Pronouns And Determiners

In this topic of pronouns and determiners 1, we will be covering:

• personal and possessive
• a, an, the

Identify the Pronouns 

Let’s identify the pronouns under singular and plural

Question 1:

The cakes look delicious. May I try __________.

1. it
2. them
3. him
4. its

Answer:

2) them

Explanation:

Before getting to the answer, we need to see what we are referring to. 'Cakes' is a plural pronoun. So the pronoun will also be plural. So the correct answer is 2) them.

Before we move forward to solve more questions, let's understand the common error - its Vs. it’s.

Its is a pronoun, whereas It’s is a contraction and when you open it up - it is.

Golden rule for not getting confused with any contractions is to simply open them up by writing with a pencil.

For example: They’re is They are.

Always remember the golden rule. 

Question 2:

Those dishes are too salty. There is too much soya sauce in ___________.

1. them
2. it
3. us
4. itself

Answer:

1) them

Explanation:

Before getting to the answer, we need to see what we are referring to. Those dishes mean they are plural. So the pronoun will also be plural. 

Hence the correct answer is 1) them.

Question 3:

The bird is protective of __________ young.

1. she
2. her
3. it’s
4. its

Answer:

4) its

Explanation:

Let’s start knocking off the wrong options. She young is not correct, so that is ruled out. In the bird kingdom, it's not always necessary that only females take care of young ones, so we don’t assume. Moreover, we don’t give gender pronouns to animals, unless it's your pet or in fantasy stories where they may have human-like qualities. 3 is also ruled out, when you look at it with the help of the golden rule. 

So the correct answer is 4) its.

Question 4:

The cubs snuggle against __________ mother. __________ snowing outside.

1. its, it’s
2. their, its 
3. their, it’s

Answer:

3) their, it's

Explanation:

Let’s answer this by filling in the first blank. The cubs are plural, so the first blank is their mother. Hence option 1) is ruled out. Now for the second blank - the right answer is it’s (it is) snowing outside. 

So the correct answer is 3) their, it’s.

Articles: A, an, the

• A - words beginning with consonants
• An - words beginning with vowels 
• The - used to refer to specific, already mentioned subjects 

Question 5:

The company gave me __________ opportunity to work. 

1. a
2. an 
3. the 

Answer:

2) an

Explanation:

So the word after the blank opportunity starts with a vowel, which makes the answer very simple.

So the correct answer is 2) an.

Question 6:

I need __________umbrella as it’s raining outside. 

1. a
2. an 
3. the 

Answer:

2) an

Explanation:

So here again, the word umbrella starts with u and also sounds like U. 

So the correct answer is 2) an.

Question 7:

Johnny will be going to __________ university next year, but he isn't sure which one yet. 

1. a
2. an 
3. the 

Answer:

1) a

Explanation:

To answer the question, let’s hear carefully what the word university sounds like. It sounds like it starts with Y: you-ni-versity. So we need to be careful when using an, that the word should also sound like a vowel. In this case, university doesn’t sound like it starts with vowels.

So the correct answer is 1) a. 

Question 8:

Gia rose was frolicking around the lake when she spotted __________ unicorn. 

1. a
2. an 
3. the 

Answer:

1) a

Explanation:

So here as well, let’s take the cues from our previous question. Unicorn sounds like it starts with Y: you- ni - corn. 

So the correct answer is 1) a.

Try it yourself: Are the following nouns paired with “a” or “an”?

Hour, honest, honour

• Hour  - an hour: It sounds like it starts with o. 
• Honest - an honest: It sounds like it starts with o.
• Honour - an honour: it sounds like it starts with o.