ESL worksheet focusing on the verb "to be" with practice sentences and answer choices.

Let’s go through each sentence one by one. We need to pick the correct form of “to be” — am, is, are, was, or were — based on who or what the sentence is about and whether it’s happening now (present) or in the past.

Remember:
- Use am only with “I”
- Use is with he, she, it, or singular nouns (like “the movie”, “my father”)
- Use are with you, we, they, or plural nouns
- Use was for past tense with I, he, she, it, or singular nouns
- Use were for past tense with you, we, they, or plural nouns

Now let’s solve each:

1. The movie ______ long.
→ “The movie” is singular → present tense? No time word, but “long” describes a state → use is

2. She ______ in the movie.
→ “She” = third person singular → if no time given, assume present → is

3. They ______ at movie theater yesterday.
→ “They” + “yesterday” = past tense → were

4. My father ______ a policeman.
→ “My father” = singular → could be present or past? No time clue → usually means current job → is

5. We ______ in Japan last year.
→ “We” + “last year” = past → were

6. He ______ ten years old when I met him.
→ “He” + “when I met him” = past → was

7. She ______ doing her homework now.
→ “She” + “now” = present continuous → needs “is” → is

8. They ______ playing football in the backyard now.
→ “They” + “now” = present continuous → are

9. Dara ______ my best friend.
→ “Dara” = singular name → present tense → is

10. This clock ______ broken.
→ “This clock” = singular → describing current state → is

Wait — let’s double-check #4: “My father ___ a policeman.” If there’s no time word, we usually assume present unless context says otherwise. So yes, “is” is fine.

Also #1: “The movie ___ long.” Could it be past? Like “The movie was long”? But no time word — so present is safer. Actually, movies don’t change length — so maybe either works? But since no past clue, stick with is.

Actually — wait! Let’s think again. In English, when we say “The movie is long,” we mean its duration. That’s fine. But sometimes people say “The movie was long” after watching it. Since no time word, both could work — but the worksheet probably expects present unless told otherwise. Looking at other sentences, some have time words (“yesterday”, “last year”, “now”), others don’t. For those without, we default to present.

But let’s check #4 again — “My father is a policeman” — that’s fine. Unless he retired, but no info.

Actually, looking back — maybe #1 should be “was”? No, because no past indicator. Stick with “is”.

Wait — actually, let me re-read all:

Sentence 1: “The movie ___ long.” — no time → present → is

Sentence 2: “She ___ in the movie.” — no time → present → is

Sentence 3: “They ___ at movie theater yesterday.” — past → were

Sentence 4: “My father ___ a policeman.” — no time → present → is

Sentence 5: “We ___ in Japan last year.” — past → were

Sentence 6: “He ___ ten years old when I met him.” — past → was

Sentence 7: “She ___ doing her homework now.” — present → is

Sentence 8: “They ___ playing football... now.” — present → are

Sentence 9: “Dara ___ my best friend.” — present → is

Sentence 10: “This clock ___ broken.” — present state → is

All seem consistent.

Final Answer:
1. is
2. is
3. were
4. is
5. were
6. was
7. is
8. are
9. is
10. is