Verb “To Be” – English Grammar Exercises for A1
You are walking a new client or business partner around your company’s office. You are introducing your colleagues, explaining who they are, and describing their professional roles.
Choose the best option to complete each sentence.
1 Welcome to our office! I ______ the office manager.
(a) am
(b) have
(c) is
2 This is David. He ______ a software engineer.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) has
3 Please meet Sarah and Tom. They ______ our best accountants.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) am
4 Let me introduce myself properly. I ______ the receptionist here.
(a) am
(b) is
(c) do
5 We ______ the marketing team. Let me show you our desks.
(a) have
(b) is
(c) are
6 Mr. Lee ______ the CEO of this company.
(a) is
(b) does
(c) are
7 Excuse me, ______ you the new client?
(a) Are
(b) Do
(c) Is
8 The woman over there ______ a secretary; she is the department head!
(a) doesn’t
(b) isn’t
(c) doesn’t be
9 ______ John a technician? We need some help with the printer.
(a) Are
(b) Does
(c) Is
10 My colleagues ______ very talented web designers.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) have
11 This is Anna. She ______ an architect.
(a) does
(b) is
(c) has
12 I ______ a salesperson; I am the customer service manager.
(a) don’t am
(b) am not
(c) don’t be
13 Who ______ those men in the blue uniforms? They are the security guards.
(a) is
(b) do
(c) are
14 ______ your brother an employee here too?
(a) Is
(b) Are
(c) Does
15 David and Paul ______ the lead developers for this project.
(a) be
(b) is
(c) are
16 Everyone in this department ______ a graphic designer.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) have
17 Nobody in this room ______ an intern; we are all senior managers.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) aren’t
18 What ______ your exact job title?
(a) does
(b) are
(c) is
19 My boss and I ______ the main contacts for your new project.
(a) are
(b) am
(c) is
20 ______ the IT team members in the server room?
(a) Is
(b) Are
(c) Do
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (a) am
- Why it’s correct: The subject “I” always takes the verb “am” to state a profession.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “have” is a common translation trap; in English, you are a profession, you don’t have a profession. (c) “is” does not match “I”.
2 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “He” is a singular subject and takes “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “are” is for plural subjects. (c) “has” is the translation trap.
3 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: “They” is a plural subject, taking “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is a common mistake when learners see names but forget that two names (“Sarah and Tom”) make a plural subject. (c) “am” is only for “I”.
4 (a) am
- Why it’s correct: “I” takes “am”.
- Why the others are wrong: (c) “do” is a common mistake because students confuse “doing a job” with the grammar of introducing a title. (b) “is” does not match “I”.
5 (c) are
- Why it’s correct: “We” takes “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “have” is incorrect (you don’t have the team, you are the team). (b) “is” is for singular subjects.
6 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “Mr. Lee” (he) takes “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “does” is an action verb, not a linking verb for identity. (c) “are” is for plural subjects.
7 (a) Are
- Why it’s correct: The subject “you” always takes “are” in a question (“Are you…?”).
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “Do” is used for actions, not identity (e.g., Do you work here?). (c) “Is” does not match “you”.
8 (b) isn’t
- Why it’s correct: The negative form of “is” is “is not” or “isn’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “doesn’t” is used with action verbs, not nouns like “secretary”. (c) “doesn’t be” is structurally incorrect.
9 (c) Is
- Why it’s correct: “John” (he) requires the question form to start with “Is” (“Is John…?”).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “Are” is for plural subjects. (b) “Does” is for action verbs.
10 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: “My colleagues” (they) is a plural subject, taking “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is a mistake if the learner misses the “s” at the end of colleagues. (c) “have” is the translation trap.
11 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: “She” takes “is”. We use “To Be” + article (a/an) + profession.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “does” is incorrect for assigning a title. (c) “has” is the translation trap.
12 (b) am not
- Why it’s correct: The correct negative form for “I” is “am not”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “don’t am” is grammatically incorrect. (c) “don’t be” is used for commands, not statements of identity.
13 (c) are
- Why it’s correct: “Those men” is a plural subject (they), so the question must use “are” (“Who are those men?”).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is a common trap when learners just look at “Who” and assume it’s singular, ignoring the plural noun “men”. (b) “do” is for action verbs.
14 (a) Is
- Why it’s correct: “Your brother” is a singular subject (he), taking “Is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “Are” is a very common mistake! Learners see the word “your” and confuse it with “you”, incorrectly choosing “Are”. (c) “Does” is for action verbs.
15 (c) are
- Why it’s correct: “David and Paul” form a plural subject (they), which takes “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “is” fails to recognize that there are two people. (a) “be” is the unconjugated base form.
16 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: The pronoun “Everyone” is always grammatically singular. It takes “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “are” is a classic A1 trap for learners who think “everyone” means a plural group of people. (c) “have” is incorrect for professions.
17 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: Just like “everyone”, the pronoun “Nobody” acts as a singular subject and takes “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is incorrect. (c) “aren’t” creates a double negative (“Nobody aren’t”), which is grammatically wrong.
18 (c) is
- Why it’s correct: “Your exact job title” is a singular subject (it), so the question uses “is” (“What is…?”).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “does” is incorrect. (b) “are” does not match the singular noun “title”.
19 (a) are
- Why it’s correct: “My boss and I” is a plural compound subject (we). Therefore, it takes “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “am” is a very common mistake. Learners see the word “I” right next to the blank and immediately choose “am”, forgetting about “My boss”. (c) “is” is for singular subjects.
20 (b) Are
- Why it’s correct: The main subject is “members” (plural), so the question must start with “Are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “Is” is a trap. Learners see “team” and think it is singular, but the core noun here is “members”. (c) “Do” is for action verbs.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- The Golden Rule for Jobs: In English, a profession is your identity, not something you “have” or “do” in a grammatical sense. Always use the Verb “To Be” + a/an + Job Title.
- ❌ I have a teacher.
- ❌ I do a teacher.
- ✅ I am a teacher.
- Beware of “Your”: Do not confuse “you” with “your”.
- Are you a doctor? (“you” takes are).
- Is your brother a doctor? (“your brother” is “he”, so it takes is).
- The “And I” Trap: When a subject is “[Someone] and I”, it means “We“. You must use “are“, never “am”.
- ❌ John and I am engineers.
- ✅ John and I are engineers.
- Everyone is Singular: Words like Everyone, Everybody, and Nobody always take the singular verb “is“. (e.g., Everyone is a manager here.)