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Level: B1

Go to School vs Go to The School — Practice

Some places have two meanings depending on whether you use the: school, church, prison, bed, work. Without the = the activity / purpose. With the = the physical building. Plus the special cases (home never takes the; AmE vs BrE differ for hospital). Fill in the blank — does the sentence need the or no article? 28 click-to-hear examples.

📝 Articles unit · lesson 5 of 9 ⏱ about 7 minutes 🔊 every example has audio

Builds on A / An / The / Zero Next in unit Zero Article →

  • School — no the (activity) vs the (building)
  • Tom goes to ______ school every day. – no article
  • I drove to ______ school to pick up my daughter. – the
  • She studies hard at ______ school. – no article
  • The parents visited ______ school during the open day. – the
  • Church — no the (worship) vs the (building)
  • They go to ______ church every Sunday. – no article
  • The tourists visited ______ church for its art. – the
  • She prays at ______ church on holidays. – no article
  • The roof of ______ church was damaged. – the
  • Bed — no the (sleep) vs the (physical bed)
  • It is late, so I am going to ______ bed. – no article
  • The cat is sleeping on ______ bed. – the
  • I am in ______ bed already. – no article
  • Do not sit on ______ bed in those dirty clothes. – the
  • Prison — no the (as prisoner) vs the (visiting)
  • He has been in ______ prison for two years. – no article
  • The lawyer visited ______ prison yesterday. – the
  • She was sent to ______ prison. – no article
  • ______ prison is on the outskirts of town. – the
  • Work — no the (job) vs the office (building)
  • She goes to ______ work at 9. – no article
  • I forgot my laptop at ______ office. – the
  • He is at ______ work right now. – no article
  • I have to stop by ______ office on my way home. – the
  • HOME — never takes the
  • I am going ______ home. – no article
  • She is at ______ home. – no article
  • Stay ______ home today. – no article
  • Welcome ______ home! – no article
  • Hospital — AmE (the) vs BrE (no the)
  • In American English: She is in ______ hospital. – the
  • In British English: She is in ______ hospital. – no article
  • In American English: He was rushed to ______ hospital. – the
  • In British English: He was rushed to ______ hospital. – no article