II. GRAMMAR

Circle the correct answers.

1. In many cultures, knocking on wood is a/an way to chase away bad spirits.

2. American people often watch a/an ball drop at midnight in Times Square.

3. There is at least a/an ornamental tree in my house every Tet holiday.

4. I have to go. I’m in a/an hurry.

5. Mr. Lu goes hunting in the forests twice a/an month.

6. Do you have a/an milk jug?

7. The Prime Minister will give a/an speech this afternoon.

8. There is a/an custom of doing morning exercises in my family.

9. I haven’t been to a/an open-air theatre before.

10. Here is a/an thousand pounds I borrowed from you last month.

Fill in the blanks with “a / an / x”.

1. “Li xi” is _________ essential part of Vietnam’s customs of the Tet Festival.

2. Storytelling is _________ way to keep the local tradition alive.

3. There’ll always be _________ conflict between the old and the young.

4. Are you going away _________ next week?

5. There was _________ collision at the comer.

6. My mother thinks that this is _________ expensive shop.

7. Like many women, she loves _________ parties and _________ gifts.

8. She works seven days _________ week.

9. We were at _________ Sa Dec Flower Village yesterday.

10. We use plants and flowers for _________ decorations and _________ offerings.

Fill in the blanks with “a / an / the”.

1. _________ Vietnamese are known to be polite, hospitable and sensitive.

2. In _________ countryside, parents often arrange their children’s marriages.

3. “Ao dai” is one of _________ most traditional costumes in Viet Nam.

4. My aunt made some spring rolls for _________ longevity party.

5. _________ Ok Om Bok Festival takes place in October.

6. _________ tradition of worshipping whales is popular in Vietnamese coastal villages.

7. It’s _________ tradition for shops to have _________ lion dance performance at their opening ceremony.

8. Holding _________ party to wish our grandparents longevity is one of _________ customs we practice at Tet.

9. People place _________ bamboo pole in _________ yard of _________ communal house.

10. It’s _________ custom in my family to have dinner at home on Saturdays.

Underline “the” or “x” to complete the sentences.

1. What’s the/x matter? Are you all right?

2. Kate has bought a new car since the/x yesterday.

3. Some people think that the/x Moon is man-made.

4. I’m collecting money for the/x poor.

5. The/x Brian hasn’t found a job yet.

6. Can you play the/x guitar?

7. Don’t forget to turn off the/x television.

8. There’s a knife in the/x second drawer.

9. The/x art museum is in the/x city center.

10. Many Asians go to the/x Buddhist temples to pray for good luck.

Fill in the blanks with “a / an / the / x”.

1. We are looking for _________ place to spend _________ night.

2. Please turn off _________ lights when you leave _________ room.

3. We are looking for people with _________ lot of experience.

4. Would you pass me _________ salt, please?

5. Can you show me _________ way to _________ station?

6. She has read _________ interesting book.

7. You’ll get _________ shock if you touch _________ live wire with that screwdriver.

8. Mr. Smith is old customer and honest man.

9. _________ youngest boy has just started going to _________ school.

10. Did you go to _________ prison to visit him?

Put “a / an / the” in the correct position to complete the sentences.

1. Traditionally, Vietnamese prepare offerings to worship their ancestors.

__________________________________________________________________________________

2. Organising folk song club is one way for us to keep our traditions alive.

__________________________________________________________________________________

3. We went to Nha Trang on plane.

__________________________________________________________________________________

4. Worshipping Kitchen Gods is long-time tradition of Vietnamese.

__________________________________________________________________________________

5. Our village festival is held on 10th of March.

__________________________________________________________________________________

6. Don’t hit bowl with your chopstick because this may bring bad luck to you.

__________________________________________________________________________________

7. It’s good idea to hand bowls with both hands.

__________________________________________________________________________________

8. Remember to bring some food to party tomorrow, Jane!

__________________________________________________________________________________

9. Did you put vase next to TV?

__________________________________________________________________________________

10. Offerings include set of flowers and fruits, paper clothes, and three carps.

__________________________________________________________________________________

Cross out the unnecessary articles in each sentence.

1. The Ancient Egyptians worshipped the Sun.

2. What did you have for a breakfast this morning?

3. The lion dance is called shishi-mai in the Japanese.

4. People perform a lion dance to bring a good luck.

5. The first, there is a special boat race.

6. The village festivals help US maintain our the traditions.

7. You shouldn’t refuse a young rice when the elderly offer it to you.

8. There are the lantern contests at the Ok Om Bok Festival.

9. It’s becoming a custom for many families in the Viet Nam to celebrate Women’s Day and the Family Day.

10. Dragon-snake (Rong ran len may) is a traditional Vietnamese game for the children.

Complete sentences with a suitable preposition.

1. Vietnamese people lay flowers or sometimes fruits ___________ the altar for the belief that their ancestors will enjoy them.

2. We are going to prepare five-coloured sticky rice served ___________ grilled chicken ___________ the celebration.    

3. A tradition is something special that is passed ___________ through the generations.

4. You should find more information ___________ a custom or a tradition in your hometown.

5. It’s a tradition ___________ children to wake up early ___________ Christmas Day.

6. Children usually wish longevity ___________ their grandparents and parents.

7. Thai people throw water ___________ one another as part of the cleansing ritual to welcome the Songkran New Year.

8. We broke ___________ family tradition ___________ travelling to New Zealand last Tet holiday.

9. Traditionally, children in the U.S. go from house to house to ask ___________ sweets ___________ Halloween.

10. We have a tradition ___________ holding a family reunion ___________ the first day of Tet.

Circle the best answers.

1. Five-coloured sticky rice is ___________ important traditional dish.

A. a                              B. an                            C. the                           D. x

2. ___________ Thai have ___________ population of about 1.500.000 people.

A. A – a                        B. The – an                  C. The – a                    D. x – a

3. ___________ Thai women wear short blouses, long skirts, scarves and ornaments.

A. a                              B. an                            C. the                           D. x

4. Which group has ___________ smallest population?

A. a                              B. an                            C. the                           D. x

5. There was ___________ exhibition of Ethnic Minorities Opens on April 18th at Ly Thai To Flower Garden.

A. a                              B. an                            C. the                           D. x

6. I have ___________ shawl. ___________ shawl is unique and strong.

A. a - A                         B. an - A                       C. a - x                         D. a – The

7. We can find terraced fields in ___________ northern mountainous regions.

A. a                              B. an                            C. the                           D. x

8. Look! ___________ flowers my mother bought from ___________ market yesterday are blooming.

A. A-a                          B. The-the                   C. A-x                           D. The-x

9. Is Lien ___________ shop assistant?

A. a                              B. an                            C. the                           D. x

10. My mother does ___________ shopping in my family.

A. a                              B. an                            C. the                           D. x

11. How many people were there at the family ___________ last weekend?

A. unit                          B. united                      C. union                       D. reunion

12. We should ___________ children’s awareness of our customs and traditions.

A. rise                          B. raise                         C. boost                       D. improve

13. Joe broke with ___________ when he went to an art college.

A. culture                    B. habit                        C. tradition                  D. custom

14. We ___________ the Spring Festival on the 15th of January in the lunar calendar.

A. happen                    B. occur                       C. hold                         D. take place

15. Tourists ___________ wear shorts and tank tops when attending the worshipping ceremony.

A. need                        B. must                        C. mustn’t                    D. should

16. Festivals are important because they keep some village traditions ___________.

A. alive                         B. live                          C. living                       D. lively

17. It’s the ___________ in that country for women to get married in white.

A. hobby                      B. habit                        C. custom                    D. costume

18. Many young people don’t ___________ the tradition of living with their parents when they are eighteen.

A. try                           B. follow                      C. obey                        D. take

19. ___________ to the tradition, we have a fireworks display on New Year’s Eve.

A. In addition               B. According                C. Owing                      D. Thanks

20. A: “Thank you for the enjoyable party tonight!” - B: “___________”

A. It’s my pleasure.     B. I’m sorry.                 C. I don’t mind.           D. That’s a great idea!

Exercise 10. Find and correct the mistakes.

1. They go to the school five days a week.                                                     ___________

2. Viet Nam is the country of many religions and beliefs.                              ___________

3. My son started to play the baseball when he was ten.                              ___________

4. How often is festival celebrated? - Every year.                                          ___________

5. There is a LG television in my room.                                                          ___________

6. Emily comes from the France.                                                                    ___________

7. Today, we are going to discuss necessity of traditions.                             ___________

8. Woman of the house looks after her parents, husband and children.      ___________

9. You don’t should litter the temple ground.                                                ___________

10. We should show respect for the monks and the elders.                         ___________