Coffee or Tea?

Here is a common debate between many people: coffee or tea? Which one is better? Which one is healthier? Why do we drink one over the other? Many people drink coffee because they are sure it has caffeine. They need caffeine to keep them alert and ready for the day. They also enjoy the bitter taste that coffee has. People enjoy tea because it has a soothing effect. It is known to help people when they are sick. A lot of people do not know that most teas also have caffeine. There are many flavors of both coffee and tea.

debate: argument in which both sides have distinct opinions
coffee: a drink made from coffee beans, served hot or iced
tea: a drink made from crushed tea leaves
caffeine: stimulant of the central nervous system
bitter: sharp, not sweet, taste
soothing: relaxing
flavors: different taste of food or drink

Vocabulary Exercise

argument in which both sides have distinct opinions?     _ _ _ _ _ _
a drink made from coffee beans, served hot or iced?    _ _ _ _ _ _
a drink made from crushed tea leaves?    _ _ _
stimulant of the central nervous system?    _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
sharp, not sweet, taste?    _ _ _ _ _ _
relaxing?    _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
different taste of food or drink?    _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Grammar Point: "The" as a Definite Article
The word "the" is one of the most common words in English. It is our only definite article. Nouns in English are preceded by the definite article when the speaker believes that the listener already knows what he is referring to. 

For example, use "the" to refer to something that has already been mentioned.
- We needed to think of a name for our team. The name was very difficult to come up with.

Use "the" when you assume there is only one of something.
- The park we went to yesterday was so much fun.

Use "the" before superlatives.
- Dogs are the best pets!

Use "the" as a definite article once for each instance above.