Determiners for SPM English: This, That, Each, Every, and More

What Are Determiners?

Determiners are words that come before nouns to clarify what the noun refers to. They answer questions like “Which one?”, “How many?”, and “Whose?”

Example: “The students completed their three assignments.” (The, their, and three are all determiners)

SPM tests determiners heavily in cloze passages, grammar sections, and they affect your essay score when used incorrectly.

Types of Determiners

1. Articles: A, An, The

“A” and “An” (indefinite articles) — refer to any one of something:

• Use a before consonant sounds: a book, a university (starts with “yoo” sound)
• Use an before vowel sounds: an apple, an hour (silent “h”)

“The” (definite article) — refers to a specific one:

• The book on the table (a specific book)
• The sun, the moon (only one exists)
• The first, the best (superlatives)

When NOT to use “the”:

• General statements: The Education is important. ✗ → Education is important. ✓
• Before meals: We had the lunch. ✗ → We had lunch. ✓
• Before most countries: The Malaysia is beautiful. ✗ → Malaysia is beautiful. ✓

Exception countries that use “the”: the United States, the Philippines, the United Kingdom

2. Demonstratives: This, That, These, Those

Determiner	Distance	Number	Example
this	near	singular	This book is mine.
that	far	singular	That building is the school.
these	near	plural	These apples are fresh.
those	far	plural	Those students passed the exam.

Common SPM error:

• This books are heavy. ✗ → These books are heavy. ✓ (plural needs “these”)
• Those kind of problem is common. ✗ → That kind of problem is common. ✓ (singular needs “that”)

3. Quantifiers

For countable nouns:

Quantifier	Usage	Example
many	large number	Many students passed.
few	small number (negative)	Few students failed. (= not many, which is bad)
a few	small number (positive)	A few students won prizes. (= some, which is good)
several	more than two but not very many	Several schools participated.
each	every single one (individually)	Each student received a certificate.
every	all (as a group)	Every student must attend.

For uncountable nouns:

Quantifier	Usage	Example
much	large amount	Much effort was needed.
little	small amount (negative)	Little progress was made. (= not much)
a little	small amount (positive)	A little patience goes a long way. (= some)

For both countable and uncountable:

Quantifier	Example (countable)	Example (uncountable)
some	Some students came.	Some water was spilled.
any	Are there any books?	Is there any milk?
no	No students were absent.	No information was given.
all	All students passed.	All the water evaporated.
enough	Enough chairs for everyone.	Enough time to finish.
a lot of	A lot of people came.	A lot of work remains.

4. Possessives: My, Your, His, Her, Its, Our, Their

Person	Possessive	Example
I	my	My bag is blue.
you	your	Your essay is excellent.
he	his	His answer was correct.
she	her	Her score improved.
it	its	The dog wagged its tail.
we	our	Our school won the competition.
they	their	Their results surprised everyone.

Common SPM error: Confusing “its” and “it’s”

• Its = possessive (The cat licked its paw.)
• It’s = it is (It’s raining.)

5. Numbers and Ordinals

• Cardinal numbers: one, two, three, four…
• Ordinal numbers: first, second, third, fourth…

Both function as determiners:

• Three students won awards.
• The first question was easy.

Key Rules for SPM

Rule 1: One Determiner per Noun

You cannot stack determiners:

• My the book ✗ → My book ✓
• The each student ✗ → Each student ✓

Exception: Numbers can follow articles: The three boys left.

Rule 2: “Each” vs “Every”

Both mean “all,” but:

• Each emphasises individuals: Each student received a different topic.
• Every emphasises the group: Every student must wear a uniform.
• Each can be followed by “of”: Each of the students…
• Every cannot: Every of the students… ✗

Rule 3: “Few/Little” vs “A Few/A Little”

• Few / Little = negative (not enough): Few people came. (disappointing)
• A few / A little = positive (some): A few people came. (at least some came)

Rule 4: “Some” vs “Any”

• Some — positive statements and offers: I have some books. Would you like some tea?
• Any — questions and negatives: Do you have any books? I don’t have any time.

Practice Exercises

Fill in the correct determiner:

1. _____ students in the class passed the exam. (All / Every)
2. She has _____ patience with slow learners. (a little / few)
3. _____ of the answers were correct. (Each / None)
4. Is there _____ water in the bottle? (some / any)
5. _____ student must submit the assignment by Friday. (Each / Every)
6. The cat chased _____ tail. (it’s / its)
7. I don’t have _____ money. (some / any)
8. _____ books on the shelf are mine. (This / Those)

Answers:

1. All (All students = whole group; Every student = individually, doesn’t take “the”)
2. a little (patience is uncountable; “a little” = positive meaning)
3. None (Each takes a singular verb; “None of the answers” works for plural)
4. any (question → use “any”)
5. Every (Every + singular noun, emphasises the whole group)
6. its (possessive, no apostrophe)
7. any (negative sentence → use “any”)
8. Those (books is plural + far distance → those)

Master Grammar Systematically

Determiners connect to articles, countable/uncountable nouns, and subject-verb agreement — all tested in SPM. At SPMEnglish.com.my, our grammar programme teaches these connected topics as a system. WhatsApp us to build strong grammar foundations.

Related Resources

• Articles Guide (A, An, The) — Deep dive into articles
• Countable vs Uncountable Nouns — Know which quantifiers to use
• Subject-Verb Agreement — Make determiners and verbs agree
• Grammar & Sentence Structure — Complete grammar programme