus service and 'the phone' to refer to a telephone system.

How long does it take on the train?

We rang for the ambulance.

Nouns referring to musical instruments can be used in the singular with 'the' when you are talking about someone's ability to play a particular kind of instrument.

'You play the oboe, I see,' said Simon.

Geoff plays the piano for hours.

formal generalizations 1.169 Nouns referring to living things can be used in the singular with 'the' when you are making a statement about every member of a species. For example, if you say 'The swift has long, narrow wings', you mean that all swifts have long, narrow wings.

The primrose can grow abundantly on chalk banks.

Australia is the home of the Kangaroo.

Similarly, a noun referring to a part of the human body can be used with 'the' to refer to that part of anyone's body.

These arteries supply the heart with blood.

It is irritating when breathed into the lungs.

'The' is sometimes used with other nouns in the singular to make a statement about all the members of a group.

Too often these writings dwell on how to protect the therapist rather than on how to cure the patient.

These uses are fairly formal. They are not common in ordinary speech. Usually, if you want to make a statement about all the things of a particular kind, you use the plural form of a noun without a determiner. See paragraph 1.212 for more information about this.

USAGE NOTE 1.170 Many common time expressions consist of just 'the' and a noun.

We wasted a lot of money in the past.

The train leaves Cardiff at four in the afternoon.

the changes which are taking place at the moment.

See Chapter 5 for more information about time expressions.

referring back 1.171 In each of the preceding paragraphs showing uses of 'the' and a noun, it is possible to understand who or what is being referred to because the noon group is commonly accepted as referring to one particular person, tiling, or group.

However, you can use 'the' with any noun, if it is obvious who or what you are referring to from what has already been said or written. For example, if you have already mentioned that you have seen a moose, you can say afterwards 'We tried to catch the mouse'.

1.172 You can also use 'the' and a noun when you are referring to someone or something closely connected with something you have just mentioned.

For example, you do not usually say 'We tried to get into the room, but the door of the room was locked'. You say 'We tried to get into the room, but the door was locked', because it is obvious which door you are referring to.

She stopped and lit a match. The wind almost blew out the flame.

1.173 Although there are many situations where you use just 'the' and a noun, there are other occasions when you need to add something else to the noon in order to make it clear which person, thing, or group you are referring to.

1.174 Sometimes you can indicate who or what you are referring to by putting a modifier between 'the' and the noun. The commonest type of modifiers are adjectives.

This is the main bedroom.

'Somebody ought to have done it long ago,' remarked the fat man.

Sometimes you need to use more than one adjective.

After the crossroads look out for the large white building.

For more information about modifiers, see Chapter 2. For more information about adjectives, see paragraphs 2.2 to 2.173.

1.175 When you use a modifier between 'the' and a noun, you do not always do it in order to make clear who or what is being referred to. There are two other reasons why you might use a modifier.

Firstly, if you have already referred to someone or something using a modifier, you sometimes continue to use the modifier when referring to them again. For example, if you first refer to a car as 'a yellow car', you may continue to refer to it as 'the yellow car', even though no other cars are involved in what are you saying or writing.

Secondly, you might want to add further information about someone or something that you have already mentioned. For example, if you first refer to someone as 'a woman' in a sentence such as 'A woman came into the room', you might later want to refer to her as 'the unfortunate woman' or 'the smiling woman'.

This is a very common use in written English, especially in stories, but it is not often used in conversation.

The astonished waiter was now watching from the other end of the room.

You don't want to give the poor man ulcers.

The  loss of pressure caused the speeding car to go into a skid.

1.176 Another way of indicating who or what you are referring to is by adding a qualifier after 'the' and a noun, for example a prepositional phrase, a relative clause, a 'to'-infinitive, an adverb of place or time, or a phrase introduced by a participle.

So you might refer to particular people at a party by using noun groups such as 'the girl in the yellow dress', 'the woman who spilled her drink', or 'the man smoking a cigar'.

There is disorder among the papers on his desk.

The book that I recommend now costs over three pounds.

The thing to aim for is an office of your own.

Who made the bed in the room upstairs?

It depends on the person being interviewed.

For more information about qualifiers, see paragraphs 2.289 to 2.320.

'the' with uncount nouns 1.177 You do not normally use 'the' with uncount nouns because they refer to something in a general way. However, 'the' is required if the uncount noun is followed by a qualifier which relates it to a particular person, thing, or group.

For example, you cannot say 'I am interested in education of young children'. You have to say 'I am interested in the education of young children'.

Babies need the comfort of their mother's arms.

Even the honesty of inspector Butler was in doubt.

I've no idea about the geography of Scotland.

For more information about uncount nouns, see paragraphs 1.24 to 1.34.

superlatives 1.178 'The' is also used with superlative adjectives.

Edith Evans was the finest actress of our time.

They went to the most expensive restaurant in town.

See paragraphs 2.117 to 2.127 for more information about superlative adjectives.

emphasizing 'the' 1.179 'The' is often used in front of a noun to indicate that someone or something is the best of its kind.

But you must come with us. It's the club to go to.

You can also use 'the' in front of a person's name to indicate that you are referring to the most famous person with that name.

You actually met the George Harrison?

When you use 'the' in either of these ways, you emphasize it and pronounce it /iː

'the' with general  determiners 1.180 'The' can be used in front of some general determiners, usually to give an indication of amount or quantity. The general determiners function as headwords in the noun group and can be modified or qualified.

The general determiners which can be headwords are:

pleasures known only to the few.

a coup under the leadership of the select few.

Even the few who are forced to sell out get compensation.

We have done the little that is in our power.

You use 'the' with 'other' to refer to the second of two things, when you have just mentioned one of them.

The men sat at one end of the table and the woman at the other.

For more information about general determiners, see paragraphs 1.213 to 1.235.

'the' with numbers 1.181 'The' can also be used with the 'one' and 'ones', which then function as headwords and are usually modified or qualified.

I'm going to have the green one.

The shop was different from the ones I remembered.

a pair of those old glasses, the ones with those square lenses.

'The' can also be used with other numbers.

It is a mistake to confuse the two.

Why is she so different from the other two?

See paragraphs 2.225 to 2.256 for more information about numbers.

The specific way: using 'this', 'that', 'these', and 'those'

1.182 You use the specific determiners 'this', 'that', 'these', and 'those' to refer to people or things in a definite way.

You use 'this' and 'these' to talk about people and things that are close to you in place or time. When you talk about people or things that are more distant in place or time, you use 'that' and 'those'.

You put 'this' and 'that' in front of singular nouns, uncount nouns, and the singular pronoun 'one'. You put 'these' and 'those' in front of plural nouns and the plural pronoun 'ones'.

'This', 'that', 'these', and 'those' are often called demonstratives or demonstrative adjectives.

1.183 'This' and 'these' are used to talk about people or things that are very obvious in the situation that you are in. You use 'this' and 'these' to distinguish these people or things from others of the same kind. For example, if you are inside a house, you can refer to it as 'this house'. If you are holding some keys in your hand, you can refer to them as 'these keys'. If you are at a party, you can refer to it as 'this party'.

He had a private practice in this flat.

I am going to walk up these steps towards you.

I'll come as soon as these men have finished their work.

I like this university.

Good evening. In this programme we are going to look at the way in which British music has developed in recent years.

When it is clear who or what you are referring to, you can use 'this' and 'these' as pronouns. This use is explained in paragraphs 1.123 to 1.126.

1.184 'This' and 'these' are also used in many expressions which refer to current periods of time, for example 'this month', 'this week', and 'these days'. This use is explained in Chapter 5.

1.185 You use 'that' and 'those' when you are talking about things or people that you can see but that are not close to you.

How much is it for that big box?

Can I have one of those brochures?

Can you move those books off there?

1.186 When it is clear who or what you are referring to, you can use 'that' and 'those' as pronouns. This use is explained in paragraphs 1.123 to 1.126.

Could you just hold that?

Please don't take those.

1.187 You can indicate that you are referring to the same person or thing you have just mentioned by using 'this', 'that', 'these', or 'those' in front of a noun. For example, if you have just mentioned a girl, you can refer to her as 'this girl' or 'that girl' the second time you mention her. Normally, you use a pronoun to refer to someone or something you have just mentioned, but sometimes you cannot do this because it might not be clear who or what the pronoun refers to.

Students and staff suggest books for the library, and normally we're quite happy to get those books.

Their house is in a valley. The people in that valley speak about the people in the next valley as 'foreigners'.

They had a lot of diamonds, and they asked her if she could possibly get these diamonds to Britain.

The use of demonstratives to refer again to something which has already been mentioned is fully explained in paragraphs 9.7 to 9.10.

1.188 In informal English, you can also use 'that' and 'those' in front of a noun to refer to people or things that are already known to the person you are speaking or writing to.

That idiot Antonio has gone and locked our cabin door.

They learned how to eat with those horrible chopsticks.

Do you remember that funny little attic apartment?

1.189 You can use 'that' in front of a noun when you are referring to something that just happened or to something that you have just been involved with.

I knew that meeting would be difficult.

'That' is often used as a pronoun to refer to something that has just happened. This use is explained in paragraphs 1.123 to 1.126.

using 'those' instead of 'the' 1.190 In more format English, 'those' can be used instead of 'the' in front of a plural noun when the plural noun is followed by a relative clause. In this use, the relative clause specifies exactly which group of people or things are being referred to.

those workers who are employed in large enterprises.

The parents are not afraid to be firm about those matters that seem important to them.

informal use of 'this' and 'these' 1.191 In informal spoken English, people sometimes use 'this' and 'these' in front of nouns even when they are mentioning someone or something for the first time.

And then this woman came up to me and she said, 'I believe you have a goddaughter called Celia Ravenscroft.'

At school we had to wear these awful white cotton hats.

The specific way: using possessive determiners

1.192 You often want to indicate that a thing belongs to someone or that it is connected in some way with someone.

One way of doing this is to use a word like 'my', 'your', and 'their', which tells you who something belongs to. These words are a type of determiner called possessive determiners.

Are your children bilingual?

I remember his name now.

They would be welcome to our library.

I'd been waiting a long time to park my car.

1.193 There are seven possessive determiners in English, and each one is associated with a particular personal pronoun:

Personal pronouns are explained in paragraphs 1.96 to 1.109.

1.194 You do not spell the possessive 'its' with an apostrophe. 'It's' is short for 'it is'.

1.195 Possessive determiners, like other determiners, come after a predeterminer, if there is one, and before any numbers, or adjectives.

all his letters.

their next message.

my little finger.

our two lifeboats.

See paragraph 1.236 for more information about predeterminers.

1.196 In English, you do not use more than one specific determiner before a noun. Therefore, possessive determiners must be used on their own. You cannot say 'I took off the my shoes'. You have to choose whether to say 'I look off my shoes', or 'I took off the shoes'.

1.197 You choose which possessive determiner to use according to the identity of the person or thing that owns something. For example, if you want to identify something as belonging or relating to a particular woman you always use 'her'. The following noun does not affect the choice.

I took off my shoes.

Her husband remained standing. He had his hands in his pockets.

She had to give up her job.

The group held its first meeting fast week.

The creature lifted its head.

the two dark men, glasses in their hands, waiting silently.

the car companies and their workers.

1.198 When you want to draw attention to the fact that something belongs or relates to a particular person or thing, you can use the word 'own' after the possessive determiner.

I helped him to some more whisky but left my own glass untouched.

Residents are allowed to bring their own furniture with them if they wish to do so.

Make your own decisions.

I heard it with my own ears.

She felt in charge of her own affairs.

If you use a number in this structure, you put the number after 'own'.

their own three children

the Doctor's own two rooms.

1.199 You use possessive determiners in front of nouns which refer to objects and things which can be owned. For example, 'our house' refers to the house which belongs to us.

You can also use possessive determiners in front of many other types of noun. This is because, in spite of their name, possessive determiners do not always indicate that what follows them is actually possessed (or owned) by someone. They can just mean that it is connected or associated with them in some way.

They then turned their attention to other things.

the vitality of our music and our culture.

In summer, hay fever interfered with all her activities.

It's his brother who has the workshop.

1.200 You can use a possessive determiner in front of a noun which refers to an action in order to locate who or what is doing the action.

long after our arrival.

his criticism of the Government.

their fight for survival.

I'm waiting for your explanation.

Most of their claims were worthy.

In the last example, 'their claims' refers to the claims which they have made.

1.201 You can also use a possessive determiner to indicate who or what is affected by an action.

He congratulated me on my appointment as editor of the Dispatch.

the redistribution of wealth, rather than its creation.

They expressed their horror at her dismissal.

In the last example, 'her dismissal' probably refers to the fact that she was dismissed by someone or by some company.

In the first of the following examples, 'his supporters' means the people who support him.

Birch and his supporters.

She returned the ring to its owner.

a campaign against his critics.

USAGE NOTE 1.202 Sometimes in English the determiner 'the' is used where there is an obvious possessive meaning. In these cases the possession is already made clear by a preceding noun or pronoun. The following paragraphs explain the situations in which you use 'the' rather than a possessive determiner.

1.203 When you refer to a specific part of someone's body, you normally use a possessive determiner.

She has something on her feet and a bag in her hand.

Nancy suddenly took my arm.

They can't turn their heads.

She thanked him shyly and patted his arm.

I opened the cupboard and they tell on my head.

He shook his head.

However, when you are describing an action which someone does to a part of someone else's body, you often use the definite article, especially when the body part is the object of a preposition and when the object of the verb is a pronoun. For example, if you say 'She hit me on the head', 'head' is the object of the preposition 'on' and 'me' is the object of the verb 'hit'.

so I encouraged him and I patted him on the head.

She hit him smartly and swiftly on the head.

He took her by the arm and began drawing her firmly but gently away.

You use the definite article because the 'owner' of the body part has already been identified, and you do not need to repeat this information.

Similarly, if the object of the verb is a reflexive pronoun such as 'myself', 'yourself', and so on, you use the definite article. This is because the reflexive pronoun already refers to you or to the person who is doing the action, so you do not need to repeat this information by using a possessive determiner.

Andrew laughed, hitting himself on the knee.

We can pat ourselves on the back for bringing up our children.

Uses of reflexive pronouns are explained in paragraphs 1.115 to 1.122.

1.204 If you want to describe something that you do to yourself or that someone else does to themselves, you normally use a possessive determiner.

She was brushing her hair.

'I'm going to brush my teeth,' he said.

She gritted her teeth and carried on.

He walked into the kitchen and shook his head.

1.205 You usually use possessive determiners when you refer to things that are alive, such as a person, a group of people, or an animal. You do not usually use them to refer to things that are not alive. It is, for example, more usual to say 'the door' or 'the door of the room' than 'its door'.

1.206 There are other ways of indicating that something is owned by or connected with someone or something else. For example, you can use 's (apostrophe s) or a prepositional phrase beginning with 'of'.

Mary's daughter is called Elizabeth.

Very often the person appointed has no knowledge of that company's end product.

the house of a rich banker in Paris.

In the opinion of the team, what would they consider to be absolutely necessary?

For more information about the use of 's and 'of', see paragraphs 2.180 to 2.192.

1.207 Possessive determiners are also sometimes used in titles such as 'Your Majesty' and 'His Excellency'. This use is explained in paragraph 1.57.

The general way

1.208 General determiners are used in noun groups when you are talking about people or things in a general or indefinite way without identifying them.

Here is a list of general determiners:

'A', and 'an' are the commonest general determiners; they are sometimes called the indefinite article. For more information about 'a' and 'an', see paragraphs 1.213 to 1.220.

For more information about the other general determiners, see paragraphs 1.221 to 1.235.

with count nouns 1.209 'A' and 'an' are used with singular count nouns, and indicate that you are talking about just one of something that is countable.

'Another' is used with singular count nouns and 'other' with plural count nouns, but only after one or more of the same type of person or thing has been mentioned.

'Any' can be used with singular and plural count nouns to talk about one or more people or things. 'Enough', 'few', 'many', 'more', 'most', 'several', and 'some' are used with plural count nouns to indicate that a number of people or things are being referred to. Each of these determiners indicates a different set or group within the total number. For more information about their meanings, see the section beginning at paragraph 1.221.

'All', 'both', 'each', 'either', and 'every' indicate that you are talking about the total number of people or things involved. 'Both' and 'either' specify that only two people or things are involved. 'Both' is used with a plural noun, and 'either' with a singular noun. 'All', 'each', and 'every' usually indicate that there are more than two. 'All' is used with plural nouns, and 'each' and 'every' with a singular noun.

'No' and 'neither' also refer to the total number of things involved, but in negative statements. 'No' is used with singular or plural nouns, and 'neither' only with singular nouns. 'No' and 'neither' are not dealt with detail here, as they are fully treated in the section on negation in Chapter 4.

For more information about count nouns, see paragraphs 1.16 to 1.23.

with uncount nouns 1.210 For nouns which are usually regarded as uncountable, 'any', 'enough', 'little', 'more', 'most', 'much', 'other', and 'some' are used to indicate a quantity of something. 'No' and 'all' indicate the total quantity of it.

For more information about uncount nouns, see paragraphs 1.24 to 1.34.

WARNING 1.211 'A', 'an', 'another', 'both', 'each', 'either', 'every', 'few', 'many', 'neither', 'other', and 'several' are not usually used with uncount nouns.

using nouns without determiners 1.212 When you are referring to things or people in an indefinite way, you can sometimes use a noun without a determiner.

raising money from industry, government, and trusts.

Permission should be asked before visitors are invited.

Uncount nouns are usually used without a determiner.

Health and education are matters that most voters feel strongly about.

Wealth, like power, tends to corrupt.

Plural nouns are used without a determiner when you are referring to all the people or things of a particular kind.

Dogs need a regular balanced diet, not just a meat.

Are there any jobs that men can do that women can't?

Plural nouns can also be used without a determiner to refer to an unspecified number of things.

Teachers should read stories to children.

Cats and dogs get fleas.

For more information about plural nouns, see paragraphs 1.42 to 1.47.

The general way: using 'a' and 'an'

1.213 'A' and 'an' are the commonest general determiners. They are used to talk about things or people in an indefinite way. You put 'a' or 'an' in front of the singular form of a count noun.

We've killed a pig.

He was eating an apple.

An old lady was calling to him.

1.214 You use 'a' when the following word begins with a consonant sound.

a piecea good teachera language class.

This includes some words that begin with a vowel in their written form, because the first sound is a 'y' sound, /j/.

a universitya European language.

You use 'an' when the following word begins with a vowel sound.

an examplean art exhibitionan early train.

This includes some words that begin with the letter 'h' in their written form, because the 'h' is not pronounced.

an honest politicianquarter of an hour.

'A' is usually pronounced / /. 'An' is usually pronounced /

1.215 You usually use 'a' or 'an' when you are mentioning someone or something for the first time.

She picked up a book.

After weeks of looking, we eventually bought a house.

A colleague and I got some money to do research on rats.

1.216 You can use a noun group consisting of just 'a' or 'an' and a noun.

I got a postcard from Susan.

The FBI is conducting an investigation.

At other times, you may want to add modifiers or qualifiers to the group to give more information about the person or thing you are referring to.

I met a Swedish girl on the train from Copenhagen.

I've been reading an interesting article in The Economist.

The information was contained in an article on biology.

I chose a picture that reminded me of my own country.

For more information about modifiers and qualifiers, see Chapter 2.

1.217 You can also use 'a' or 'an' in a noun group after a link verb, as the complement of a clause, to give more information about someone or something.

She is a model and an artist.

His father was an alcoholic.

Noise was considered a nuisance.

Sometimes the new information is given by a modifier or a qualifier, rather than by the noun itself.

His brother was a sensitive child.

I met the vicar. He was a worried man.

For more information about link verbs and complements, see Chapter 3.

'a' and 'an' with uncount nouns 1.218 Although you do not normally use determiners with uncount nouns, you can use 'a' or 'an' with an uncount noon when it is modified or qualified.

A general education is perhaps more important than an exact knowledge of some particular theory.

She had an eagerness for life.

Everything went on with a friendliness that was uncommon in such circles.

using individuals to generalize 1.219 You can use 'a' or 'an' with a noun when you are using one individual person or thing to make a general statement about all people or things of that type. For example, if you say 'A gun must be kept in a safe place', you are talking about an individual gun in order to make a general statement about all guns.

A computer can only do what you program it to do.

A dog likes to eat far more meat than a human being.

An unemployed married farm-worker got parish relief.

This is not the usual way of referring to groups. Normally, if you want to make a statement about all the people or things of a particular kind, you use the plural form of a noun without a determiner. See paragraph 1.212 for more information about this.

nouns referring to one thing only 1.220 'A' and 'an' are sometimes used with singular nouns such as 'sun', 'moon', and 'sky' which refer to just one thing. You normally use 'the' with these nouns, but you use 'a' or 'an' when you are drawing attention to some special feature by adding a modifier or qualifier to the noun. This use is particularly common in literature.

We drove under a gloomy sky.

A weak sun shines on the promenade.

For more information on singular nouns, see paragraphs 1.35 to 1.41.

The general way: other determiners

'some' 1.221 'Some' is usually used to indicate that there is a quantity of something or that there are a number of things or people, without being precise. It is therefore used with uncount nouns and plural count nouns.

'Some' is usually used in affirmative statements.

There is some evidence that the system works.

There's some chocolate cake over there.

l had some good ideas.

Some people expect rapid economic development.

'Some' can be used in questions, when we expect the answer to be 'yes'.

Could you give me some examples?

Would you like some coffee?

'Some' is also used to mean quite a large amount or number. For example, in 'I did not meet her again for some years', 'some' means almost the same as 'several' or 'many'.

You will be unable to restart the car for some time.

It took some years for Dan to realize the truth.

1.222 You can also use 'some' in front of numbers, in slightly more literary English, to show that you are not being totally accurate.

I was some fifteen miles by sea from the nearest village.

an animal weighing some five tons.

1.223 When you want to emphasize that you do not know the identity of a person or thing, or you think their identity is not important, you can use 'some' with a singular count noun, instead of 'a' or 'an'.

Most staff members will spend a few weeks in some developing country.

Supposing you had some eccentric who came and offered you a thousand pounds.

1.224 'Any' is used before plural nouns and uncount nouns when you are referring to a quantity of something which may or may not exist.

The patients know their rights like any other consumers.

Check if you're in any doubt.

You can stop at any time you like.

'Any' is also used in questions asking whether something exists or not. It is also used in negative statements to say that something does not exist.

Do you have any advice on that?

Are there any jobs that men can do but women can't?

It hasn't made any difference.

Nobody in her house knows any English.

By the time I got to Sainsbury's, there weren't any tomatoes left.

Questions and negative statements are explained further in Chapter 4.

Note that you can use 'any' with singular count nouns to talk about someone or something of a particular type, when you do not want to mention a specific person or thing.

Any big tin container will do.

Cars can be rented at almost any US airport.

'Any' can also be used as a pronoun. See paragraphs 1.94 to 1.160 to more information about pronouns. It is also used in 'if'-clauses. For more information about these, see Chapter 8.

1.225 'Another' is used with singular count nouns to talk about an additional person or thing of the same type as you have already mentioned.

Could you have another cup of coffee?

He opened another shop last month.

It can also be used before numbers to talk about more than one addition thing.

The woman lived for another fen days.

Five officials were sacked and another four arrested.

'Other' is used with plural nouns, or occasionally with uncount nouns.

Other people must have thought like this.

They are either asleep or entirety absorbed in play or other activity.

selecting from a group 1.226 'Enough' is used to say that there is as much of something as is needed, or as many things as are needed. You can therefore use 'enough' in front of uncount nouns or plural nouns.

It had enough room to store an the information.

They weren't getting enough guests.

When you want to emphasize that there are only a small number of things of a particular kind, you use 'few' with a plural count noun.

There are few drugs that act sufficiently swiftly to be of effect.

There were few doctors available.

'Many' indicates that there are a large number of things, without being very precise.

He spoke many different languages.

It can also be used in negative statements about quantity.

There aren't many gardeners like him left.

'Most' indicates nearly all of a group or amount.

Most people recover but the disease can be fatal.

Most farmers are still using the old methods.

'Several' usually indicates an imprecise number that is not very large, but is more than two.

Several projects had to be postponed.

I had seen her several times before.

There were several reasons for this.

'all', 'both', and 'either' 1.227 'All' includes every person of thing of a particular kind.

You cannot say that all prisoners should be treated the same.

'Both' is used to say something about two people or things of the same kind. The two people or things have usually been mentioned or are obvious from the context. 'Both' is sometimes used to emphasize that two people or things are involved, rather than just one.

There were excellent performances from both accesses.

Denis held his cocoa in both hands.

'Either' is also used to talk about two things, but usually indicates that only one of the two is involved. When it is part of the subject of a clause, the verb is in the singular.

No argument could move either old gentleman from this decision.

Note that 'either' can mean both of two things, especially when it is used with 'end' and 'side'.

They stood on either side of the bed.

'each' and 'every' 1.228 You use 'each' and 'every' when you are talking about all the members of a group of people or things. You use 'each' when you are thinking about the members as individuals, and 'every' when you are making a general statement about all of them. 'Each' and 'every' followed by a singular count noon.

Each seat was covered with a white lace cover.

They would rush out to meet each visitor.

This new wealth can be seen in every village.

Every child would have milk every day.

Each applicant has five choices.

I agree with every word Peter says.

You can modify 'every' but not 'each'. You can say things such as 'Almost every chair is broken' or 'Not every chair is broken' but you cannot say 'Almost each chair is broken' or 'Not each chair is broken'. This because 'each' is slightly more precise and definite than 'every'.

Note that 'each' can be used when talking about two people or things, but 'every' is only used for numbers larger than two.

1.229 If you want to emphasize that there is only a small amount of something, you use 'little'. You use 'much' to emphasize a large amount. 'Little' and 'much' are used with uncount nouns.

There was little applause.

We've made little progress.

We have very little information.

Do you watch much television?

'Much' is also used in negative statements as well as in affirmative statements, but 'very much' is only used in negative statements. For example, 'l don't have very much sugar' means 'l have only a small quantity of sugar'.

He did not speak much English.

I haven't given very much attention to this problem.

1.230 Some other words can be general determiners, such as 'certain', 'numerous', and 'various'.

'Certain' is used to refer to some members of a group, without specifying which ones.

We have certain ideas about what topics are suitable.

'Numerous', like 'many', indicates a large number in an imprecise way.

Numerous attempts have been made to obscure this fact.

a privilege from which numerous auxiliary benefits flowed.

'Various' is used to emphasize that you are referring to several different things or people.

We looked at schools in various European countries.

1.231 There are three comparatives that are determiners. 'More' is used in front of plural and uncount nouns, usually with 'than', to refer to a quantity or amount of something that is greater than another quantity or amount.

He does more nouns than I do.

His visit might do more harm than good.

But 'more' is also often used to refer to an additional quantity of something rather than in comparisons.

More officers will be brought in as and when circumstances dictate.

We need more information.

'Less' is used to refer to an amount of something that is smaller than another amount. 'Fewer' is used to refer to a group of things that is smaller than another group. 'Less' is usually used before uncount nouns and 'fewer' before plural nouns, but in informal English 'less' is also used before plural nouns.

The poor nave less access to education.

machinery which uses less energy.

As a result, he found less time than he would have hoped for his hobbies.

There are fewer trees here.

For more information about comparison, see paragraphs 2.108 to 2.144.

other expressions 1.232 Some other expressions also behave like general determiners: 'a few', 'a little', 'a good many', 'a great many'. These have a slightly different meaning from the single word determiners 'few', 'little', and 'many'.

If you are mentioning a small number of things, but without any emphasis, you can use 'a few' with plural count nouns.

They went to London for a few days.

A few years ago we set up a factory.

I usually do a few jobs for him in the house.

Similarly, if you are just mentioning a small amount of something without any emphasis, you can use 'a little' with uncount nouns.

He spread a little honey on a slice of bread.

I nave to spend a little time in Oxford.

Charles is having a little novels.

However, 'a good many' and 'a great many' are more emphatic forms of 'many'.

I haven't seen her for a good many.

He wrote a great many novels.

modifying determiners 1.233 Some general determiners can be modified by 'very', 'too', and 'far', or sometimes by another general determiner.

You can modify 'more' with numbers or with other general determiners.

A little further out to sea were the vast dorsal fins of two more sharks.

There had been no more accidents.

You will never have to do any more work.

You can use 'too many' or 'too much' to say that a quantity is more than is wanted or needed, and 'too few' or 'too little' if it is not enough.

There were too many competitors.

They gave too much power to the Treasury.

There's too little literature involved.

You can use 'very' before 'few', 'little', 'many', and 'much'. You can also say 'a very little' or 'a very great many'.

Very many women have made their mark on industry.

Very few cars had reversing lights.

I had very little money left.

using 'one' 1.234 You use 'one' as a determiner when you have been talking or writing about a group of people or things and you want to say something about a particular member of the group. 'One' is used instead of 'a' or 'an' and is slightly more emphatic.

We had one case which dragged on for a couple of years.

'They criticise me all the time,' wrote one divorced woman.

I know one household where that happened, actually.

The use of 'one' as a number is explained in paragraphs 2.230 to 2.232.

1.235 Many determiners are also pronouns, that is they can be used without a following noun. For more information about these, see paragraphs 1.153 to 1.160.

1.236 Normally, a determiner is the first word in a noun group. However, there is a class of words called predeterminers which can come in front of a determiner.

Here is a list of predeterminers:

The first group are used to indicate amounts or quantities. 'All' can also be used to refer to every part of something. When used with this meaning it is used with an uncount noun.

All the boys started to giggle.

He will give you all the information.

All these people knew each other.

I shall miss all my friends.

I invited both the boys.

Both these parties shared one basic belief.

She paid double the sum they asked for.

I see advertisements for jobs with twice the pay I'm getting now.

In the second group, 'quite' and 'rather' can be used either to emphasize or to reduce the effect of what is being said. In speech, the meaning is made clear by your tone of voice. In writing, it is sometimes difficult to know which meaning is intended without reading more of the text.

It takes quite a long time to get a divorce.

It was quite a shock.

Seaford is ratter a pleasant town.

It was rather a disaster.

'Such' and 'what' are used for emphasis.

He has such a beautiful voice.

What a mess!