Verb “To Be” – English Grammar Exercises for A1
You are at the “Lost and Found” security office at the bus station. You left your bag on the bus! You need to describe your lost items (their color, size, shape, and material) to the security guard so they can help you find them.
Choose the best option to complete each sentence in your conversation with the security guard.
1 Hello, I lost my backpack on the bus. It ______ black and very big.
(a) is
(b) has
(c) are
2 The straps on the backpack ______ bright yellow.
(a) is
(b) have
(c) are
3 Please help me. It ______ my favorite bag!
(a) is
(b) am
(c) has
4 Guard: “Can you describe the size? ______ your backpack heavy?”
(a) Does
(b) Is
(c) Are
5 I have a picture on my phone. This ______ exactly what my bag looks like.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) does
6 Guard: “What color ______ the zippers on the bag?”
(a) is
(b) are
(c) do
7 My wallet and my passport ______ inside the front pocket!
(a) are
(b) is
(c) have
8 Guard: “______ the wallet made of brown leather?”
(a) Does
(b) Are
(c) Is
9 The bag ______ new; it is actually a very old vintage bag.
(a) doesn’t
(b) aren’t
(c) isn’t
10 My house keys ______ also in the bag. They have a red keychain.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) has
11 Guard: “What color ______ the umbrella inside the bag?”
(a) are
(b) do
(c) is
12 Guard: “______ the handles long or short?”
(a) Are
(b) Is
(c) Do
13 My ID card and my credit card ______ in a small red case.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) have
14 “Is the laptop inside the bag safe?” “I hope so. The laptop sleeve ______ very thick.”
(a) is
(b) has
(c) are
15 The luggage ______ very expensive, so I really need to find it today.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) has
16 Inside the bag, my reading glasses ______ in a hard blue box.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) do
17 Guard: “I have a bag right here. ______ this your backpack?”
(a) Is
(b) Are
(c) Does
18 Everything inside that bag ______ very important to me.
(a) is
(b) are
(c) has
19 Guard: “The bags in this closet ______ all black. Let’s check them.”
(a) are
(b) is
(c) have
20 The money in the wallet ______ for my rent. Please help me find it!
(a) are
(b) has
(c) is
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “It” (the backpack) is a singular subject. We use the verb “is” to describe colors and sizes.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “has” is a common translation trap; an object doesn’t have black, it is black. (c) “are” is for plural subjects.
2 (c) are
- Why it’s correct: “The straps” is a plural subject (they), taking “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is for singular subjects. (b) “have” is the translation trap.
3 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “It” takes “is”. We use “To Be” to state the identity of the object (my favorite bag).
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “am” is only for “I”. (c) “has” is incorrect.
4 (b) Is
- Why it’s correct: “Your backpack” is singular. To ask a Yes/No question with an adjective (heavy), we start with “Is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “Does” is for action verbs. (c) “Are” is for plural subjects.
5 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: “This” is a singular demonstrative pronoun, taking “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is for plural subjects (these). (c) “does” is for action verbs.
6 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: The subject is “the zippers” (plural), so the question must use “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is a very common mistake if the learner only looks at the word “color” and ignores the plural noun “zippers”. (c) “do” is for action verbs.
7 (a) are
- Why it’s correct: “My wallet and my passport” is a plural compound subject (they = two things). It requires “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “is” fails to recognize that there are two items. (c) “have” is the translation trap for location/existence.
8 (c) Is
- Why it’s correct: “The wallet” is singular. The question asks about its material (made of leather), so it starts with “Is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “Does” is for action verbs. (b) “Are” is for plural subjects.
9 (c) isn’t
- Why it’s correct: “The bag” is singular, taking the negative “isn’t” to describe an adjective (new).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “doesn’t” is used with action verbs. (b) “aren’t” is for plural subjects.
10 (a) are
- Why it’s correct: “My house keys” is a plural subject, taking “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “is” is for singular subjects. (c) “has” is the translation trap.
11 (c) is
- Why it’s correct: “The umbrella” is a singular subject, taking “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is for plural subjects. (b) “do” is for action verbs.
12 (a) Are
- Why it’s correct: “The handles” is plural, so the question must start with “Are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “Is” is for singular subjects. (c) “Do” is for action verbs.
13 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: “My ID card and my credit card” form a plural compound subject (they), taking “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” fails to recognize the two subjects. (c) “have” is the translation trap.
14 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: “The laptop sleeve” is a singular subject. We use “is” with the adjective “thick”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “has” is the translation trap. (c) “are” is for plural subjects.
15 (b) is
- Why it’s correct: In English, “luggage” (and “baggage”) is an uncountable noun. 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 the translation trap.
16 (b) are
- Why it’s correct: “Glasses” (for your eyes) is an always-plural noun in English. It requires “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “is” is a common A1 mistake because glasses are one physical object, but grammatically they are plural. (c) “do” is for action verbs.
17 (a) Is
- Why it’s correct: “This” refers to one specific bag (singular). The question starts with “Is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “Are” is for plural subjects. (c) “Does” is for action verbs.
18 (a) is
- Why it’s correct: The pronoun “Everything” is grammatically singular in English. It must take “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “are” is a trap for learners who think “everything” means many items (plural). (c) “has” is the translation trap.
19 (a) are
- Why it’s correct: “The bags” is plural, taking “are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) “is” is for singular subjects. (c) “have” is the translation trap.
20 (c) is
- Why it’s correct: “Money” is an uncountable noun in English. Uncountable nouns are always singular and take “is”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “are” is a trap because students often think of money as multiple bills or coins. (b) “has” is the translation trap.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
1 Describing Objects (To Be vs. To Have): When you describe the color, size, shape, material, or weight of an object (adjectives), you MUST use the Verb “To Be”. A very common mistake is translating directly from other languages and using “To Have”.
- ❌ My bag has black.
- ✅ My bag is black.
- ❌ The laptop has heavy.
- ✅ The laptop is heavy.
2 Compound Subjects (A + B = Are): If you are talking about two things, treat them as “They” and use “are“.
- My wallet and my passport are lost.
3 Tricky Singulars & Plurals:
- Always Singular (Use “is”): Uncountable nouns like luggage, baggage, money, and indefinite pronouns like everything. (The money is in the bag.)
- Always Plural (Use “are”): Objects with two parts like glasses, sunglasses, scissors, headphones. (My glasses are broken.)