ECG02 — Pronouns & Determiners
📚 Chapter ECG02 · CDS Grammar Level
CDS Level
📌 What This Chapter Covers: Pronouns and Determiners work closely together — pronouns replace nouns, and determiners introduce them. Both generate a very predictable set of errors in CDS English, particularly in Spotting Errors, Fill in the Blanks, and Sentence Improvement. The same 10–12 rules repeat across papers year after year. Learning them once pays off in every paper.
PART A — PRONOUNS
Types of Pronouns — At a Glance
A pronoun replaces a noun to avoid repetition. Its form (case) depends on its grammatical role in the sentence — not on what feels natural or sounds comfortable.
PE
Personal Pronouns
Subject, Object, Possessive cases
I/we/you/he/she/it/they and all their case forms. Case choice is the single biggest source of pronoun errors.
I, me, my, minehe, him, hiswe, us, our, ours
RF
Reflexive & Emphatic
-self / -selves forms
Reflexive = action returns to the subject (cannot be removed). Emphatic = adds stress (can be removed without changing meaning).
myself, yourselfhimself, itselfourselves, themselves
RL
Relative Pronouns
who / whom / whose / which / that
Connect a clause to the noun before them (the antecedent). Choice depends on whether the antecedent is a person or thing, and the role in the clause.
who (persons)which (things)whose (possession)
IN
Interrogative
who / whom / whose / which / what
Used to ask questions. “Who” for subject, “whom” for object of a verb or preposition.
Who won?Whom did you see?Whose is this?
ID
Indefinite Pronouns
each / every / none / either / neither
Refer to non-specific persons or things. Most take singular verbs — a very common exam error source.
each, everynone, eithersomeone, nobody
DM
Demonstrative
This / that / these / those
Point to specific things. Near → this/these. Far → that/those. Must agree in number with the noun they refer to.
this bookthose soldiersthese types (plural)
1. Personal Pronouns & Case Rules
Key Principle: A pronoun’s form (called its case) is determined by its grammatical role in the sentence. Subject case (I, he, she, we, they) is used as the subject of a verb. Object case (me, him, her, us, them) is used after a verb or preposition. This is where most CDS errors appear.
1.1 When to Use Subject vs Object Case SPOTTING ERRORS
Subject Case — Use when pronoun is the subject
- It is I who made the mistake.
- He and I went to the base.
- After “to be” formally: It is he. (not “him”)
- Comparative “than/as”: She is taller than I (am).
- In appositives: We officers were selected. (not “Us officers”)
Object Case — After preposition or verb
- After preposition: Between you and me (never “I”)
- After verb: The general praised him and me.
- In appositives to object: The CO selected us officers.
- With “let”: Let him and me go.
- Comparative + object role: She likes him more than me.
⚠ Classic CDS Trap — “Between you and I”: Always wrong. “Between” is a preposition — must use object case. Correct: “Between you and me.” Similarly: “to he and I” is wrong; “to him and me” is correct. The mistake sounds polite but is grammatically wrong.
Q1. Find the error: “(A) The matter / (B) was settled / (C) between you and I / (D) No error”
Answer: (C) “Between” is a preposition, so the pronoun after it must be in object case. “I” is subject case → WRONG. Correct: between you and me. This error is among the five most repeated in CDS English Spotting Errors across 2023–2025.
Q2. (CDS 2024-I pattern) Find the error: “(A) Us officers / (B) must maintain / (C) discipline at all times / (D) No error”
Answer: (A) “Officers” is in apposition to the subject of the verb “must maintain”. When a pronoun precedes a noun that is the subject, it must be in subject case. “Us” is object case → WRONG. Correct: We officers must maintain discipline at all times.
2. Reflexive & Emphatic Pronouns
2.1 Reflexive vs Emphatic — The Critical Difference VERY COMMON
Reflexive — Cannot be removed
- Subject performs and receives the same action
- He hurt himself. (removing it changes meaning)
- She introduced herself to the team.
- The soldier trained himself rigorously.
- After prepositions of place: He kept it to himself.
Emphatic — Can be removed
- Used for stress only; sentence is still complete without it
- The General himself inspected the troops.
- I myself wrote this report.
- She herself admitted the error.
- Placed right after the noun/pronoun it emphasises
⚠ Biggest Pronoun Error — Misuse of “myself”:
“Myself” is only used reflexively or emphatically — never as a plain substitute for “I” or “me”.
✗ My friend and myself completed the task. → should be my friend and I
✗ Please contact myself for details. → should be contact me
✓ I hurt myself. (reflexive) | ✓ I myself checked it. (emphatic — removable)
Q3. Find the error: “(A) The Colonel / (B) and myself / (C) attended the ceremony / (D) No error”
Answer: (B) “Myself” is not a subject pronoun and cannot be used here. Since “The Colonel and ___” is the subject of “attended”, use subject case. Correct: The Colonel and I attended the ceremony.
Q4. (Sentence Improvement) “He himself wrote the report.” — what type of pronoun is “himself” here?
- (a) Reflexive — necessary for meaning
- (b) Emphatic — can be removed
- (c) Interrogative — asking a question
- (d) Indefinite — refers to someone unknown
Answer: (b) Emphatic
The sentence “He wrote the report” is complete without “himself”. It adds emphasis — stress that he personally did it — but is grammatically removable. That is the defining feature of an emphatic pronoun. A reflexive pronoun cannot be removed without changing the meaning.
3. Relative Pronouns — who / whom / whose / which / that
Core Rule: Relative pronouns introduce a clause and connect it to the noun before them (the antecedent). Choose based on: (1) person or thing, and (2) the pronoun’s grammatical role (subject or object) inside the clause.
3.1 Who vs Whom — The He/Him Test CDS FAVOURITE
Quick Test
Replace the pronoun with “he/she” → use who. Replace with “him/her” → use whom.
✓ The officer who won = He won. ✓ The officer whom we saw = we saw him.
✓ To whom did you write? = You wrote to him. (object of preposition)
✗ To who did you write? (preposition → must use object case “whom”)
3.2 “which” vs “that” — Defining vs Non-defining SENTENCE IMPROVEMENT
“That” — Defining / Restrictive Clause
- Identifies exactly which one is meant
- No commas around the clause
- The gun that misfired was replaced.
- After superlatives: the best plan that exists
- After “only”, “all”, “same”: all that glitters
- Cannot use “that” after a preposition
“Which” — Non-defining / Non-restrictive Clause
- Adds extra, optional information
- Set off by commas
- The jeep, which was repaired, broke down again.
- Refers back to an entire clause or idea
- Always used after a preposition: about which we spoke
Q5. Fill in the blank: “The officer ___ we recommended for the award was eventually selected.”
- (a) who
- (b) whom
- (c) whose
- (d) which
Answer: (b) whom
The officer is the object of “recommended” in the relative clause: we recommended him → him test → use whom. If you can substitute “him/her”, always use “whom”.
Q6. Find the error: “(A) He is the best soldier / (B) which / (C) the regiment has produced / (D) No error”
Answer: (B) “Which” is used for things, not persons. The antecedent “soldier” is a person. Additionally, after superlatives (“the best”), use “that”. Correct: He is the best soldier that the regiment has produced.
Q. Identify all errors: “The army showed it’s strength in the exercise, whose result was outstanding.”
Error 1: “it’s” → Wrong here. it’s = contraction of “it is / it has”. The possessive is its (no apostrophe). Write: the army showed its strength.
Error 2: “whose” → “whose” is possessive relative; “who’s” = who is / who has. Here “whose” is used for a thing (result of the exercise) which is acceptable in formal English. No error in part 2.
Corrected: The army showed its strength in the exercise, whose result was outstanding.
Q. “Who’s bat is this?” — Spot the error.
Error: “Who’s” = who is / who has (contraction). The possessive form is whose (no apostrophe).
Correct: Whose bat is this? — This is a very common confusion and appears in CDS Fill in the Blanks as well as Spotting Errors.
4. Indefinite Pronouns — Verb Agreement
Core Rule: Most indefinite pronouns take singular verbs and singular possessive pronouns (his/her/its, not their), even when they feel plural in meaning. This creates some of the most frequently missed errors in CDS papers.
4.1 each / every / either / neither TESTED EVERY YEAR
each / every → always singular
- Each of the cadets has submitted his assignment.
- Every soldier was in position.
- “Every” never takes a plural noun: every soldier (not “every soldiers”)
- Exception: when “each” follows a plural subject: They each have their role.
either / neither → singular alone; proximity rule with correlatives
- Either of the two routes leads to the camp.
- Neither of the officers was on duty.
- “Either…or / Neither…nor” → verb agrees with nearer subject
- Neither he nor the soldiers were ready. (soldiers = nearer)
- Neither the soldiers nor he was ready. (he = nearer)
Q7. Find the error: “(A) Each of the soldiers / (B) have submitted / (C) their application form / (D) No error”
Answer: (B) and (C)
(B): “Each” is singular → use “has submitted”, not “have submitted”.
(C): Since “each” is singular, use “his/her”, not “their” in formal/exam grammar.
Correct: Each of the soldiers has submitted his application form.
Q8. (CDS 2025-I pattern) Fill in the blank: “Neither the Commanding Officer nor the platoon commanders ___ informed about the change.”
- (a) was
- (b) were
- (c) has been
- (d) have been
Answer: (b) were
With “neither…nor”, the verb agrees with the subject nearest to it. Here, “platoon commanders” (plural) is nearer → use plural verb “were”. If the sentence were reversed (“Neither the platoon commanders nor the CO ___”), the answer would be “was”.
5. Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement
Collective Noun Antecedents
- Acting as one unit → singular pronoun (its)
- The team has won its match.
- Members acting individually → plural (their)
- The team are arguing among themselves.
“One” as Antecedent
- “One” must be followed by “one’s” — not “his/her/their”
- ✓ One should do one’s duty.
- ✗ One should do his duty.
- Tested in NDA and CDS Fill in the Blank
5.1 Order of Persons in a Sentence FILL IN THE BLANK
Positive / Normal Context → 231 order
- 2nd person, then 3rd, then 1st
- ✓ You, he, and I are friends.
- ✓ You and I must work together.
Fault / Blame / Negative Context → 123 order
- 1st person takes responsibility first
- ✓ I, you, and he made the error.
- ✓ We are to blame for this.
💡 The Preposition Test: Whenever a pronoun follows a preposition (to, for, with, between, about, from, by), it must be in object case. Preposition + subject-case pronoun = always an error in CDS.
✓ between you and me | ✓ for him and me | ✗ between you and I / for he and I
6. Demonstrative Pronouns — This / That / These / Those
Rule — Demonstratives must agree in number with their nouns
✓ This type of soldier is rare. | These kinds of soldiers are rare.
✗ These type of soldier is rare. (“type” is singular → use This type)
✗ This kind of soldiers are rare. (“kind” is singular → use this kind of soldier is)
“This/that kind/type of” → followed by singular noun. “These/those kinds/types of” → followed by plural noun.
⚠ Rule — “none” and “neither” with “of”:
✓ None of the soldiers was injured. (singular — preferred in exams)
✓ Neither of the two officers was present. (choosing between exactly two → singular)
✗ Neither of the two officers were present. (wrong when used alone)
Q9. Find the error: “(A) These type / (B) of questions / (C) always appear in the paper / (D) No error”
Answer: (A) “Type” is singular → use “This type”, not “These type”. Demonstratives must match the number of the noun immediately following them.
Correct: This type of questions always appears in the paper.
Q10. (CDS 2024-II style) Sentence Improvement: “It is her who deserves the medal.”
- (a) It is she who deserves the medal.
- (b) It is her whom deserves the medal.
- (c) It is hers who deserves the medal.
- (d) No improvement needed
Answer: (a) After “It is / It was”, the formal grammatical rule requires subject case. “Her” is object case → wrong. Replace with “she” (subject case). Correct: It is she who deserves the medal. This same rule applies to “It is I who…”, “It was he who…” etc.
Q. Identify the error: “Neither of the two platoon commanders are ready for the review.”
Error: “Neither” used alone (without “nor”) always takes a singular verb, especially when choosing between exactly two.
Correct: Neither of the two platoon commanders is ready for the review.
Memory hook: “neither” alone = singular; “neither…nor” = proximity rule.
Q. Find all errors: “Everyone of the recruits have submitted their forms to myself.”
Error 1: “Everyone of” → Wrong. The correct phrase is “Every one of” (two words when followed by “of”).
Error 2: “have” → “Every one” is singular → use “has”.
Error 3: “their” → singular antecedent (every one) → use “his/her”.
Error 4: “myself” → misused as a plain object. Use “me”.
Corrected: Every one of the recruits has submitted his/her form to me.
PART B — DETERMINERS
What Are Determiners?
A determiner is a word placed before a noun to specify, quantify, or identify it. Unlike adjectives, determiners are often grammatically required — a singular countable noun cannot stand alone in standard English. Every determiner precedes the noun (and any adjectives before it).
AR
Articles
a / an / the / zero article
The most tested determiner type. Choice depends on sound, specificity, and noun type.
a soldieran hourthe army
QT
Quantifiers
much / many / few / little / some / any
Indicate quantity. The biggest source of errors: using countable quantifiers with uncountable nouns and vice versa.
many soldiersmuch watera few days
DM
Demonstrative Determiners
this / that / these / those
Point to specific nouns. Must match the number of the noun that follows them.
this riflethose mountainsthese officers
DS
Distributive Determiners
each / every / either / neither
Refer to members of a group individually. Always used with singular nouns and singular verbs.
each soldierevery dayeither route
PO
Possessive Determiners
my / your / his / her / its / our / their
Show ownership. Note: “its” (possessive) has no apostrophe; “it’s” is a contraction.
my rifletheir baseits strength
NU
Numerals & Other Determiners
one / two / all / both / half / enough
Specify number or extent. “Both” for exactly two; “all” for three or more; “enough” placement matters.
both brothersall soldiershalf an hour
7. Quantifiers — Countable vs Uncountable
The Core Distinction: Using the wrong quantifier with the wrong type of noun is one of the top three error categories in CDS Fill in the Blanks. Learn which quantifiers go with countable nouns, which with uncountable, and which with both.
Q11. Find the error: “(A) The colonel / (B) gave much / (C) advices to the cadets / (D) No error”
Answer: (B) and (C)
(B): “Much” is used with uncountable nouns. “Advice” is uncountable, so “much advice” is fine in isolation. But (C): “advices” is wrong — “advice” cannot be pluralised. The error is in (C): write “advice”. Full correction: The colonel gave much advice to the cadets.
Q12. Fill in the blank: “There were ___ soldiers present, but ___ ammunition was left.”
- (a) few … little
- (b) little … few
- (c) a few … much
- (d) many … fewer
Answer: (a) few … little
“Soldiers” is countable plural → use few/a few. “Ammunition” is uncountable → use little/a little. Without the article “a”, both “few” and “little” carry a negative/insufficient meaning, which fits the context of a difficult situation.
8. few vs a few · little vs a little
“A few” (positive) vs “Few” (negative) — countable nouns
- a few = some, enough (optimistic): A few soldiers volunteered. (some did)
- few = almost none (pessimistic): Few soldiers volunteered. (hardly any)
- Both used with countable plural nouns only
“A little” (positive) vs “Little” (negative) — uncountable nouns
- a little = some, enough: There is a little hope. (encouraging)
- little = almost none: There is little hope. (discouraging)
- Both used with uncountable nouns only
9. some vs any — Common Fill in the Blank Trap
“Some” — Affirmative sentences & polite offers/requests
- ✓ I have some water. (affirmative)
- ✓ Would you like some tea? (offer — exception to the rule)
- ✓ Could I have some more? (request)
“Any” — Negatives & genuine questions
- ✓ I don’t have any water. (negative)
- ✓ Do you have any ammunition? (question)
- ✗ I have any water. (wrong in affirmative)
10. Demonstrative Determiners — This/That/These/Those
Q13. Find the error: “(A) Much of the information / (B) that was given / (C) were incorrect / (D) No error”
Answer: (C) “Information” is an uncountable noun → always singular verb. Despite “much of the information” sounding plural in feel, the head noun is “information” (singular). Correct: Much of the information… was incorrect.
Q14. (CDS 2025-II pattern) Fill in the blank: “He has ___ experience but ___ friends in the city.”
- (a) little … few
- (b) few … little
- (c) a little … a few
- (d) much … many
Answer: (a) little … few
“Experience” is uncountable → use little (negative meaning fits here). “Friends” is countable plural → use few (negative meaning fits). Option (c) “a little … a few” would give a positive/optimistic tone, which changes the meaning significantly.
Q. Identify the error: “The amount of soldiers present was insufficient for the operation.”
Error: “Amount of” is used with uncountable nouns. “Soldiers” is countable. Use “number of” with countable nouns.
Correct: The number of soldiers present was insufficient for the operation.
Memory hook: count on a NUMBER; measure an AMOUNT.
Q. “There are less recruits this year than last year.” — Spot the error and explain.
Error: “Less” is used with uncountable nouns. “Recruits” is countable plural → use “fewer”.
Correct: There are fewer recruits this year than last year.
Rule: fewer = countable; less = uncountable. “Less soldiers”, “less people”, “less candidates” are all errors in CDS grammar.
11. enough — Position Matters
Rule — “enough” comes BEFORE nouns but AFTER adjectives and adverbs
✓ He has enough time. (before noun)
✓ He is brave enough. (after adjective)
✓ He ran fast enough. (after adverb)
✗ He has time enough. | ✗ He is enough brave.
12. both / all / neither / none — Number Precision
For exactly two
- both → positive, for two: Both soldiers were selected.
- either → one of two: Either route leads to the camp.
- neither → not one, not the other (of two): Neither officer was on duty.
- between → used with exactly two
For three or more
- all → every one (of three or more): All soldiers were briefed.
- any → one or more (of three or more options)
- none → not one (of any number): None of the soldiers was injured.
- among → used with three or more
⚠ “either/neither” misused with more than two:
✗ Either of the three routes leads to the camp. (three options → use “any”)
✓ Any of the three routes leads to the camp.
✗ Neither of the three officers was present. (three → use “none”)
✓ None of the three officers was present.
📋 Quick Reference — Pronouns & Determiners
⛺ Pronoun Case Rules
- After preposition → object case (me, him, us, them)
- “Between you and me” — never “I”
- Subject of verb → subject case (I, he, we, they)
- It is I / It is she (formal: be + subject case)
🚫 Myself Misuse
- “My friend and myself” → WRONG (“I”)
- “Contact myself” → WRONG (“me”)
- Reflexive: I hurt myself (cannot remove)
- Emphatic: I myself checked (removable)
👥 Who vs Whom
- He test → who | Him test → whom
- After preposition: always whom
- “To whom” is correct; “to who” is wrong
- After superlative: use “that” not “which”
📊 Indefinite Pronoun Rules
- each, every, either, neither → singular verb
- both, few, many, several → plural verb
- none → singular (exam standard)
- neither…nor / either…or → proximity rule
📑 Countable Quantifiers Only
- many, few, a few, several, each, every
- either, neither, both (for exactly 2)
- fewer (comparative), a number of
- these, those (plural demonstratives)
📑 Uncountable Quantifiers Only
- much, little, a little
- a great deal of, a good deal of
- less (comparative), an amount of
- less → uncountable; fewer → countable
✅ some vs any
- some → affirmative sentences
- any → negatives & questions
- some in offers/requests is correct
- “Would you like some tea?” ✓
🔄 Two vs Three or More
- both / either / neither / between → exactly 2
- all / any / none / among → 3 or more
- “either of three” → WRONG (use any)
- “neither of three” → WRONG (use none)
⚠ Top Exam Traps
- “between you and I” → WRONG (me)
- “these type of” → WRONG (this type of)
- “much soldiers” → WRONG (many)
- “less soldiers” → WRONG (fewer)
- “amount of soldiers” → WRONG (number of)
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