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