Before doing this activity you may need to read the text you will find at the end
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| Gapped text | Items |
|---|---|
| Do you need ______________________ sugar? I can buy it. | an / the / a / any / -- / some |
| No thanks, I don't need ______________________ milk | some / -- / the / any / an / a |
| Did you see ______________________ tigers? | a / any / an / some / the / -- |
| I've got ______________________ birds at home | a / an / -- / the / any / some |
| Do you need ______________________ umbrella? I've got many. | some / an / any / -- / the / a |
| Sandra is ______________________ nurse. | any / a / some / the / -- / an |
| She's got ______________________ long face. | any / an / some / -- / the / a |
| ______________________ planes are faster than ______________________ cars. | a / any / an / -- / the / an / some / -- / some / any / the / a |
| all ______________________ cars in this car park look very expensive | a / an / the / some / any / -- / the |
| ______________________ friends are coming for dinner, so I have to clean ______________________ house. | some / -- / any / any / an / a / -- / some / an / the / a / the |
| I haven't got ______________________ friends here | a / some / the / any / an / -- |
| I like ______________________ Spanish food, but ______________________ Spanish food Lola prepares is the best. | some / an / some / an / a / the / -- / -- / a / any / any / the |
| He's got ______________________ big hands | any / -- / some / an / a / the |
| Paul has got ______________________ big eyes. | any / the / a / some / -- / an |
| ______________________ children spend their life learning | some / -- / an / any / the / a |
| ______________________ diamond rings are too expensive for me | a / some / -- / the / any / an |
| Have you got ______________________ boyfriend? | a / any / the / an / -- / some |
| Sorry, I haven't got ______________________ potatoes left | any / -- / an / the / a / some |
| I can't find ______________________ nice books in this library | a / an / any / -- / some / the |
| There are ______________________ eggs in the fridge. | -- / some / the / any / an / a |
| ______________________ shops are open, but most are closed. | -- / the / some / a / any / an |
| ______________________ zoo was nice, but ______________________ tigers looked very sad. | an / any / the / any / a / -- / an / -- / some / some / a / the |
| Kelly's got ______________________ short fair hair. | a / the / any / an / -- / some |
| All ______________________ cars are very expensive | a / some / an / any / the / -- |
| In the jungle you can find ______________________ birds and ______________________ monkeys. | -- / an / a / any / a / some / some / the / -- / any / an / the |
| ______________________ birds can fly | an / some / -- / a / any / the |
| ______________________ pop music always makes me want to dance. | any / the / -- / some / a / an |
| She bought ______________________ new stamps for her collection. | the / any / an / -- / some / a |
| I only wear ______________________ coat in winter. | some / the / an / a / -- / any |
| ______________________ sugar isn't good for you. | the / -- / some / a / an / any |
| Are there ______________________ children in the garden? | an / a / the / -- / some / any |
| I dreamt of ______________________ man without ______________________ head | an / -- / a / any / the / -- / some / the / any / some / an / a |
| I've seen ______________________ very good films recently. | an / -- / the / some / a / any |
| ______________________ film wasn't very good, but I liked ______________________ music. | the / -- / -- / an / an / any / some / the / any / a / a / some |
| I need ______________________ bananas. | any / an / some / the / -- / a |
| Do ______________________ English people you know work hard? | an / some / any / a / -- / the |
| I've got ______________________ friends in China | an / the / any / some / -- / a |
| ______________________ grass is green and ______________________ water is transparent | an / any / a / -- / the / some / some / any / -- / an / the / a |
| Hey, listen to ______________________ birds, they are singing very strangely | -- / an / the / some / a / any |
| Can you pass me ______________________ sugar, please? | an / the / some / -- / any / a |
| ______________________ palm trees don't grow in Scotland | some / -- / the / any / a / an |
| Do you collect ______________________ stamps? | an / a / some / any / -- / the |
| I'm not wearing ______________________ ring because I'm not married | any / an / some / -- / the / a |
| There aren't ______________________ shops open at this time. | the / an / any / some / a / -- |
| Do you like ______________________ coffee? I can make you one. | a / any / an / the / -- / some |
| ______________________ tigers live in Asia. | any / some / a / -- / an / the |
| My father is ______________________ doctor | a / an / -- / some / the / any |
| - Do you like ______________________ French wine? - No, I prefer ______________________ sherry | any / some / the / a / any / a / -- / some / an / an / the / -- |
| We haven't got ______________________ tomatoes. | the / an / any / some / a / -- |
| Have you got ______________________ books I can read? | an / some / any / -- / the / a |
| I like ______________________ bananas | the / any / a / an / some / -- |
| - Do you like ______________________ coffee? - Yes, but it's a bit too hot, I'll wait | an / a / any / -- / the / some |
| We went to ______________________ zoo with ______________________ children. | some / any / -- / a / a / the / -- / an / some / any / an / the |
| ______________________ children learn very quickly, but others have problems. | any / an / some / the / a / -- |
| Do ______________________ English people work hard? | the / -- / an / any / a / some |
| You've got ______________________ very beautiful eyes. | some / a / the / -- / any / an |
Note: In cases when you can use some/any or no article, it is more normal to use some/any
"I need some milk" is more normal than "I need milk".
When talking in general there is no article
- I like apples
- tigers live in Asia
- grass is green and water is transparent
Note: French wine is very expensive (we are not talking about all the wine in general, but we are talking about all the "French wine" in general, so we use no article)
When talking about something particular and known, we use "the" in every case
- the president of Uganda is ill (we know what president we are talking about)
- the elephants of Africa are bigger than those in Asia
- the wine you sell is excellent
When talking about something particular but unspecified, we use the indefinite article:
- I want an apple (I don't want a specific apple, any apple is fine, this or that or that one there; if it's an apple, it's ok)
- I want apples = I want some apples
- I want wine = I want some wine
The indefinite article "a" ("an" before a vowel) is singular, and so, we cannot use it for plurals or uncountables. Nevertheless, in those cases we can normally use the indefinite article "some" ("any" for interrogatives and negatives).
- I have a book
- I have books = I have some books
- I don't have books = I don't have any books
- Have you got books? = Have you got any books?
REMEMBER! "some/any" is an indefinite article, and so, it can only be used when the quantity or number is unspecified and not very big, otherwise, we do not use it (if you have thousands of books you cannot say "I have some books", you have to say "I have books / I have many books"). It means something similar to "a few / a little".
