MULTIMEDIA-ENGLISH

Before doing this activity you may need to read the text you will find at the end


  Drag&Drop
General use of the article
Focus Grammar
Description Complete these sentences with the correct article or with -- (nothing) when no article is possible. IMPORTANT! In sentences where you can correctly put an article or nothing (--), you must use the article for this exercise. Only when nothing (--) is the only possibility, we accept it.
Instructions Click on the words at the bottom and drag them into the empty boxes of the sentence to complete it.
 
Gapped text Items
Did you see ______________________ tigers? -- / the / any / a / an / some
He's got ______________________ big hands the / any / an / some / a / --
- Do you like ______________________ coffee? - Yes, but it's a bit too hot, I'll wait the / any / a / some / -- / an
Have you got ______________________ books I can read? any / the / -- / some / a / an
I like ______________________ Spanish food, but ______________________ Spanish food Lola prepares is the best. an / -- / some / a / -- / any / any / an / some / a / the / the
I've got ______________________ birds at home some / the / -- / a / any / an
Do you like ______________________ coffee? I can make you one. -- / an / any / a / the / some
I haven't got ______________________ friends here some / an / the / a / any / --
Have you got ______________________ boyfriend? an / -- / some / any / a / the
______________________ pop music always makes me want to dance. a / some / any / -- / an / the
Kelly's got ______________________ short fair hair. -- / an / some / the / a / any
I only wear ______________________ coat in winter. any / -- / a / some / the / an
There are ______________________ eggs in the fridge. -- / a / some / the / any / an
I like ______________________ bananas some / an / a / the / any / --
______________________ shops are open, but most are closed. the / a / any / an / -- / some
Do you collect ______________________ stamps? the / any / some / -- / a / an
We went to ______________________ zoo with ______________________ children. an / an / any / the / some / the / -- / a / any / a / -- / some
Do you need ______________________ umbrella? I've got many. the / a / some / an / any / --
I can't find ______________________ nice books in this library some / a / any / an / -- / the
My father is ______________________ doctor the / an / any / some / a / --
There aren't ______________________ shops open at this time. some / the / any / a / -- / an
______________________ sugar isn't good for you. the / -- / an / a / some / any
I'm not wearing ______________________ ring because I'm not married -- / an / the / any / some / a
Paul has got ______________________ big eyes. -- / some / the / an / any / a
______________________ diamond rings are too expensive for me a / any / -- / some / an / the
______________________ children spend their life learning the / any / a / an / some / --
Are there ______________________ children in the garden? any / the / an / some / -- / a
______________________ palm trees don't grow in Scotland -- / the / an / any / some / a
Do ______________________ English people work hard? some / an / a / the / -- / any
Sorry, I haven't got ______________________ potatoes left a / -- / an / some / any / the
No thanks, I don't need ______________________ milk any / some / -- / the / a / an
______________________ tigers live in Asia. a / some / -- / any / an / the
______________________ film wasn't very good, but I liked ______________________ music. the / -- / -- / an / a / an / any / some / the / some / a / any
______________________ zoo was nice, but ______________________ tigers looked very sad. some / an / any / some / any / the / an / the / a / -- / -- / a
We haven't got ______________________ tomatoes. a / some / an / the / -- / any
I've got ______________________ friends in China any / the / a / an / -- / some
______________________ birds can fly the / some / -- / any / an / a
______________________ friends are coming for dinner, so I have to clean ______________________ house. any / some / the / any / some / -- / an / an / the / a / -- / a
______________________ grass is green and ______________________ water is transparent -- / a / some / the / any / some / -- / a / an / any / the / an
Sandra is ______________________ nurse. the / an / a / some / -- / any
______________________ children learn very quickly, but others have problems. -- / some / a / the / any / an
all ______________________ cars in this car park look very expensive a / the / an / the / -- / some / any
Can you pass me ______________________ sugar, please? any / an / the / some / a / --
Do you need ______________________ sugar? I can buy it. the / -- / some / a / any / an
In the jungle you can find ______________________ birds and ______________________ monkeys. an / some / some / any / -- / the / a / the / any / a / -- / an
Hey, listen to ______________________ birds, they are singing very strangely -- / a / some / an / the / any
She bought ______________________ new stamps for her collection. the / an / -- / some / any / a
I dreamt of ______________________ man without ______________________ head some / -- / -- / any / a / any / the / an / some / a / an / the
Do ______________________ English people you know work hard? a / an / any / the / some / --
You've got ______________________ very beautiful eyes. some / any / the / -- / a / an
______________________ planes are faster than ______________________ cars. a / -- / any / -- / some / a / the / an / the / an / any / some
She's got ______________________ long face. -- / the / a / an / any / some
I've seen ______________________ very good films recently. an / -- / any / the / a / some
- Do you like ______________________ French wine? - No, I prefer ______________________ sherry the / an / a / -- / any / -- / a / some / some / the / any / an
I need ______________________ bananas. some / a / an / -- / the / any
All ______________________ cars are very expensive the / some / a / an / any / --
Total number of items: 56
This is an activity from Multimedia-English www.multimedia-english.com
 

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".