Before doing this activity you may need to read the text you will find at the end
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| Gapped text | Items |
|---|---|
| No thanks, I don't need ______________________ milk | -- / the / an / any / some / a |
| There aren't ______________________ shops open at this time. | a / any / some / -- / an / the |
| We haven't got ______________________ tomatoes. | an / -- / a / the / some / any |
| He's got ______________________ big hands | -- / a / any / an / some / the |
| Did you see ______________________ tigers? | some / -- / the / an / any / a |
| All ______________________ cars are very expensive | some / any / -- / the / a / an |
| ______________________ grass is green and ______________________ water is transparent | the / any / -- / the / any / a / some / some / a / an / an / -- |
| ______________________ friends are coming for dinner, so I have to clean ______________________ house. | some / -- / a / the / any / an / an / the / -- / a / any / some |
| Paul has got ______________________ big eyes. | the / any / some / an / a / -- |
| all ______________________ cars in this car park look very expensive | an / a / any / some / the / -- / the |
| ______________________ birds can fly | a / some / the / any / an / -- |
| Do ______________________ English people you know work hard? | the / -- / a / any / an / some |
| Hey, listen to ______________________ birds, they are singing very strangely | any / the / a / -- / some / an |
| Can you pass me ______________________ sugar, please? | an / a / any / the / -- / some |
| She's got ______________________ long face. | some / -- / a / an / any / the |
| Kelly's got ______________________ short fair hair. | an / some / a / -- / the / any |
| You've got ______________________ very beautiful eyes. | any / an / a / the / -- / some |
| - Do you like ______________________ coffee? - Yes, but it's a bit too hot, I'll wait | a / -- / some / the / an / any |
| I like ______________________ bananas | any / -- / the / a / an / some |
| - Do you like ______________________ French wine? - No, I prefer ______________________ sherry | a / an / a / some / some / the / any / the / -- / an / -- / any |
| ______________________ sugar isn't good for you. | any / -- / some / the / an / a |
| Have you got ______________________ books I can read? | the / -- / an / some / a / any |
| ______________________ film wasn't very good, but I liked ______________________ music. | an / -- / an / a / the / some / the / some / any / a / -- / any |
| I've got ______________________ birds at home | some / any / -- / the / an / a |
| I dreamt of ______________________ man without ______________________ head | -- / an / some / -- / a / a / any / the / an / the / some / any |
| I need ______________________ bananas. | an / the / a / -- / some / any |
| I only wear ______________________ coat in winter. | some / an / -- / the / a / any |
| ______________________ tigers live in Asia. | -- / any / the / some / a / an |
| Do you collect ______________________ stamps? | an / the / a / some / any / -- |
| Sorry, I haven't got ______________________ potatoes left | some / a / the / -- / an / any |
| Do ______________________ English people work hard? | the / any / -- / an / a / some |
| Have you got ______________________ boyfriend? | -- / an / any / the / some / a |
| Are there ______________________ children in the garden? | the / an / some / a / any / -- |
| She bought ______________________ new stamps for her collection. | a / some / the / -- / an / any |
| I can't find ______________________ nice books in this library | the / an / -- / any / a / some |
| There are ______________________ eggs in the fridge. | a / the / any / an / some / -- |
| ______________________ children learn very quickly, but others have problems. | any / -- / the / some / an / a |
| Do you need ______________________ sugar? I can buy it. | -- / an / the / some / a / any |
| ______________________ diamond rings are too expensive for me | some / any / a / an / the / -- |
| ______________________ children spend their life learning | any / a / some / -- / an / the |
| ______________________ pop music always makes me want to dance. | -- / a / an / any / some / the |
| ______________________ shops are open, but most are closed. | some / -- / the / an / a / any |
| Do you like ______________________ coffee? I can make you one. | any / some / an / the / -- / a |
| My father is ______________________ doctor | -- / a / an / any / some / the |
| I'm not wearing ______________________ ring because I'm not married | a / an / some / the / -- / any |
| I've seen ______________________ very good films recently. | the / an / a / some / -- / any |
| ______________________ planes are faster than ______________________ cars. | some / an / an / some / -- / the / the / a / any / -- / any / a |
| I like ______________________ Spanish food, but ______________________ Spanish food Lola prepares is the best. | any / the / -- / -- / some / a / an / some / an / a / the / any |
| We went to ______________________ zoo with ______________________ children. | any / a / -- / an / -- / an / some / some / any / a / the / the |
| ______________________ palm trees don't grow in Scotland | the / -- / a / an / some / any |
| I haven't got ______________________ friends here | an / -- / any / the / some / a |
| I've got ______________________ friends in China | any / the / -- / some / a / an |
| ______________________ zoo was nice, but ______________________ tigers looked very sad. | an / the / a / any / an / some / some / any / -- / the / a / -- |
| Do you need ______________________ umbrella? I've got many. | -- / the / any / an / a / some |
| Sandra is ______________________ nurse. | -- / the / any / an / some / a |
| In the jungle you can find ______________________ birds and ______________________ monkeys. | a / an / a / -- / any / some / any / some / the / an / the / -- |
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".
