Fill in the gaps with is or are 1. the news .... very sad 3. the .... an apricot and two peaches on the plate. 4. where .... my shoe? 5. there ... several oranges and a slice of lemon in the fridge. 6. their advice .... good to follow 7. my cat's hair .... orange 8. .... the furniture in your flat new? 9. there .... plenty of apples in the garden this year. 10. there .... not any sugar in sugar bowl.

Here are the correct forms for each sentence with explanations regarding the grammatical rules of countability and proximity.

1. The news is very sad.
   The word news is an uncountable noun in English. Even though it ends in "s," it always takes a singular verb.
2. There is an apricot and two peaches on the plate.
   In sentences starting with there, the verb usually agrees with the first noun in the list (the rule of proximity). Since "an apricot" is singular, "is" is used.
3. Where is my shoe?
   The noun shoe is singular here, referring to only one of the pair.
4. There are several oranges and a slice of lemon in the fridge.
   Following the rule of proximity, the first item in the list, several oranges, is plural. Therefore, the plural verb "are" is required.
5. Their advice is good to follow.
   The word advice is an uncountable noun. It never takes a plural form or a plural verb.
6. My cat's hair is orange.
   When referring to the total growth of hair on a body or animal, hair is treated as an uncountable, singular noun.
7. Is the furniture in your flat new?
   The word furniture is an uncountable collective noun and always requires a singular verb.
8. There are plenty of apples in the garden this year.
   The word apples is a plural countable noun. "Plenty of" acts as a quantifier for the plural subject.
9. There is not any sugar in the sugar bowl.
   The word sugar is an uncountable noun (a substance), which always takes a singular verb.

Would you like to review more examples of uncountable nouns that often confuse learners, such as "information," "money," or "knowledge"?