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