Go vs. Come – English Grammar Exercises for A1
You are sitting inside your office or study room. Someone knocks on the door, and you are giving them permission to enter your space.
Choose the best word (A, B, C, or D) to complete the sentences.
1 (Knock, knock) “Yes, the door is unlocked. Please ______ in!”
(A) go
(B) come
(C) coming
(D) enter
2 “Don’t just stand outside in the hallway. ______ inside!”
(A) Go
(B) To come
(C) Come
(D) Going
3 Student: “Teacher, may I ______ into the classroom?”
Teacher: “Yes, you may.”
(A) coming
(B) go
(C) come
(D) enter
4 “Who is it? Oh, it’s you, Mary! ______ here and sit next to me.”
(A) Come
(B) Go
(C) Coming
(D) Move
5 “I am very busy right now. Please ______ back to my office in five minutes.”
(A) go
(B) coming
(C) come
(D) return
6 “You don’t need to knock every single time. Just open the door and ______ in.”
(A) going
(B) go
(C) come
(D) to come
7 Colleague: “Are you having a private meeting?”
You: “No, I am alone. ______ on in!”
(A) Come
(B) Walk
(C) Go
(D) Coming
8 “Why are you waiting out there? ______ into the room and look at this report.”
(A) Go
(B) Come
(C) Arrive
(D) Going
9 “If you want to talk to me about the project, you must ______ into my office.”
(A) come
(B) to come
(C) go
(D) coming
10 “Oh, I didn’t hear you knock. Please ______ in and close the door behind you.”
(A) go
(B) come
(C) comes
(D) to go
11 “I am glad you decided to ______ over to my desk to ask for help.”
(A) go
(B) to come
(C) come
(D) coming
12 “Don’t walk away! The door is open, so just ______ inside.”
(A) go
(B) coming
(C) enter
(D) come
13 “I hear someone out there. Are you ______ in, or are you staying in the corridor?”
(A) going
(B) come
(C) entering
(D) coming
14 Manager (at the door): “Should I leave these documents here on the floor?”
You: “No, please ______ in and put them on my table.”
(A) bring
(B) come
(C) go
(D) to come
15 “Tell the students in the hallway to ______ inside before the lesson starts.”
(A) come
(B) go
(C) coming
(D) to go
16 “It is very noisy outside. ______ into my room so we can have a quiet conversation.”
(A) Go
(B) Going
(C) Walk
(D) Come
17 “When you ______ in, please remember to take off your wet shoes.”
(A) go
(B) comes
(C) come
(D) coming
18 “I am waiting for you. Please call me right before you ______ into the building.”
(A) go
(B) arrive
(C) come
(D) to come
19 “We are about to cut the birthday cake! Tell everyone outside to ______ in now.”
(A) go
(B) come
(C) coming
(D) to come
20 “You can ______ in now. The doctor is ready to see you.”
(A) go
(B) entering
(C) to come
(D) come
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) come
Why it is correct: The imperative “come in” is used when welcoming someone into the space where the speaker currently is.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake (students translate “đi vào” directly, ignoring the speaker’s location). (C) “coming” is a Structural Error (imperatives require the base verb). (D) “enter” is a Meaning Trap (saying “enter in” is incorrect; “enter” does not take the preposition “in”).
2 (C) Come
Why it is correct: Inviting someone outside to move towards you inside requires “come”.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “Go” is the Common Mistake. (B) “To come” is a Structural Error. (D) “Going” is a Structural Error.
3 (C) come
Why it is correct: Asking for permission to move towards the teacher (the listener inside the room).
Mistake Analysis: (B) “go” is the Common Mistake. (D) “enter” is a Meaning Trap (while “enter the classroom” is correct, “enter into the classroom” is generally considered poor style or redundant in simple contexts). (A) “coming” is a Structural Error after “may”.
4 (A) Come
Why it is correct: “Here” is the speaker’s location. Movement towards “here” is always “come”.
Mistake Analysis: (B) “Go” is the Common Mistake (“go here” is a contradiction). (D) “Move” is a Meaning Trap (grammatically okay, but unnatural compared to the standard “come here”). (C) “Coming” is a Structural Error.
5 (C) come
Why it is correct: The speaker wants the person to return to the speaker’s current location (my office).
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake. (D) “return” is a Strong Distractor (you can “return to my office”, but “return back” is a redundant error). (B) “coming” is a Structural Error.
6 (C) come
Why it is correct: You are inside, telling someone to enter your space.
Mistake Analysis: (B) “go” is the Common Mistake. (A) “going” is a Structural Error. (D) “to come” is a Structural Error.
7 (A) Come
Why it is correct: “Come on in” is a very common, friendly English idiom used to welcome someone inside.
Mistake Analysis: (C) “Go” is the Common Mistake. (B) “Walk” is a Meaning Trap. (D) “Coming” is a Structural Error.
8 (B) Come
Why it is correct: Movement from the outside (hallway) to the inside (where the speaker is).
Mistake Analysis: (A) “Go” is the Common Mistake. (C) “Arrive” is a Meaning Trap (does not fit with “into”). (D) “Going” is a Structural Error.
9 (A) come
Why it is correct: After the modal verb “must”, use the base verb “come” to indicate movement towards the speaker’s office.
Mistake Analysis: (C) “go” is the Common Mistake. (B) “to come” is a Structural Error (do not use “to” after “must”). (D) “coming” is a Structural Error.
10 (B) come
Why it is correct: An imperative instruction welcoming the listener inside.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake. (C) “comes” is a Structural Error. (D) “to go” is a Structural Error.
11 (C) come
Why it is correct: The speaker is at the desk, and the listener moved towards it.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake. (D) “coming” is a Structural Error (missing “to” after decided). (B) “to come” is structurally right but option C fits the blank directly assuming “to” is already in the stem… Wait, looking at Q11: “decided to ______” -> the blank just needs “come”. Option B “to come” would result in “to to come”, so it is a Structural Error.
12 (D) come
Why it is correct: Welcoming someone through the door.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake. (C) “enter” is a Meaning Trap (“enter inside” is redundant). (B) “coming” is a Structural Error.
13 (D) coming
Why it is correct: Present continuous tense (Are you + verb-ing) for an action happening right now, directed towards the speaker inside.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “going” is the Common Mistake. (B) “come” is a Structural Error (missing “-ing”). (C) “entering” is a Meaning Trap (redundant with “in”).
14 (B) come
Why it is correct: Telling the manager to move from the door to the inside of the room.
Mistake Analysis: (C) “go” is the Common Mistake. (A) “bring” is a Meaning Trap (“bring in” is correct for the documents, but the person themselves must “come in”). (D) “to come” is a Structural Error.
15 (A) come
Why it is correct: The speaker is inside the classroom, asking the students to move towards them.
Mistake Analysis: (B) “go” is the Common Mistake. (D) “to go” is a Structural Error (wrong direction). (C) “coming” is a Structural Error.
16 (D) Come
Why it is correct: An imperative inviting the listener into the speaker’s space.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “Go” is the Common Mistake. (C) “Walk” is a Meaning Trap. (B) “Going” is a Structural Error.
17 (C) come
Why it is correct: In a time clause starting with “When” indicating a general rule or future action, use the present simple base verb for “you”.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake. (B) “comes” is a Structural Error (“you” does not take an “s”). (D) “coming” is a Structural Error.
18 (C) come
Why it is correct: The speaker is inside the building, so the listener moving towards the building is “coming”.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake. (B) “arrive” is a Meaning Trap (“arrive into” is incorrect; we say “arrive at/in”). (D) “to come” is a Structural Error.
19 (B) come
Why it is correct: The speaker is inside with the cake, calling people from the outside to move towards them.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake. (D) “to come” is a Structural Error (results in “to to come”). (C) “coming” is a Structural Error.
20 (D) come
Why it is correct: Granting permission (can) to move inside towards the speaker.
Mistake Analysis: (A) “go” is the Common Mistake. (B) “entering” is a Meaning Trap / Structural Error. (C) “to come” is a Structural Error (after “can”).
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- COME (Moving Towards): Use “come” when the movement is directed towards the current location of the person who is speaking. When you are inside a room and someone knocks on your door, you want them to move towards you. Therefore, you must always say “Come in!”
- GO (Moving Away): Use “go” when the movement is directed away from the speaker to a different location. If you are standing in the hallway and telling someone to enter a room that you are not in, you would say, “Go in.”
- The “Enter” Trap: While the verb “enter” means to go/come into a place, it does not use the prepositions “in” or “into”. Saying “enter in” or “enter inside” is redundant and incorrect in modern English. Stick to “Come in” for a natural, welcoming greeting.