Sentence Structure – English Grammar Exercises for A1
Reporting a lost item and describing it accurately to staff.
Choose the best answer (A, B, or C) to complete each sentence.
1 Hello, I need to report a lost item. I lost ______ yesterday.
(a) a wallet black
(b) black wallet
(c) a black wallet
2 I left it on the train. It is ______.
(a) an old bag
(b) a old bag
(c) an bag old
3 The officer asks: “Does your jacket have ______?”
(a) a red zipper
(b) a zipper red
(c) red a zipper
4 I am very worried because I can’t find ______ anywhere.
(a) my phone new
(b) my new phone
(c) new my phone
5 I need to find my luggage. Is it ______?
(a) big a suitcase
(b) a suitcase big
(c) a big suitcase
6 Inside the wallet, there is ______.
(a) a ID card
(b) an ID card
(c) ID an card
7 No, that is not my bag. My backpack doesn’t have ______.
(a) a pocket front
(b) front a pocket
(c) a front pocket
8 Did anyone bring ______ to the lost and found office today?
(a) a blue notebook
(b) a notebook blue
(c) blue a notebook
9 I am looking for a work bag. It has ______.
(a) short two handles
(b) two short handles
(c) two handles short
10 Please be careful with it. It is ______.
(a) an expensive watch
(b) a expensive watch
(c) expensive watch
11 I also lost an item on the bus. It is ______.
(a) a umbrella small
(b) small umbrella
(c) a small umbrella
12 Excuse me, do you have ______ here?
(a) a brown jacket
(b) a jacket brown
(c) brown a jacket
13 You can identify my keys easily. They have ______.
(a) a green keychain
(b) green a keychain
(c) a keychain green
14 I am filling out the form for ______.
(a) a leather belt
(b) a belt leather
(c) leather a belt
15 My bag is very heavy because it contains ______.
(a) an important documents
(b) some important documents
(c) some documents important
16 Did anyone find ______ in the cafeteria?
(a) black sunglasses
(b) a black sunglasses
(c) black a sunglasses
17 I didn’t leave ______ on the desk. I had it in my hand.
(a) empty a bottle
(b) a bottle empty
(c) an empty bottle
18 Look inside the bag. Is there ______ for coins?
(a) a secret pocket
(b) a pocket secret
(c) secret a pocket
19 Unfortunately, my suitcase doesn’t have ______.
(a) name a tag
(b) a name tag
(c) a tag name
20 Please call me immediately if you see ______.
(a) a dark red suitcase
(b) a suitcase dark red
(c) dark a red suitcase
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 c
Explanation: (c) is correct. The strict word order is Article (a) + Adjective (black) + Noun (wallet). (a) is a common mistake (Noun + Adjective, direct translation from Vietnamese). (b) is a structural error (missing the article “a” for a singular countable noun).
2 a
Explanation: (a) is correct. We use “an” because the adjective “old” starts with a vowel sound. (b) is a structural error (using “a” before a vowel sound). (c) is a common mistake (putting the adjective after the noun).
3 a
Explanation: (a) is correct (Article + Adjective + Noun). (b) is a common mistake (Noun + Adjective). (c) is a structural error.
4 b
Explanation: (b) is correct. The possessive adjective “my” replaces the article, followed by Adjective (new) + Noun (phone). (a) is a common mistake. (c) is a structural error.
5 c
Explanation: (c) is correct (a + big + suitcase). (b) is a common mistake. (a) is a structural error.
6 b
Explanation: (b) is correct. “ID” is pronounced starting with a vowel sound (/aɪ/), so it takes “an”. (a) is a structural error. (c) is a common mistake.
7 c
Explanation: (c) is correct. Even when “front” acts as an adjective modifying “pocket”, the order remains Article + Adjective + Noun. (a) is a common mistake. (b) is a structural error.
8 a
Explanation: (a) is correct. (b) is a common mistake. (c) is a structural error.
9 b
Explanation: (b) is correct. Numbers come before adjectives (two + short + handles). (c) is a common mistake (putting the adjective at the end). (a) is a structural error.
10 a
Explanation: (a) is correct (“an” before the vowel sound in “expensive”). (b) is a structural error. (c) is a structural error (missing the article).
11 c
Explanation: (c) is correct (“a” goes before “small”). (b) is a structural error (missing the article). (a) is a structural error (wrong word order and missing “an” if “umbrella” came first).
12 a
Explanation: (a) is correct. (b) is a common mistake. (c) is a structural error.
13 a
Explanation: (a) is correct. (c) is a common mistake. (b) is a structural error.
14 a
Explanation: (a) is correct. “Leather” acts as an adjective describing the material of the belt. (b) is a common mistake. (c) is a structural error.
15 b
Explanation: (b) is correct. “Documents” is plural, so we use “some” instead of “a/an”, followed by the adjective. (c) is a common mistake (Noun + Adjective). (a) is a structural error (using “an” with a plural noun).
16 a
Explanation: (a) is correct. “Sunglasses” is always plural in English, so we do not use “a”. We just use Adjective + Noun. (b) is a structural error (using “a” with a plural noun). (c) is a structural error.
17 c
Explanation: (c) is correct (“an” + empty + bottle). (b) is a common mistake. (a) is a structural error.
18 a
Explanation: (a) is correct. (b) is a common mistake. (c) is a structural error.
19 b
Explanation: (b) is correct. “Name” acts as an adjective modifying “tag”. (c) is a common mistake. (a) is a structural error.
20 a
Explanation: (a) is correct. You can use two adjectives (dark red), but they must both go between the article and the noun. (b) is a common mistake. (c) is a structural error.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
1 Describing Objects: When you lose an item and need to describe it to the staff, you must be precise. The strict rule in English is: Article + Adjective + Noun.
- Correct: I lost a black wallet.
- Incorrect: I lost a wallet black. (Do not use the Vietnamese word order).
2 Choosing “A” or “An”: The article depends on the first sound of the word directly next to it (which is usually the adjective).
- Use a if the adjective starts with a consonant sound (a black bag, a red zipper).
- Use an if the adjective starts with a vowel sound (an old bag, an expensive watch).
3 Plural Items: If you are describing a plural item (like glasses, sunglasses, keys, or documents), DO NOT use “a” or “an”. You can use “some” or just the Adjective + Noun.
- Correct: I lost black sunglasses.
- Incorrect: I lost a black sunglasses.