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