English Grammar

Unit 6Unit 6

Determiners

Definition: Words that precede any pre-modifying adjectives in

a noun phrases and which denote such referential meanings as specific reference, generic reference, definite quantity or indefinite quantity are referred to as determiners.

Determiners include these classes of word: articles, possessive determiners, genitive nouns, demonstrative determiners, relative determiners, interrogative determiners, indefinite determiners, cardinal and ordinal determiners, fractional and multiplicative numericals and quantifiers.

Classification According to their potential positions, determiners fall into

three subclasses: all these other issues Pre － determiners such as all, both, half; double, twice,

three times, etc.; what, such (a /an). mutually exclusive. Central determiners include: the articles; demonstrative

determiners; possessive determiners; genitive nouns; some, any, no, every, each, either, neither, enough, what(ever, which(ever), whose, etc.. They are mutually exclusive.

Post － determiners include those cardinal numbers and ordinal numbers: next, last, other, another, etc.: many, much, (a) little, fewer, (the ) fewest, less,( the ) least, more, most; several, plenty of, a lot of , lots of: such . not mutually exclusive, another five books ,several hundred guests, last few weeks

ANALYSIS• Memorize the format :• All the four teachers • all your three books• all these last few years• the following : pre-determiner +central

determiner• half his lecture • Both his parents• The following : central determiner+post

determiner• some such alloy• His last few words• The following : Post-determiner+post-determiner • several hundred guests;last few weeks;another five books

Explain the ungrammaticality of the following sentences

1. She has a coffee on her dress. Coffee is a mass noun here and does not take an ar

ticle. A coffee means a serving /cup of coffee. If the coffee is spilled, it would no longer be contained in a cup and therefore could not be referred to with the definite article.

2. They gave us many informations. Information is a mass noun in English; it is therefor

e non-count and cannot take a plural ending or the determiner many.

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3. I have examination in French today. Examination is a singular count noun and must

therefore take an article. The indefinite article is required because in this case the noun has a specific referent for the speaker but not for the listener.

4. Change takes a long times. Take a long time is probably best learned as a lexical

unit. 5. This is an exclusive product in Taiwan travel

industry Taiwan travel agency has a specific referent for both

speaker and listener, and thus the definite article is required.(the Taiwan travel agency )

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6. We have to make the detailed travel plan. The definite article the is used only with a noun that has

a specific referent for both the speaker and listener. If the plan has not been made yet, then it cannot be specific, therefore , the indefinite article a is required instead.

7. Nowadays, personal computer isn’t luxury anymore. Computer is a singular count noun, so it cannot occur w

ithout an article. The zero article with a plural noun form is the most flexible pattern for generic use), so here it needs to make the necessary number adjustment (…computers aren’t luxuries….)

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8. When I went to the Europe… Europe is a proper noun, so it takes no article 9. I enjoyed writing the poetry. It’s my hobby. Poetry is a mass noun used non-specifically. No article

should be used. 10. It is impossible to live in a world without the hope. 只有在抽象名词具体化时， 冠词才置于抽象名词之前。 Correct: It is impossible to live in a world without hope. The hope of finding a cure for cancer drives a lot of me

dical research.

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Tell the difference

A Mr. Jones came to see you this afternoon. The Mr. Jones with the stutter came to see y

ou . 若想减弱名字的特指意义， 可用 a/an, 而定冠

词 the 却能增强名字的特指意义。 An air –conditioner has become very popular. The air –conditioner has become very popula

r The air –conditioner , generic reference

Students’ Mistakes in the Exercises

on P. 95 1. How much work did you do this morning? How much work have you finished a.m.? 2. Cut a tunnel needs a lot of labor. 3.He did the least of work. The work he has done is the least. 4. The dealing of the problem has several problems. There are several methods to deal with the problem. 5. I do not know much of French. 6. Speak /Say less empty talk and do more practical work. 7. Is there a lot of people attending the reception? Do a lot of people attend the reception? Are there many people presenting the reception? Were there many people attended the reception?

8. May I speak a few word with you? 9. Today’s visitors to the exhibition are less than yester

day. The number of people visited the exhibition meeting is l

ess than yesterday. The number of people who visited the exhibition today i

s smaller than that yesterday. 10. The mistakes that Harry made were the fewest. The errors he did is the least. 11. The poetry you have read and the exercises you ha

ve done are more than mine. Both the poetry you have read and the practice you hav

e done are much less than me. 12. The work did by Jack and the mistakes made by Ja

ck are the most.

13. He did much work also made a lot of error. He have done a lot of work and have made many mist

akes. 14. The millionaires have lot of money as much as his

worry. 15. For lack of money, Anne was full of upset. 16. The phone ring rang once every few minutes. 17. In the passed few cold days, we kept on doing the

experiment all the time. We’ve kept the experiment on during the past couple o

f cold days. We were insisted on experimenting all the way.

18.Both of his new complications of English linguistic books will come out in 2006

The new English language he new written would be published in 2006.

19. We knowed soon that we should waited for 3 more weeks.

20 My brother spent 500 dollars on buying an old automobile, but I spent twice the price on buying the same.

My brother bought an old car by $500. However, I bought the same car with a double price.

Zero article , indefinite article and definite article

• A. non-count noun : mass noun, abstract noun • Water is composed of oxygen and hydrogen.• B. count noun Have a seat. • C. definite article (i) with textual co-reference

I read a great novel last week..

The imagery was fantastic.

(ii) with situational /cultural reference

Let’s go to the library.

(iii) with structural reference

The end of the world is nigh.

D. first mention-subsequent mention principle Once upon a time, there was a little girl. The girl lived with her mother a

nd father. E. indefinite article (i) with generic usage A tiger is a large cat. (ii) with predicate noun This is a warm day. F. indefinite noun (i) specific I’m looking for a pen I misplaced. (ii) nonspecific If I don’t find it, I’ll have to buy a new pen. G. Idiomatic article usage She is in hospital. H. Null article use with definite meaning Lunch was served on the terrace

Zero article , indefinite article and definite article

Generic reference : We listened to the news on the radio. I talked to Burt on the phone I’m going to the movies. He worked for years in the movies. Compare: I’m going to school /church/ temple. I’m going to a / the school.

Geographical Names • The names of mountain ranges, archipelagoes,deserts,

and other plural names of regions generally have the definite articles

• The Bahamas, the Great Lakes, the U.S.A., The Rockies(or the Rocky Mountains)

• whereas the names of individual mountains or islands have no article.

• Asia, Canada ,San Francisco Bay• But the Amazon (River),the Pacific (Ocean), the Gulf

of Mexico

Idioms The• Jim caught the ball on the fly. • He has been on the go （努力工作） all day long. • The prices have been on the increase. 不断增加• We should nip the evil in the bud. 防患于未然• She was in America in the seventies. 在 70 年代 • I guess the man is somewhere in the forties. 40 多岁• Strike her in the eye/ strike her eye • She kissed her father on the cheek/kissed her father’s che

ek.• The music is pleasant to the ear. 悦耳• The colors of the autumn leaves are pleasing to the eye.

悦目

• He has the nerve （勇气） to do it!• The man is at home in the saddle. （擅长骑马）• Don’t play the fool. （装傻）• The pen is mightier than the sword. 以文制武 • After the war, he gave up the sword for the plough. • There is still much of the schoolboy in him. 仍有学生气• There is a mixture of the tiger and the fox in his character.

他如老虎般残忍，狐狸般狡猾。• They felt the patriot (=the patriotic spirit ) rise within him.

他们的爱国心油然而生。• When one is poor, the beggar will come out. • (low conduct ) 衣食足，知荣辱。• What is learned in the cradle lasts to the grave. （ the cradl

e =in infancy, the grave =death ）

定冠词可以表示与人体密切相关的事物 Taking a walk is good for the health. The spirit is willing , but the flesh is weak. 心有余而力不足 Poetry serves to stimulate the mind. 诗能激发心灵 Music is a distraction to the mind. A man in the street 普通之人 Bring down the house 博得喝彩 Put the cart before the horse 本末倒置 All the better 更好 Drink somebody under the table 灌醉某人 Pass the buck 推卸责任 Strike while the iron is hot 趁热打铁

None the wiser , 不明白 none the worse Turn the cold shoulder to somebody 对某人冷淡 Attack the enemy in the rear 从后面攻击敌人 give the last finish to the work 作最后的润色 Talk oneself red in the face 谈得脸都红了

She fell victim to fashion. A jack of all trades is master to none. 博艺之人，杂而不精 The child is father to the man. 从小看大 The wish is father of the thought. 愿望是思想之父 She was appointed director of the society. 任命为协会的董事长

Compare

Read the fifth and the last paragraph of the text 两段课文 Read the fifth and last paragraph. 同一段课文 The teacher and the guardian were discussing his c

ase. 两个人， 老师和监护人 The teacher and guardian were discussing his case, 一个人， 老师， 同时也是监护人

Enough of a man1. He is enough of a man to tell the truth.

(manful enough)

2. He is less of a fool than she thought .

(less foolish)

3. The man is too much of a coward to tell the truth.

(too cowardly)

4. He is more of a sportsman than I thought.

(more sportsmanlike)

5. He is much of a scholar. (very scholarly)

6. She is something of a poet.( somewhat poetical)

She is artist enough to appreciate these poems. 她的艺术修养完全可以正确评价这些诗。 He is friend enough to judge it. 他非常友好， 及时地给了我帮助。 He is more father than husband. 他是个好父亲，但算不上好丈夫。 He is musician enough to appreciate the songs. He is fool enough to believe her. He shared weal and woe with the soldiers, great gene

ral he was. 他同士兵同甘共苦， 堪称良将。 Old man though he was, he never stopped writing. Yong boy as he was, he knew a lot about the world.

Face to face , track and field

成对使用的名词或名词、形容词等固定搭配，一般不用定冠词 e.g. Right and wrong, rich and poor, bread and butter, from south to north, word for word, law and order , hand in hand , from mouth to mouth （ 广泛流传）， from hand to mouth（勉强糊口）

The business has been run by father and son for many years.

Keep to the subject and do not wonder from point to point. You are quite right: teacher is teacher. 你说得对，教师毕竟教师 He earned barely enough to keep body and soul together. High and low are equal before death. 在死亡面前， 高贵和贫贱都是平等的。

It is a shame to behave like that. 那样做事， 简直是耻辱。 It is a pleasure for me to work with you. He spoke with an enthusiasm which impressed you de

eply. To gossip is a fault, to libel , a crime; to slander, a sin. 背后说人是一种缺点；诋毁中伤是一种罪孽。 The quietness was like a riches to her. 寂静对她来说是一种财富。 He had a busy two weeks. 忙碌的两星期 I have a good twenty dollars. 整整 20美元 It happened a past millions upon millions of years ago.

Compare: go to school, go to the school 有具体转为抽象的名词前一般不用定冠词 in red穿着红色衣服 , in the red 亏损，负债 in office执政 , in the office 在办公室 out of office下岗 , out of the office离开办公室 behind time误事 . behind the time落伍时代 in class 在上课 , in the class 在这个班 by day 白天 , by the day按天 at table 在用餐 , at the table 在桌旁 at desk 在学习 at the desk 在课桌旁 go to court起诉 , go to the court去法院办事 in secret私下 , in the secret参与秘密或阴谋 at sea 在航海 , at the sea 在海边

Compare : She can speak Russian in a fashion. 勉强讲一点 This kind of coat is in fashion. 时髦 They are all of an age. 同年 They are all of age. 成年 The news has taken air. 传开了 She open the window to take the air. 透透气 The students took a fancy to the books. 喜欢 The books took the fancy of the children 深受孩子的喜爱 She saw a tower in the distance. （在远处） The painting looks better at a distance. (稍远一点） She came to the exhibition with a child. Two months after her marriage , she was with child. The young man is in possession of a large fortune. A large fortune is in the possession of the young man.

He had a word with her yesterday. 谈话 He has had word of the case. 知道 They often have words with each other.吵嘴 He weighed six jin at birth. 出生 There are three kittens at a birth. 一胎 He won distinction even in his teens. 他十几岁就成名了。 He won a distinction for his contribution to the country. 他因对国家的贡献而获得勋章。 At one time they met almost every day. (曾经） The ship fetched 100 people at a time. （每次） One man’s meat is another man’s poison. （对照） That is only one way of doing it, but there are other and b

etter ways. That is the one thing needed.

Determiners + kind 1. He served us a kind of coffee. He served us with coffee of a kind.( coffee of inferior qualit

y)

2. Men of this kind are dangerous. There are many kinds of apples.3. Roses of this kind are very sweet. Cars of that type are old-fashioned.(this kind of roses, that type of cars are generally not acce

ptable . This kind of car can be. )4.There are many different kinds of snake in the mountain. These types of car are imported from Japan. I have met all kinds of tourists who come from Europe. Those kinds of insects are harmful.

Idioms• These are all firsts. • Business first and pleasure afterwards.先做事，后娱乐。• First come, first served. • We are first cousins. 我们是亲表兄弟。• He went to see her first thing in the morning . 他早上首先去看她

• He is second to none in skill. 他的技术比谁都高超。 She wants a second pair of shoes.(another)• She talked with him a second time. (again)• He is second to none in spoken English. 不亚于• On second thought(s), he decided to give up the job. 经过三思

Fox and Crowcrow, cheese, tree, fox

• There was once a crow who stole a wedge of cheese from a kitchen window. She flew off with the cheese to a nearby tree. A fox saw the crow had done, and he walked over to the tree.

• “Oh, Mistress Crow, you have such lovely black feathers, such slender feet, such a beautiful yellow beak, and such fine black eyes!You must have a beautiful voice. Would you please sing for me?”

• The crow felt very proud. She opened her beak and sang CAW-CAW-CAW. Of course the cheese fell down, and the fox snatched it up and ate every bite.

Pronunciation• Some English words can be pronounced in two different ways.

This means that they have a strong form and a weak form. The weak form is an alternate pronunciation of a word which is so reduced in its articulation that it consists of a different set of phonemes.

• There are two main reasons to learn how weak forms are used. Firstly, most native speakers of English find an “all-strong-form” pronunciation very unpleasant. Secondly, and more importantly, learners who are not familiar with the use of weak forms are likely to have difficulty understanding native speakers.

• There are many thousands of words in the English language which have such variants but about 45 weak form words are of special importance to English learners. The 45 weak form words can be classified into the following 5 groups:

The weak form is used in unstressed positions. 1.  determiners: a, an, her, his, our, some, the,

your 2.pronouns: he, me, she, them, us, we, you,

him 3.  connectives: and, as, but, so, than, that 4. auxiliary verbs: am, are, be, can, do, does,

had, has, have, is, must, shall, was, were, will, would

5.   prepositions: at, for, from, of, to

The strong form is used when the word is said in isolation, or in connected speech in which the word should be stressed or cited

. A weak form of a word is generally distinguished from a strong form by:

1.   the difference in vowel sounds (e.g. but) 2.  the absence of a sound (e.g. and) 3.the difference in the length of a vowel (e.g.

been)

1.       You may not be able to find its original box, but you’ll have to pack it in a box.

2.       Take an apple, I said. Not the lot. 3.       –Whose book is that? --It’s hers. 4.       Give me some books. 5.       There is some Mr. Cook looking for you. 6. He’s not going with you, he’s coming with us.