Level: B1

Tricky Article Uses — Practice

Fill in the blank with the right form. This page covers the special cases where article choice trips up ESL learners — body parts (use a possessive, NOT the), times of day (in the morning but at night), meals (no article), and seasons (both forms accepted). 32 click-to-hear examples.

📝 Articles unit · lesson 7 of 9 ⏱ about 8 minutes 🔊 every example has audio

Builds on Zero Article Next in unit Common Mistakes →

Body parts — use possessives, not the

For your own body parts, use possessive adjectives (my, her, his):

She broke the leg.

She broke her leg.

Times of day — at night is the trap

Time	Article	Example
morning	in the morning	I work in the morning.
afternoon	in the afternoon	She studies in the afternoon.
evening	in the evening	We read in the evening.
night	at night (no "the"!)	Owls hunt at night.

Meals — no article in general

We have breakfast at 7. (no article in general)
We had a delicious lunch. (a/an WITH adjective)
The dinner at that hotel was great. (the for specific meal)

Seasons — both forms accepted

in spring / in the spring
in winter / in the winter

📚 For the general article quiz combining all rules (a / an / the / no article), see Choose the Right Article.

📖 Want the full explanation? See English Articles → Tricky uses on the main grammar page.

How to use this page

🔊 Listen: click the speaker icon to hear the whole line read aloud.
Word audio: click any word to hear it spoken on its own.
🌐 Translate: choose a language then click the globe icon to open Google Translate.
☑️ Select & practice: tick the checkboxes to choose items, then print them, make a worksheet or flashcards, or start a quiz.

Body parts — use possessive (her, his, my, your)
She broke ______ leg in the accident. – her
He raised ______ hand to ask a question. – his
I cut ______ finger while cooking. – my
Sarah bandaged ______ arm. – her
She combed ______ hair carefully. – her
He shook ______ head. – his
Wash ______ hands before dinner. – your
The boy hurt ______ knee playing soccer. – his
Times of day — in the morning/afternoon/evening
I work ______ morning. – in the
She studies ______ afternoon. – in the
We read books ______ evening. – in the
The shop opens early ______ morning. – in the
He goes to the gym ______ evening. – in the
Times of day — AT NIGHT (no "the"!)
Owls hunt ______ night. – at
I sleep well ______ night. – at
It is very cold ______ night here. – at
She does not like driving ______ night. – at
Stars come out ______ night. – at
Meals — no article (in general)
We have ______ breakfast at 7. – no article
Let us meet for ______ lunch. – no article
______ Dinner is ready. – no article
What do you usually have for ______ breakfast? – no article
She skipped ______ lunch today. – no article
Meals — a/an WITH adjective; THE if specific
We had ______ delicious lunch. – a
She cooked ______ wonderful dinner. – a
______ breakfast at that hotel was great. – the
He made ______ amazing breakfast for us. – an
Seasons — a specific season takes the
She visited Japan in ______ spring of 2023. – the
Everyone says ______ winter we moved here was brutal. – the
The flowers were amazing in ______ summer of 2022. – the
People still talk about ______ autumn that followed. – the
We went skiing ______ winter of 2019. – in the

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