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