Verb “To Be” – English Grammar Exercises for A1
You are at an international student exchange event. You are making new friends from all over the world. You need to introduce yourself, ask about others, and share basic information like your name, age, and home country.
Choose the best option to complete each sentence.
1 Hello everyone! My name is Anna, and I ______ from Italy.
(a) is
(b) am
(c) are
2 This is my new friend, Carlos. He ______ a student from Spain.
(a) is
(b) am
(c) are
3 Nice to meet you all! I ______ 25 years old.
(a) have
(b) am
(c) is
4 My sister and I are here together. We ______ very excited to meet you.
(a) is
(b) am
(c) are
5 Look at those people over there. They ______ from Japan.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) am
6 I speak a little French, but I ______ from France. I am from Canada.
(a) don’t be
(b) isn’t
(c) am not
7 Hello! It is nice to meet you. Where ______ you from?
(a) do
(b) are
(c) is
8 My friend Maria is here too. She ______ 22 years old.
(a) is
(b) has
(c) does
9 Carlos speaks perfect English, but he ______ American or British.
(a) isn’t
(b) doesn’t
(c) aren’t
10 Excuse me, ______ you the organizer of this event?
(a) do
(b) is
(c) are
11 “Are you from South Korea?”
“Yes, I ______.”
(a) am
(b) do
(c) are
12 I am from Tokyo. It ______ a very big and busy city.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) has
13 You look very young! How old ______ you?
(a) do
(b) are
(c) have
14 We speak Spanish, but we ______ from Mexico. We are from Argentina.
(a) aren’t
(b) don’t
(c) isn’t
15 John and I ______ in the same English class back home.
(a) am
(b) is
(c) are
16 What ______ your name, and where ______ your hometown?
(a) are / is
(b) is / is
(c) is / are
17 “Are your friends from Germany?”
“No, they ______.”
(a) don’t
(b) isn’t
(c) aren’t
18 Your brother is very tall! How old ______ he?
(a) has
(b) is
(c) does
19 Who ______ that girl with the red hair? She looks familiar.
(a) are
(b) am
(c) is
20 I am so happy today! Everyone here ______ so friendly and kind.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) am
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (b) am
- Why it’s correct: The subject “I” always takes the verb “am”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is for he/she/it. (c) “are” is for we/you/they.
2 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “He” is a singular third-person subject, which takes “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “am” is only for “I”. (c) “are” is for plural subjects.
3 (b) am
- Why it’s correct: In English, we use the verb “To Be” (am/is/are) to talk about age. “I” takes “am”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “have” is a very common mistake for speakers of languages (like Vietnamese, French, or Spanish) that translate age as “having years”. In English, you are your age, you do not have your age. (c) “is” does not match the subject “I”.
4 (c) are
- Why it’s correct: “We” is a plural subject, requiring the verb “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is for singular subjects. (b) “am” is only for “I”.
5 (a) are
- Why it’s correct: “They” is a plural subject, taking “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “is” is for singular subjects. (c) “am” is only for “I”.
6 (c) am not
- Why it’s correct: The negative form of “I am” is “I am not”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “don’t be” is structurally incorrect for stating a fact about yourself. (b) “isn’t” is the negative for he/she/it.
7 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: For WH-questions with the subject “you”, the correct “be” verb is “are” (Where are you?).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “do” is an auxiliary verb used for actions (like Where do you live?), not for states of being or origins with the preposition “from”. (c) “is” does not match “you”.
8 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “She” takes “is”. Again, we use “To Be” for age.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “has” is the classic age mistake (translating directly from other languages). (c) “does” is used for actions, not age.
9 (a) isn’t
- Why it’s correct: “He” takes the negative form “is not” (isn’t).
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “doesn’t” is used with action verbs (e.g., he doesn’t speak), not for nationalities. (c) “aren’t” is for plural subjects.
10 (c) are
- Why it’s correct: Yes/No question with the subject “you” requires “Are” at the beginning (Are you…?).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “do” is used for action verbs (e.g., Do you work here?). (b) “is” does not match “you”.
11 (a) am
- Why it’s correct: In short answers to “Are you…?” questions, you must reply with “Yes, I am.”
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “do” is the answer for “Do you…?” questions. (c) “are” does not match the subject “I”.
12 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: “It” (referring to the city of Tokyo) is a singular subject, taking “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is for plural subjects. (c) “has” means possession, but here we are describing what the city is.
13 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: When asking about age, we use “How old are you?”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “do” and (c) “have” are grammatically incorrect for age questions in English.
14 (a) aren’t
- Why it’s correct: The negative form for the plural subject “We” is “are not” (aren’t).
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “don’t” is used for actions, not origins. (c) “isn’t” is for singular subjects.
15 (c) are
- Why it’s correct: “John and I” means “We” (plural). Therefore, it takes “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “am” is a common mistake because students see the word “I” and immediately choose “am”, forgetting about “John”. (b) “is” is for a singular subject.
16 (b) is / is
- Why it’s correct: Both “your name” and “your hometown” are singular subjects (it). Therefore, both gaps require “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) and (c) incorrectly use “are” for singular subjects.
17 (c) aren’t
- Why it’s correct: The short answer for a negative plural subject (“they”) is “No, they aren’t.”
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “don’t” is for action verb questions. (b) “isn’t” is for singular subjects.
18 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: Asking about a third person’s age (he) requires “is” (How old is he?).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “has” and (c) “does” are incorrect verbs for age.
19 (c) is
- Why it’s correct: “That girl” is a singular subject (she), so the question is “Who is that girl?”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is for plural subjects. (b) “am” is only for “I”.
20 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: The word “Everyone” (or “Everybody”) is always grammatically singular in English. It must take “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “are” is a very common mistake for learners who think “everyone” means a plural group of people. (c) “am” is only for “I”.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- The “Age” Trap: This is the most important rule for A1 learners! In English, we NEVER use the verb “have” for age. You must always use the verb To Be.
- ❌ I have 20 years.
- ✅ I am 20 years old.
- ❌ How many years do you have?
- ✅ How old are you?
- Basic Forms of “To Be”:
- I → am (am not)
- He / She / It → is (isn’t)
- We / You / They → are (aren’t)
- To Be vs. Action Verbs: Use “To Be” for identity (name), age, nationality, origin (from), and professions. Do NOT use “do/don’t” for these things.
- ❌ I don’t from Spain.
- ✅ I am not from Spain.
- Compound Subjects: When you see two people joined by “and” (like John and I or My brother and my sister), it becomes a plural subject (“We” or “They”). Always use “are“.
- ❌ John and I am friends.
- ✅ John and I are friends.
- Tricky “Everyone”: Even though “Everyone” talks about many people, English grammar treats it as a singular word. Always use “is” (e.g., Everyone is here).