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What is Good at? Does Good at goes with “V-ing” or “to verb”?

What is Good at? Many English learners often come across this phrase, but have you fully grasped how to use it and identified whether it's followed by “V-ing” or “to verb”? If not, let's find out the answer together in today's article!

I. What is Good at?

What is Good at? According to the Cambridge Dictionary, Good at refers to: someone who is skilled or proficient in a particular activity or field. For example:

My sister is good at Math.
John is good at playing guitar.

II. The usage of Good at

What is Good at? How to use Good at? Good at is used to describe someone skilled or proficient in a particular activity or field. The formula:

S + tobe + good at +noun/Ving.

For example:

Fiona is good at badminton.
Cherry is good at singing.
My grandmother is really good at cooking.

III. Synonyms - antonyms of Good at

Let's find out some synonyms and antonyms of Good at in the table below!

1. Synonyms of Good at

Synonyms	Example
To be + Skilled at	Red is skilled at playing the piano.
To be + Proficient at	Sam is proficient at programming in many languages.
To be + Talented at	She is talented at painting beautiful landscapes.
To be + Capable at	They are capable at handling complex projects.
To be + Experienced at	He is experienced at managing teams in high-pressure situations.

2. Antonyms of Good at

Antonyms	Example
To be + Not good at	Anna is not good at public speaking, so she often gets nervous in front of large audiences.
To be + Bad at	Marry is bad at math and struggles with even basic calculations.
To be + Incompetent at	They are incompetent at managing finances, and their debts continue to grow.
To be + Inept at	She's inept at handling conflicts and often makes situations worse.
To be + Terrible at	He's terrible at cooking, and his attempts in the kitchen usually result in disasters.

IV. Good at exercises with answers

To gain a deeper understanding of what using the Good at structure means, let's practice some exercises below!

1. Exercises

Exercise 1: Choose the correct answer

My friend is _______ drawing pictures

A. good at

B. good in

C. good

Are you good at _______ soccer?

A. play

B. playing

C. played

Don’t worry. I am good at _______ meals.

A. Cooking

B. Cook

C. To cook

I know I am _______ solving crossword puzzles.

A. good at

B. good in

C. good

Many students in this school are good at______ Spanish.

A. speak

B. speaks

C. speaking

I am _______ learning new languages.

A. good at

B. good in

C. good

Sarah is good at _______ songs.

A. sing

B. singing

C. sings

They are _______ mathematics.

A. good at

B. good in

C. good

Tom is good at _______ the guitar.

A. playing

B. play

C. plays

Jane is _______ dancing.

A. good at

B. good in

C. good

We are good at _______ stories.

A. write

B. writing

C. writes

He is _______ science.

A. good at

B. good in

C. good

I am good at _______ computers.

A. using

B. use

C. uses

The children are _______ drawing.

A. good at

B. good in

C. good

She is good at _______ puzzles.

A. solve

B. solving

C. solves

Exercise 2: Conjugate the appropriate verbs in brackets

It is good for me (do) exercise every morning.
Mai is good at (clean) the house.
It is good (attend) the meeting in time.
Nam is good at (play) football.
My grandmother is good at (knit).
It is good for us (finish) our homework before dinner.
John is good at (swim).
It is good for my mother (take) a break every now and then.
Mary is good at (bake) cakes.
It is good for you (learn) another language.
Peter is good at (solve) math problems.
It is good for us (sleep) at least 7 hours a night.
Anna is good at (paint) landscapes.
It is good for me (practice) speaking English daily.
My brother is good at (play) the piano.

2. Answer

Exercise 1:

1 - A	2 - B	3 - A	4 - C	5 - C
6 - A	7 - B	8 - A	9 - A	10 - A
11 - B	12 - A	13 - A	14 - A	15 - B

Exercise 2:

to do
cleaning
to attend
playing
knitting
to finish
swimming
to take
baking
to learn
solving
to sleep
painting
to practice
playing

Prep hopes that through the article below, Preppies now have a clearer grasp of how to employ the phrase Good at and determine whether it's followed by “V-ing” or “to verb”. Let’s follow PREP for helpful English language updates!

Master Tu Pham

Founder/CEO at Prep

Mr. Tú Phạm is the founder of PREP, a Smart Test Preparation Platform. With over 10 years of teaching and test preparation experience, he has assisted thousands of students in achieving high scores on the IELTS exam. Additionally, Mr. Tú Phạm serves as a consultant for British Council programs and as a speaker at numerous premier education events, programs, and seminars.