Verb “To Be” – English Grammar Exercises for A1
You just landed at the airport after a long flight, or you just arrived home late at night. You are texting your parents or family members to let them know where you are and how you are doing.
Choose the best option to complete each text message.
1 Hi Mom! My plane just landed. I ______ at the airport now.
(a) is
(b) am
(c) are
2 Please don’t worry about me. I ______ safe and sound.
(a) am
(b) are
(c) is
3 The flight ______ very long, but I am okay.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) has
4 Dad, we ______ finally at the hotel! We are going to sleep now.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) am
5 It ______ very late here, so I will call you tomorrow morning.
(a) has
(b) are
(c) is
6 My friend Sarah ______ with me. We are waiting for a taxi.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) am
7 “______ you at home right now?” “Yes, I just walked in the door.”
(a) Are
(b) Do
(c) Is
8 The weather here ______ very cold, but I have my warm jacket.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) has
9 Dad, my phone battery ______ very low! I will text you later.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) has
10 Please don’t call my brother. He ______ awake right now; he is sleeping.
(a) doesn’t
(b) isn’t
(c) aren’t
11 All of my bags ______ here. Nothing is missing!
(a) is
(b) are
(c) have
12 Don’t worry, I ______ alone. The tour guide is with us.
(a) am not
(b) don’t be
(c) not am
13 “______ the hotel room comfortable?” “Yes, it is very nice and warm.”
(a) Is
(b) Does
(c) Are
14 My roommate and I ______ inside the apartment. The doors are locked.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) am
15 Everyone in our travel group ______ safe at the train station.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) have
16 The luggage ______ still on the plane. I have to wait for it.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) has
17 I know it is 2 AM, but nobody ______ asleep in the hostel yet.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) do
18 “______ John and Mary at the airport too?” “Yes, they are.”
(a) Is
(b) Are
(c) Do
19 The traffic on the highway ______ terrible, but my taxi driver is very careful.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) has
20 My clothes ______ wet from the rain, but I ______ warm inside the house now.
(a) is / am
(b) are / am
(c) are / is
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (b) am
- Why it’s correct: “I” takes “am”. We use “To Be” + preposition (at) to state our location.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” does not match “I”. (c) “are” is for plural subjects.
2 (a) am
- Why it’s correct: “I” takes “am”. We use “To Be” + adjective (safe) to describe our physical state.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “are” and (c) “is” do not match the pronoun “I”.
3 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: “The flight” is a singular subject (it), so it takes “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is for plural subjects. (c) “has” is a translation trap; a flight doesn’t “have” long, it is long.
4 (a) are
- Why it’s correct: “We” is a plural subject, requiring “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “is” is for singular subjects. (c) “am” is only for “I”.
5 (c) is
- Why it’s correct: When talking about the time or weather, we use the dummy subject “It” with the verb “is” (It is late).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “has” is the translation trap. (b) “are” does not match “it”.
6 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: “My friend Sarah” (she) is a singular subject, taking “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is for plural subjects. (c) “am” is only for “I”.
7 (a) Are
- Why it’s correct: To ask a Yes/No question about someone’s location with the subject “you”, we use “Are” (Are you…?).
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “Do” is for action verbs, not locations. (c) “Is” does not match “you”.
8 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: “The weather” is an uncountable singular noun (it), taking “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is for plural subjects. (c) “has” is a common mistake when translating “the weather has cold”.
9 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “My phone battery” is a singular subject, taking “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “are” is for plural subjects. (c) “has” is the translation trap.
10 (b) isn’t
- Why it’s correct: “He” takes the negative “is not” (isn’t) to describe his state (not awake).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “doesn’t” is used with action verbs. (c) “aren’t” is for plural subjects.
11 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: “All of my bags” is a plural subject (they), taking “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is a trap if you forget to check the plural “s” on bags. (c) “have” is incorrect for describing location.
12 (a) am not
- Why it’s correct: The correct negative form for “I” is “am not”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “don’t be” is used for giving commands (e.g., Don’t be sad!), not for stating your own status. (c) “not am” is the wrong word order.
13 (a) Is
- Why it’s correct: “The hotel room” is a singular subject. To ask a question with an adjective (comfortable), we start with “Is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “Does” is for action verbs. (c) “Are” is for plural subjects.
14 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: “My roommate and I” is a plural compound subject (we). Therefore, you must use “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is for singular subjects. (c) “am” is a common trap because the blank is right next to the word “I”, causing learners to forget “My roommate”.
15 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: The pronoun “Everyone” is grammatically singular. It must take “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is a trap for learners who think “everyone” means a plural group of people. (c) “have” is the translation trap.
16 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: The word “luggage” (and “baggage”) is an uncountable noun in English. It is always treated as singular and takes “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is a mistake because learners think of luggage as many different bags. (c) “has” is incorrect.
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 for plural subjects. (c) “do” is for action verbs.
18 (b) Are
- Why it’s correct: “John and Mary” form a plural subject (they), requiring the question to start with “Are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “Is” fails to recognize that there are two people. (c) “Do” is for action verbs.
19 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “Traffic” is an uncountable noun in English. It is always singular and takes “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “are” is a mistake because learners think of traffic as many cars. (c) “has” is the translation trap.
20 (b) are / am
- Why it’s correct: “My clothes” is a plural noun, taking “are” (my clothes are wet). “I” takes “am” (I am warm).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) incorrectly uses “is” for the plural “clothes”. (c) incorrectly uses “is” for the pronoun “I”.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
1 The Formula for Check-ins: When you text your family to say you arrived, you only need two structures:
- I am + [Preposition of Place]: I am at the airport. I am in the taxi. I am home.
- I am + [Adjective of State]: I am safe. I am tired. I am okay.
- Never use “I have safe” or “I do fine”. Always use the Verb To Be.
2 Tricky Travel Nouns (Uncountable): Some travel-related words describe a group of things but are grammatically singular (uncountable). You must use “is” with them:
- Luggage / Baggage (The luggage is heavy.)
- Traffic (The traffic is terrible.)
- Weather (The weather is cold.)
3 The “And I” Trap: When you text “My friend and I…”, remember that this means “We“. You must use “are“, not “am”.
- ❌ Sarah and I am safe.
- ✅ Sarah and I are safe.
4 Everyone & Nobody: Even though these words refer to all people or no people, they are always treated as a single unit. Always use “is“. (Everyone is safe. Nobody is awake.)