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Determiner vs Attributive - What's the difference?

determiner | attributive |

In grammar terms the difference between determiner and attributive

is that determiner is a dependent function in a noun phrase marking the NP as definite or indefinite. This function is usually filled by words in the determinative class but may be filled by other elements such as a genitive pronoun while attributive is an attributive word or phrase (see above), contrasted with predicative.

As an adjective attributive is

modifying a noun, while in the same phrase as that noun.

determiner

English

Noun

(en noun)
  • (grammar) A member of a class of words functioning in a noun phrase to identify or distinguish a referent without describing or modifying it. Examples of determiners include articles (a, the), demonstratives (this, those), cardinal numbers (three, fifty), and indefinite numerals (most, any, each).
  • (grammar) A dependent function in a noun phrase marking the NP as definite or indefinite. This function is usually filled by words in the determinative class but may be filled by other elements such as a genitive pronoun.
  • Something that determines, or helps someone to determine, something else.
  • * 1901 : Azel Ames, The Mayflower and Her Log
  • The "steel-yards" and "measures" were the only determiners of weight and quantity — as the hour-glass and sun dial were of time — possessed at first (so far as appears) by the passengers of the Pilgrim ship,

    Synonyms

    * (word class) determinative

    Derived terms

    * (in grammar) determiner phrase

    See also

    * * * article * demonstrative

    References

    determiner in Huddleston & Pullum, 2002. CUP. ----

    attributive

    English

    Adjective

    (en adjective)
  • (grammar, of a word or phrase) Modifying a noun, while in the same phrase as that noun.
  • In "this big house", "big" is attributive , whereas in "this house is big", it is predicative.
  • Having the nature of an attribute.
  • *
  • Since both Attributes'' and ''Adjuncts'' recursively expand N-bar into N-bar, it seems clear that the two have essentially the same function, so that ''Attributes'' are simply pronominal Adjuncts (though we shall continue to follow tradition and refer to attributive premodifiers as ''Attributes'' rather than ''Adjuncts ).

    Antonyms

    * predicative

    Derived terms

    * attributively * attributive adjective * attributive noun * attributive verb

    Noun

    (wikipedia attributive) (en noun)
  • (grammar) An attributive word or phrase (see above), contrasted with predicative.
  • In "this big house," "big" is an attributive , while in "this house is big," it is a predicative.
    In "this tiger is a man-eater," "man" is an attributive noun.