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