Other vs. Others vs. The other vs. Another – English Grammar Exercises for B2
Two friends are sitting at a local cafe, deep in conversation and sharing juicy gossip. One finishes their drink and wants to order more.
Choose the best option (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence from the friends’ conversation.
1 “Wow, this iced latte is incredible! Excuse me, waiter? Could I please have ______ cup of the exact same thing?”
(A) other
(B) another
(C) the other
(D) others
2 “I bought two chocolate croissants. I just finished one, and I’m saving ______ for you when you get hungry.”
(A) the other
(B) another
(C) other
(D) the others
3 “Some people in our office love the new manager, but ______ think he is far too strict.”
(A) other
(B) another
(C) the other
(D) others
4 “We’ve been sitting here for two hours! Let’s stay for ______ 30 minutes, and then I really have to go.”
(A) other
(B) others
(C) another
(D) the other
5 “I don’t really like the vibe at this table. It’s too close to the speaker. Can we move to ______ table?”
(A) another
(B) other
(C) the others
(D) others
6 “Sarah and John are already sitting by the window. Where are ______? Didn’t they say they were coming?”
(A) another
(B) other
(C) the others
(D) others
7 “Keep your voice down! We don’t want any ______ customers in the cafe to hear this secret.”
(A) another
(B) others
(C) the other
(D) other
8 “I saw Mark at the shopping mall ______. You will never guess who he was holding hands with!”
(A) other day
(B) another day
(C) the other day
(D) others day
9 “I’ve already had one slice of cheesecake, but it’s so good that I’m seriously tempted to order ______.”
(A) another one
(B) other one
(C) others
(D) the others
10 “She has two brothers. One is a doctor, and ______ is a lawyer who works in London.”
(A) another
(B) other
(C) the other
(D) the others
11 “If you don’t like the caramel macchiato, I can ask the barista to make you ______ drink instead.”
(A) another
(B) other
(C) others
(D) the others
12 “Do you have any ______ gossip about the accounting department? That last story was wild!”
(A) another
(B) other
(C) others
(D) the other
13 “She was so stressed out about the wedding that she just kept drinking one espresso after ______.”
(A) other
(B) others
(C) another
(D) the other
14 “Look at that couple sitting on ______ side of the cafe. Do you think they are on a blind date?”
(A) another
(B) the other
(C) other
(D) others
15 “It’s so easy to sit around and judge ______, but we don’t really know what’s going on behind closed doors.”
(A) other
(B) another
(C) the other
(D) others
16 “I think I’ve had enough coffee for today. Let’s meet up ______ time to finish this conversation.”
(A) other
(B) others
(C) another
(D) the other
17 “Only three out of the five girls showed up to the party. ______ decided to stay home and watch a movie.”
(A) The other
(B) The others
(C) Others
(D) Another
18 “I don’t want the blueberry muffin on the left. I’ll take ______ next to the cash register.”
(A) another one
(B) other
(C) the other one
(D) others
19 “There are a few ______ things we need to discuss before we pay the bill and leave.”
(A) other
(B) another
(C) others
(D) the other
20 “She told me the news, and then she told someone else, and soon they were all whispering to ______.”
(A) another
(B) the others
(C) one another
(D) other
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) another
- Why it is correct: “Another” means “one more” or “an additional one.” It is used before a singular countable noun (“cup”).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) “Other” must be used with plural or uncountable nouns. (C) “The other” refers to a specific remaining one out of a set of two, which doesn’t fit asking for a brand new coffee. (D) “Others” is a pronoun and cannot be followed by a noun.
2 (A) the other
- Why it is correct: When there is a specific set of two (two croissants), and one is accounted for, the remaining one is always “the other”.
- Distractor Analysis: (B) “Another” implies an indefinite addition (a third one). (C) “Other” requires a plural noun. (D) “The others” is plural, but there is only one croissant left.
3 (D) others
- Why it is correct: “Others” is a plural pronoun acting as the subject of the verb “think”. It means “other people in general.”
- Distractor Analysis: (A) “Other” is an adjective and needs a noun (e.g., other people). (B) “Another” is singular. (C) “The other” is singular and refers to one specific remaining person.
4 (C) another
- Why it is correct: Exception Rule! “Another” is usually for singular nouns, BUT it is perfectly correct to use “Another + Number + Plural Noun” to mean an additional amount of time, money, or distance (e.g., another 30 minutes, another 50 dollars).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) “Other 30 minutes” sounds like a different set of minutes entirely, not an extension. (B) Pronoun, cannot precede a noun. (D) Refers to a specific remaining 30 minutes out of a known set.
5 (A) another
- Why it is correct: Here, “another” means “a different one.” It is followed by the singular countable noun “table.”
- Distractor Analysis: (B) “Other” requires a plural noun (e.g., other tables). (C) & (D) are pronouns and cannot be placed before a noun.
6 (C) the others
- Why it is correct: Refers to the specific, known remaining people in the friend group who are missing. It acts as a plural pronoun.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Singular. (B) Needs a noun. (D) “Others” refers to random, general people, but the speaker is asking about specific friends.
7 (D) other
- Why it is correct: “Other” acts as an adjective modifying the plural noun “customers.” It means additional or different people.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) “Another” can only precede a singular noun. (B) “Others” is a pronoun and cannot be placed before a noun. (C) “The other” would mean there is only one specific remaining group of customers.
8 (C) the other day
- Why it is correct: “The other day” is a fixed, common English idiom meaning “a few days ago” or “recently.”
- Distractor Analysis: (A), (B), and (D) are not valid idioms in English for this context.
9 (A) another one
- Why it is correct: “Another” means “one more.” We add “one” as a pronoun to avoid repeating the noun “slice of cheesecake.”
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Incorrect phrasing. (C) Plural pronoun, but the speaker only wants one slice. (D) Plural, specific remaining items.
10 (C) the other
- Why it is correct: Out of a specific set of two brothers, when one is mentioned, the remaining one is exactly “the other.”
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Suggests a third brother. (B) Needs a plural noun. (D) Plural pronoun, but there is only one brother left to talk about.
11 (A) another
- Why it is correct: Means “a different” single item. It precedes the singular countable noun “drink.”
- Distractor Analysis: (B) “Other” must be followed by a plural noun (e.g., other drinks). (C) & (D) are pronouns.
12 (B) other
- Why it is correct: “Gossip” is an uncountable noun. “Other” is the correct adjective to use before plural and uncountable nouns.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) “Another” is strictly for singular countable nouns (an + other). You cannot say another gossip. (C) Pronoun. (D) Refers to a specific remaining piece of gossip.
13 (C) another
- Why it is correct: “One after another” is a fixed phrase meaning in quick succession.
- Distractor Analysis: (A), (B), and (D) break the fixed idiom structure.
14 (B) the other
- Why it is correct: A cafe generally has two opposing sides. When you are on one side, the opposite side is “the other side” (a specific set of two).
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Implies the cafe has many sides, like a polygon. (C) Needs a plural noun. (D) Pronoun.
15 (D) others
- Why it is correct: Acts as a plural pronoun representing “other people in general.”
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Adjective, needs a noun. (B) Singular. (C) Singular, specific remaining person.
16 (C) another
- Why it is correct: Means “a different” single instance. “Time” here is a singular countable noun. “Another time” is a standard phrase for “some other day/time.”
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Would need to be “other times.” (B) Pronoun. (D) Implies there are only two times in existence.
17 (B) The others
- Why it is correct: Out of a specific set of five girls, three are present. The remaining missing girls are specific and plural, so we use the pronoun “The others.”
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Singular. (C) “Others” refers to general people, not the specific remaining girls in this set. (D) Singular.
18 (C) the other one
- Why it is correct: Refers to a specific alternative item out of a limited choice. “One” acts as a pronoun for “muffin.”
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Means an additional one, not a specific alternative. (B) Needs a plural noun. (D) Plural.
19 (A) other
- Why it is correct: Acts as an adjective modifying the plural noun “things.”
- Distractor Analysis: (B) Cannot be used with the plural noun “things.” (C) Pronoun. (D) Would mean the specific remaining things out of a known set.
20 (C) one another
- Why it is correct: “One another” is a reciprocal pronoun (like “each other”) used when referring to a group of people doing an action to each other.
- Distractor Analysis: (A) Means an additional person. (B) Means the remaining people. (D) Adjective.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
To never make a mistake when ordering a drink or referencing people, follow these simple rules:
1 ANOTHER (An + Other) = “One more” or “A different one”
- Rule: MUST be followed by a Singular Countable Noun.
- Example: “I want another coffee.” (One more cup).
- Example: “Let’s go to another cafe.” (A different cafe).
- Exception: You can use it with numbers for time/money/distance (e.g., Give me another 10 minutes).
2 OTHER (Adjective) = “More” or “Different ones”
- Rule: MUST be followed by a Plural Noun or an Uncountable Noun.
- Example: “Are there other cafes nearby?” (Plural)
- Example: “Do you have other information?” (Uncountable)
3 OTHERS (Pronoun) = “Other people/things in general”
- Rule: Stands ALONE. NEVER put a noun after it.
- Example: “Some people like tea, but others prefer coffee.”
4 THE OTHER / THE OTHERS = “The specific remaining one(s)”
- Rule: Used when you have a specific, limited set (like 2 items).
- Example: “I have two phones. One is for work, and the other is personal.” (Singular remaining).
- Example: “Two of my friends are here. Where are the others?” (Plural remaining).