Seminar practice 5 – Articles with names; possessive case (based on Murphy U77-81)


1. Do the following names take ‘the’?


-         Hyde Park                  - Bahamas                              - United Kingdom

-         Irish Republic             - Globe Theatre                      - Grand Hotel

-         North Sea                   - National Gallery                  - St Patrick’s Cathedral

-         Atlantic Ocean           - River Thames                       - Masaryk University

-         Africa                         - South Wales                         - Buckingham Palace

-         France                         - Netherlands                         - Guardian (a
newspaper)

-         Alps                            - English Channel                   - Statue of Liberty


2. Complete the following sentences using ‘the’ where necessary:

1.      …… Queen Elizabeth II has been on the throne since 1952.

2.      ….. Queen lives at Buckingham Palace in London.

3.      I would like to take the children to …… Science Museum.

4.      ….. River Nile flows through Egypt.

5.      Her grandfather is French and lives in …… south of France.

6.      …. President Kennedy was the youngest president of ….. United States.

7.      The train to Paris leaves from ….. Waterloo Station.

8.      …. Seychelles are a group of islands in ….. Indian Ocean.


3. Choose the correct form:

1.      Maths is/are Emma’s favourite subject.

2.      Darts is/are often played in pubs in England.

3.      The clothes was/were in the dryer.

4.      Five days is/are long enough for a short holiday.

5.      The outskirts of the town are/is safer than the city centre.

6.      The police is/are still looking for the robbers.

7.      The staff at the school is/are on strike today.

8.      The television news begin/begins at 9 o’clock.

9.      His new glasses was/were quite expensive.

10.  Do you have a/- scissors, please?


4. Correct the mistakes in the following sentences:


1.      It is not far from here, it’s just a ten-minute walk.

2.      There’s some luggage in the car. Can you bring them, please?

3.      Shall I buy a milk? – Yes, take two cartons, please.

4.      I wear this glasses when I go out.

5.      John and Mary are very nice persons, aren’t they?

6.      The bicycle is cheap means of transport.

7.      How many jeans have you got?

8.      I got a new pyjama for my birthday.


5. Complete the sentences using the word/words in brackets:


1.      This photo was taken in ……………………………………. (garden/my friend). It was ……………… (the twins)
birthday party.

2.      …………………….. (children/shoes) can be quite expensive these days.

3.      ……………………………….. (Mark and Jenny/wedding) is next Saturday, isn’t it?

4.      Is Alex a …………………………… (boy or girl/name)?

5.      It’s not my jacket. It must be …………… (John).

6.      I can’t remember the ………………………… (title/book).

7. I read about the accident in ………………………. (yesterday/paper).

8. Don’t forget to read the note at ………………………. … (bottom/page).

9. The ………………………………………… (government/decision) will be announced today.

10. You can’t have ………………….......… (three weeks/holiday) now, we need you here.

11. What’s ………………………… (Tom/sister) name? Is it Alice? – I have no idea.


6. Are both phrases correct / acceptable?


1.      a ten-minute walk   vs. ten minutes’ walk

2.      the men’s cars  vs. the man’s car

3.      the car’s door   vs. the door of the car

4.      the meeting’s day vs. the day of the meeting

5.      the world’s population vs. the population of the world

Answers

 Ex. 1

-         Hyde Park                  -the  Bahamas                        - the United Kingdom

-         the Irish Republic       - Globe Theatre                      -the  Grand Hotel

-         the North Sea             - the National Gallery            - St Patrick’s Cathedral

-         the Atlantic Ocean     - the River Thames                 - Masaryk University

-         Africa                         - South Wales                         - Buckingham Palace

-         France                         -the  Netherlands                   - the Guardian (a
newspaper)

-         the Alps                      - the English Channel             - the Statue of Liberty


Ex. 2

1.      –

2.      The Queen

3.      …the Science Museum

4.      The River Nile

5.      …the south of France

6.      …President Kennedy…. the United States

7.      –

8.      The Seychelles, … the Indian Ocean


Ex. 3

1.      Maths is

2.      Darts is

3.      …clothes were

4.      Five days is …

5.      … the outskirts of the town are …

6.      The police are

7.      The staff are

8.      …news begins

9.      Glasses were

10.  …. scissors


Ex. 4

1.      Correct or ten minutes’ walk

2.      Can you bring it?

3.      Shall I buy milk?

4.      …these glasses

5.      …very nice people

6.      …a cheap means of transport

7.      How many pairs of jeans….

8.      … a new pair of pyjamas


Ex. 5

1.      …my friend’s garden

2.      Children’s shoes

3.      Mark and Jenny’s wedding

4.      ….a boy’s or girl’s name

5.      …. John’s

6.      the title of the book / the book title

7.      yesterday’s paper

8.      … at the bottom of the page

9.      The government’s decision  or the decision of the government

10.  ….three weeks’ holiday

11.  …Tom’s sister’s name


Ex. 6

1.      the same meaning

2.      plural vs. singular

3.      the first phrase is wrong – correct: the car door or the door of the car

4.      the meeting day or the day of the meeting