Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate word.
I haven’t got ______ paint.
a) any
b) some
c) many
d) None of the above

Answer 1

Hint: Here the question is about countable and uncountable nouns. Countable nouns are nouns that can be counted, for example, candies, eggs, etc. Uncountable nouns are usually liquids, stars, hair, etc. “Paint” is a form of liquid so it is an uncountable noun.

Complete answer:
Option a is “any”. This is the correct answer because the sentence implies that the paint is over. The sentence also has a negative connotation and the word “any” is used in such sentences. An example of another sentence is “I don’t have any money left”. Therefore, the correct answer is option a.
Let us see why the other options are not correct.
Option b is wrong because the word “some” is usually used when the sentence is in the positive degree. For example, “I have some paint”. But when the sentence is negative, such as, “I haven’t got…”, the word “any” is to be used.
Option c is wrong because “many” is used with nouns that are countable. I have many stickers of Pokemon. I have many marbles to play with. Marbles and stickers are countable and not something uncountable like paint. Option d is wrong because it has been given to confuse the students.

Note:
“Any” is used for both countable and uncountable nouns. It depends on the sentence to see if the usage is appropriate. I don’t have any money (countable). I don’t have any water (uncountable). Also, “any” is primarily used with sentences that are written in the negative sense. Use the word in the sentence to see if it is grammatically correct.