Choose the correct article. The boy at the river was not eating _________ food.
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Choose the correct article.
The boy at the river was not eating _________ food.
- A.
a
- B.
nothing
- C.
any
- D.
the
Attempted by 318 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: C
Answer: any
Explanation: The correct completion is 'any'. In negative sentences, 'any' is used with uncountable nouns (and plurals) to indicate absence: 'The boy at the river was not eating any food.'
Why 'any' is correct: 'Any' is used in negative contexts with uncountable nouns to show that no amount is present. It produces the natural sentence 'was not eating any food.'
Why 'a' is incorrect: 'A' requires a singular countable noun. 'Food' is uncountable, so 'a food' is not appropriate.
Why 'the' is incorrect here: 'The' refers to a specific, previously-mentioned or contextually known item. No specific food is indicated in this sentence, so 'the food' would be inappropriate without extra context.
Why 'nothing' is incorrect before 'food': 'Nothing' is a pronoun meaning 'not anything' and does not function as a determiner for 'food'. To use 'nothing' you would say 'The boy was eating nothing.' (without adding 'food').