Why did Egyptian scribes use determinatives at the ends of words?

In hieroglyphic writing, Egyptian scribes used determinatives at the ends of words to specify meaning and assist in word division.1

Because the Egyptian writing system primarily represented consonants and generally omitted vowels, different words could share the same phonetic spelling. Determinatives carried no phonetic significance themselves; instead, they acted as terminal markers to clarify which specific word was intended.1

For example, the phonetic sequence p + r + t could represent "to go," "winter," or "fruit." By adding a specific determinative—such as walking legs for movement, a sun disk for time, or a pellet sign for objects—the scribe signaled the correct meaning to the reader. These signs were categorized by their function, with generic determinatives used for broad concepts like movement, perception, or abstract ideas.1