Go to : Grammar Home | Table of Contents | Alphabetical Index | Back to Chapter 20

EXERCISES for CHAPTER 20. DETERMINERS

1. Paying attention to whether reference is being made to a group of two objects, or a group of more than two objects, for each of the following sentences fill in the blank with the correct word chosen from the pair given in brackets. For example:
      There are two trees on the lawn. ____ of them are spruce trees. (All, Both)
      There are two trees on the lawn. Both of them are spruce trees.

      I had three pencils. Have you seen ___ of them? (any, either)
      I had three pencils. Have you seen any of them? (any, either)

      There are four bushes in the garden, but ____ of them are rhododendrons. (neither, none)
      There are four bushes in the garden, but none of them are rhododendrons.

1. I have three winter coats, but ________ of them are new. (neither, none)
2. There are two umbrellas here, but _________ of them is mine. (neither, none)
3. He owns twelve cows. _______ of them are Jerseys. (All, Both)
4. She has painted dozens of pictures. Have you seen ________ of them? (any, either)
5. Amy and Beth are twins. They _______ play the guitar. (all, both)
6. Two people said "Hello" to me, but I did not recognize ________ of them. (any, either)
7. My wife and I _______ enjoy classical music. (all, both)
8. I found all of the questions difficult. Did you answer ________ of them correctly? (any, either)
9. I asked six different people, but ________ of them knew where Walnut Street was. (neither, none)
10. My friends and I would like to thank you for your hospitality. We _______ enjoyed ourselves very much. (all, both)
11. There are two public libraries in the city, but ________ of them is located close to where I live. (neither, none)
12. Two wrist watches were left here. Is _________ of them yours? (any, either)
13. He has three nephews. ________ of them have graduated from university. (All, Both)
14. I have two violins. You are welcome to use ________ of them. (any, either)
15. My aunt and uncle are _______ coming for a visit. (all, both)
16. George and Tom like playing chess together, but _________ of them likes to lose a game. (neither, none)
17. The bush is covered with blueberries. Are ________ of them ripe yet? (any, either)
18. I have read five books on the subject, but ________ of them were very helpful. (neither, none)
Answers

2. Paying attention to whether the singular or the plural form is correct, fill in the blanks with the correct words chosen from the pairs given in brackets. For example:
      Several of my friends ____ present. (was, were)
      Several of my friends were present.

      One of his friends ___ absent. (was, were)
      One of his friends was absent.

      Each of the dogs pricked up ___ ears. (its, their)
      Each of the dogs pricked up its ears.

      All of the dogs pricked up _____ ears. (its, their)
      All of the dogs pricked up their ears.

1. Each of her friends ________ a university degree. (has, have)
2. Many of the birds in this park _________ here throughout the year. (live, lives)
3. Both of the children wanted to finish _________ work early. (his, their)
4. Every writer should learn from _________ own experiences. (his or her, their)
5. Either of my daughters can lend you _________ skis. (her, their)
6. Few of her ideas ________ as intriguing as this one. (are, is)
7. All of the visitors expressed _________ thanks. (his or her, their)
8. Each of our customers ________ important. (are, is)
9. One of the canaries ate only half _________ food. (its, their)
10. Either of the routes ________ a good choice. (are, is)
11. Neither of the boys forgot _________ books. (his, their)
12. Both of the drawings _______ beautiful. (are, is)
13. Neither of my uncles _________ to us often. (write, writes)
14. Every girl clapped _________ hands. (her, their)
Answers

3. Paying attention to whether an adjective, pronoun or adverb is required, complete the following sentences by filling in the blanks with no, none or not, as appropriate. For example:
      There is __ danger.
      There is no danger.

      ____ of the trees are evergreens.
      None of the trees are evergreens.

      It was ___ raining when I left home.
      It was not raining when I left home.

1. There is ________ wind this morning.
2. I have ________ finished reading the book.
3. _______ of the children were late for school.
4. We did ________ tell anyone the secret.
5. I have ________ idea what time it is.
6. ________ of the streets have been plowed.
7. ________ bicycles are allowed on the grass.
8. He is ________ ready.
9. ________ harm was done.
10. There is ________ time to lose.
11. She is ________ expected to arrive until tomorrow.
12. ________ of the stores are open.
Answers

4. Rewrite the following sentences as negative statements, in which the word some is replaced by the word any. For example:
      He has sold some apples.
      He has not sold any apples.

      I need to buy some shoes.
      I do not need to buy any shoes.

1. I will make some salad.
2. We need some onions.
3. I have met some of your friends.
4. He has photographed some of the most beautiful parts of the city.
5. She wants to take some courses in Archaeology.
6. I recognized some of the students.
7. We have visited some of the offshore islands.
8. I have read some books by that author.
9. There is some danger involved.
10. I have some reservations about your plan.
11. They have interviewed some of the contestants.
12. She bought some of the books second-hand.
Answers

5. Rewrite each of the following sentences to express a negative meaning. Each sentence contains a word beginning with some. If the word beginning with some occurs at the beginning of the sentence, change the word beginning with some to the appropriate word or phrase beginning with no. For example:
      Some of the coats are expensive.
      None of the coats are expensive.

      Someone is at home.
      No one is at home.

If the word beginning with some occurs later in the sentence, change the sentence to a negative statement, and change the word beginning with some to the appropriate word beginning with any. For example:
      I have some paper.
      I do not have any paper.

      I saw your glasses somewhere.
      I did not see your glasses anywhere.

1. He has some relatives in the city.
2. I know someone here.
3. Some of us were surprised by the announcement.
4. I plan to go somewhere on my vacation.
5. Some tickets were sold this morning.
6. I heard someone playing the bagpipes.
7. I gave her some advice.
8. Something is wrong.
9. We bought something at the flea market.
10. They had some exciting adventures.
11. Someone offered to help me.
12. She knows someone working at the Library.
13. He lives somewhere near here.
14. Somebody left early.
15. I saw someone arriving by taxi.
16. Some books are missing.
17. I have something to do this afternoon.
18. Some of the magazines are worth reading.
Answers

6. Paying attention to the grammatical structure, complete each of the following sentences by filling in the blank with another, other, others or else, as appropriate. For example:
      Would you like _______ cup of tea?
      Would you like another cup of tea?

      The _____ guests have already arrived.
      The other guests have already arrived.

      Five of the books were returned on time , but three ______ were overdue.
      Five of the books were returned on time, but three others were overdue.

      Who ____ was at the party?
      Who else was at the party?

1. I want to borrow ___________ book from the library.
2. Three people moved out, and two ____________ moved in.
3. Who ___________ knows the secret?
4. There are several ____________ possibilities.
5. Where ____________ should I look?
6. Some students enjoyed the film, but ____________ did not.
7. He lives on the ____________ side of the lake.
8. I have _____________ idea.
9. ____________ people soon followed her example.
10. Do you know anyone ____________ here?
11. We are going to move to ___________ city.
12. Some birds feed on insects, while ____________ eat berries.
13. Somebody ____________ should have a turn now.
14. Few ____________ people attended the ceremony.
15. You may borrow this eraser. I have several ____________
16. What ____________ have you decided?
Answers

7. The following five sentences, labelled A to E, are identical except for the position of the word only:

      A. My only friend drew the picture of the child yesterday.
      B. My friend drew only the picture of the child yesterday.
      C. My friend drew the only picture of the child yesterday.
      D. My friend drew the picture of the only child yesterday.
      E. My friend drew the picture of the child only yesterday.

The meanings of the preceding five sentences are given in the five sentences below. For each sentence, fill in the blank with the letter (A to E) which corresponds to the sentence above which has the same meaning.

1. ___ My friend drew the one existing picture of the child yesterday.
2. ___ My friend drew nothing except the picture of the child yesterday.
3. ___ My friend drew the picture of the child as short a time ago as yesterday.
4. ___ The one friend that I have drew the picture of the child yesterday.
5. ___ My friend drew the picture of the one child in the family yesterday.
Answers

8. Explain the differences in meaning of the sentences in the following pairs.

1. There is a little butter left.
2. There is little butter left.

3. We encountered a few difficulties.
4. We encountered few difficulties.
Answers

9. Paying attention to the grammatical structure, for each of the following sentences, fill in the blank with such, so or too, as appropriate. In some of the sentences, the word that has been omitted. For example:
      I saw ____ beautiful flowers, I wished I had brought my camera with me.
      I saw such beautiful flowers, I wished I had brought my camera with me.

      The sun was __ bright that we had to wear sunglasses.
      The sun was so bright that we had to wear sunglasses.

      I saw __ many flowers that I could not identify them all.
      I saw so many flowers that I could not identify them all.

      By the time I received your message, it was ___ late to call you.
      By the time I received your message, it was too late to call you.

1. She sang ________ soothing lullabies that the baby was soon asleep.
2. He owned ________ many books that his walls were lined with bookcases.
3. The boys were _______ excited to sit still.
4. He has ________ varied interests, one never knows what he will do next.
5. They have ________ few enemies, they are accepted wherever they go.
6. The snow was ________ deep for us to walk across the field.
7. Yesterday I walked ________ far that I fell asleep immediately after supper.
8. I had ________ a good time at the party, I did not want to leave.
9. I see her ________ often that I feel I know her quite well.
10. The visibility was ________ poor for the mountains to be seen.
11. This is ________ an interesting book, I stayed up all night to read it.
12. This puzzle is ________ easy that a child could do it.
13. There was ________ much traffic, I could not cross the street.
14. She was ________ tired to watch the video.
15. They have _______ little furniture, it will be easy for them to move.
Answers
 

ANSWERS for CHAPTER 20. DETERMINERS

Answers to Exercise 1:
1. none 2. neither 3. All 4. any 5. both 6. either 7. both 8. any 9. none 10. all 11. neither 12. either 13. All 14. either 15. both 16. neither 17. any 18. none

Answers to Exercise 2:
1. has 2. live 3. their 4. his or her 5. her 6. are 7. their 8. is 9. its 10. is 11. his 12. are 13. writes 14. her

Answers to Exercise 3:
1. no 2. not 3. None 4. not 5. no 6. None 7. No 8. not 9. No 10. no 11. not 12. None

Answers to Exercise 4:
1. I will not make any salad. 2. We do not need any onions. 3. I have not met any of your friends. 4. He has not photographed any of the most beautiful parts of the city. 5. She does not want to take any courses in Archaeology. 6. I did not recognize any of the students. 7. We have not visited any of the offshore islands. 8. I have not read any books by that author. 9. There is not any danger involved. 10. I do not have any reservations about your plan. 11. They have not interviewed any of the contestants. 12. She did not buy any of the books second-hand.

Answers to Exercise 5:
1. He does not have any relatives in the city. 2. I do not know anyone here. 3. None of us were surprised by the announcement. 4. I do not plan to go anywhere on my vacation. 5. No tickets were sold this morning. 6. I did not hear anyone playing the bagpipes. 7. I did not give her any advice. 8. Nothing is wrong. 9. We did not buy anything at the flea market. 10. They did not have any exciting adventures. 11. No one offered to help me. 12. She does not know anyone working at the Library. 13. He does not live anywhere near here. 14. Nobody left early. 15. I did not see anyone arriving by taxi.

Answers to Exercise 6:
1. another 2. others 3. else 4. other 5. else 6. others 7. other 8. another 9. Other 10. else 11. another 12. others 13. else 14. other 15. others 16. else

Answers to Exercise 7:
1. C 2. B 3. E 4. A 5. D

Answers to Exercise 8:
Meanings:
1. There is some butter left. 2. There is a very small amount of butter left. 3. We encountered some difficulties. 4. We encountered a very small number of difficulties. [The phrase "few difficulties" implies that the difficulties were unimportant.]

Answers to Exercise 9:
1. such 2. so 3. too 4. such 5. so 6. too 7. so 8. such 9. so 10. too 11. such 12. so 13. so 14. too 15. so

 

Go to : Grammar Home | Table of Contents | Alphabetical Index | Back to Chapter 20

social media

search

advertise