无论名词是直接跟在限定词后面，或者是有一个修饰语夹在当中，限定词都是用来澄清名词的。限定词共有四类：冠词，所有格，指示词，和量词。
冠词有 a, and 和 the. 这些是英文里最常见的限定词。A或 an意思是“任何一个” 或“许多个之一”，所以它们被认为是“不定”冠词。
如果跟在冠词后面的名词以辅音开头，要用a 这个冠词。例如:
但是，如果跟在冠词后面的名词以元音开头，要用 an 这个冠词。例如：
- an elephant
- an old baseball
The 被称为定冠词，因为它指的是某一个具体的人，事物或概念。例如：
Courses that I want to take include life drawing and sculpture. The sculpture class is taught by a world-class sculptor.
所有格表达所属。例如；
- our house
- his hat
- whose turn
指示词在几个可能的选择当中，挑拣出一个来。它们的意义，可以是具体的，或者是普及性的。
- that car
- this coat
- any pencil
- which person
量词表达数量。例如：
- all players
- many times
- some money
Determiners are words that clarify a noun either immediately following the determiner or with a modifier between them. There are four categories of determiners: articles, possessives, demonstratives, and quantifiers.
A, an, and the are articles. These are the most common determiners in English. A or an can mean "any one" or "one among many," so they are considered indefinite articles.
If the word that follows the article begins with a consonant sound, you should use the article a. For example:
On the other hand, if the noun or its modifier begins with a vowel sound, you should use the article an. For example:
- an elephant
- an old baseball
The is called a definite article because it tells which specific person, thing, or idea is being referred to. For example:
Courses that I want to take include life drawing and sculpture. The sculpture class is taught by a world-class sculptor.
Possessives show ownership. For example:
- our house
- his hat
- whose turn
Demonstratives select among possible choices. They can be specific or universal. For example:
- that car
- this coat
- any pencil
- which person
Quantifiers show amounts. For example:
- all players
- many times
- some money