Question

Fill in the gaps with the correct form of the verb to be. 1. mary and ann __ bright students when they studied at moscow university. 2. what __ the capital of italy? 3. some children __ afraid of the dark. 4. there __ a lot of books in the library. 5. pete __ interested in programming now. 6. there__ a boring film on tv the day before yesterday. 7. these women __ from france. 8. max __ watching news online now. 9. it __ windy outside yesterday.

Answer 1

1. Mary and Ann were  bright students when they studied at Moscow University.
2. What is the capital of Italy?
3. Some children are afraid of the dark.
4. There are a lot of books in the library.
5. Pete is interested in programming now.
6. There was a boring film on TV the day before yesterday.
7. These women are from France.
8. Max is watching news online now.
9. It was windy outside yesterday.

Answer 2

1. Mary and Ann were bright students when they studied at Moscow University. In this sentence, we are talking about Mary and Ann's past, so we use the past tense of the verb "to be," which is "were."

2. What is the capital of Italy? In this sentence, we are asking about the present, so we use the present tense of the verb "to be," which is "is."

3. Some children are afraid of the dark. In this sentence, we are talking about a general truth or fact that applies to all children, so we use the present tense of the verb "to be," which is "are."

4. There are a lot of books in the library. In this sentence, we are talking about the current situation in the library, so we use the present tense of the verb "to be," which is "are." We also use the word "there" as a dummy subject to indicate the existence of something.

5. Pete is interested in programming now. In this sentence, we are talking about Pete's current interest in programming, so we use the present tense of the verb "to be," which is "is."

6. There was a boring film on TV the day before yesterday. In this sentence, we are talking about a past event, so we use the past tense of the verb "to be," which is "was." We also use the word "there" as a dummy subject to indicate the existence of something.

7. These women are from France. In this sentence, we are talking about the current nationality of the women, so we use the present tense of the verb "to be," which is "are."

8. Max is watching news online now. In this sentence, we are talking about Max's current activity, so we use the present tense of the verb "to be," which is "is."

9. It was windy outside yesterday. In this sentence, we are talking about the weather conditions in the past, so we use the past tense of the verb "to be," which is "was." We also use the word "it" as a dummy subject to talk about the weather.