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