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I was doing my homework when I came across a question like this:

"It might look like (entertain), but the kitten is practising its hunting skills."

I decided to choose "entertaining" as my answer, however, it was marked wrong. The correct answer should have been "entertainment". I really don't understand why. Can anyone help me?

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It should be entertainment.

Entertainment is a noun whereas entertaining is an adjective.

So you could say:

"It might look entertaining, but the kitten is practising its hunting skills."

or

"It might look like an entertaining activity, but the kitten is practising its hunting skills."

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    Agree and +1, but note entertaining can be a noun too, in its gerund form: she enjoys entertaining. But that's not what OP is asking about.
    – Dan Bron
    Jan 5, 2017 at 10:51
  • "It might look like entertaining..." would be a valid choice if the sentence were to mean "It might look like the kitten is having a dinner party..."
    – Andrew Leach
    Jan 5, 2017 at 10:52
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    Given the choice (and as Dan and Andrew say, there is one) of nouns here, it is necessary to look at idiomatic usage. 'Entertainment' is used for the overall general concept ('He's worked in entertainment for years.' / 'There's vital work to be done. We can worry about entertainment later.') whereas 'entertaining' is restricted to a specific and often audience-directed situation (Entertaining the WWI troops did wonders for morale.).
    – Edwin Ashworth
    Jan 5, 2017 at 12:20
  • Thank you for your help :) Your answer has helped me to understand my mistake!
    – Nguyễn Lý Hải Linh
    Jan 9, 2017 at 9:49

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