SPECIAL PROBLEMS WITH ADJECTIVES

Those and Then

Those is an adjective if it followed by a noun. It is a pronoun if it is used alone.

Examples:

Those thieves are daring! (adjective modifying thieves)

Those are thieves! (pronoun)

Them is always a pronoun.

It is used only as the object of a verb or as the object of a preposition.

It is never used as an adjective.

Examples: We followed them. (Object of a verb)

They caught one of them. (Object of a preposition)

We heard them thieves breaking the door. (Incorrect)

The extra Here and There with demonstrative adjectives

It is incorrect to use the demonstrative adjectives this, that, those, and these with here and there before the nouns they modify.

Examples: “This here job”

“That there house”

“These here books”

“Those there carpets”

The adjectives this and these include the meaning of here whereas the adjectives that and those include the meaning of there.

Saying this here is like repeating oneself.

Kind and sort with demonstrative adjectives

Kind and sort are singular and hence should be used with singular demonstrative adjectives this and that.

Examples: I like this kind of story.

She likes that sort of food.

Kinds and sorts are plural and should be used with plural demonstrative adjectives these and those.

Examples: Those sorts of horror movies scare me.

These kinds of sports are for strong people.

Exercise

Choose the correct adjectives from the ones given in brackets in the following sentences.

1. A robot is one of (those, them) machines that looks and acts human.
2. (These, This) sorts of machines are very strange.
3. (This, This here) church was built in 1921.
4. (Them, Those) mushrooms are very delicious.
5. (Them, Those) soldiers won the battle.
6. People call (these, this) kinds of songs Soul.
7. John needed a name for (them, those) songs.
8. (This, this here) play is called Aminata.
9. Human beings have a fascination with (those, that) kind of machine.
10. (These, This) sort of a car is meant for ministers.

Answers on Adjectives

Exercise 1

1. Largest 6. Vast
2. Alaskan 7. American, wild
3. Tallest 8. huge
4. Tiny 9. Australian
5. Small, scattered 10. Beautiful, Egyptian

Exercise 2

1. Those 6. Those
2. Those 7. This
3. That 8. This
4. That 9. Those
5. This 10. Those

Exercise 3

1. Twenty 6. What
2. Few, our 7. Whose
3. All 8. Which
4. Much 9. What
5. Numerous, this 10. Which

Exercise 4

1. A The  3. A  4. An  5. The  6. The  7. The  8. The  9. An  10. A

Exercise 5

1. Many – songs
2. Her, early – songs, her – fans
3. Our, first – performance
4. Her – coughing
5. Their, best – goal, ten – years

Exercise 6

1. Quiet, serious
2. Popular
3. Calm, peaceful
4. Brilliant
5. Extraordinary

Exercise 7

1. More beautiful 6. Stranger
2. Funniest 7. More curious
3. Most enjoyable 8. Higher
4. Most energetic 9. More creative
5. Most helpful 10. Simpler

Exercise 8

1. Best 6. Farther
2. Bad 7. Less or lesser
3. Best 8. Good
4. Worse 9. Better
5. Least 10. Most

Exercise 9

1. Those 5. These
2. This 6. This
3. Those 7. That
4. Those 8. This
5. These 10. Those