Final answer:
The demonstrative adjective 'These' should be used to complete the sentence referring to something near the speaker. 'These leaves look like teeth' is the proper construction, as 'these' indicates closeness and 'leaves' is a plural noun.
Step-by-step explanation:
The correct demonstrative adjective to complete the sentence '_________ leaves look like teeth' (near) is 'These'. When referring to something that is physically close to the speaker, the demonstrative adjectives 'this' (for singular nouns) and 'these' (for plural nouns) are used. Therefore, the complete sentence should read: 'These leaves look like teeth.' Demonstrative adjectives are used to clarify the distance between the speaker and the noun they are describing.
Noun Phrases and Subject Complements
Noun phrases that act as subject complements are often followed by the preposition 'like'. A subject complement follows a linking verb and renames or describes the subject of a sentence. For example, in 'The taxi driver seemed like a nice man', 'a nice man' is a noun phrase acting as the subject complement.