Summary of Understanding 'There Is' and 'There Are'

Understanding 'There Is' and 'There Are': A Simple Guide

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Introduction

The existential "there" ("there is" / "there are") is used to talk about the existence or presence of people, places, things or ideas. In English it performs the same role as the Spanish verb "haber" in sentences like "Hay alguien".

The existential "there" introduces the existence of something: use "there is" for singular or uncountable nouns and "there are" for plural nouns.

When to use

To state that something exists or is present: "There is a bank on my street."
To ask whether something exists: "Are there any questions?"
To make negative statements about existence: "There isn't a problem." / "There aren't any seats."

Form and structure

Affirmative

Use There + is with singular countable nouns and uncountable nouns: "There is an apple." / "There is water in the bottle."
Use There + are with plural nouns: "There are books on the shelf."

Use	Example
Singular / uncountable	There is an apple on this tree.
Plural	There are books in his bag.

Questions

Move the verb before "there": Is there... ? / Are there... ?
Examples: "Is there an apple on this tree?" "Are there books in his bag?"

Negative

Add not to the verb: There isn't / There aren't
Examples: "There isn't an apple on this tree." "There aren't books in his bag."

Contractions: "there is" → "there's"; "there is not" → "there isn't"; "there are not" → "there aren't".

Quick comparison table

Aspect	Singular / Uncountable	Plural
Affirmative	There is an apple.	There are apples.
Question	Is there an apple?	Are there apples?
Negative	There isn't an apple.	There aren't apples.
Short answers (yes)	Yes, there is.	Yes, there are.
Short answers (no)	No, there isn't.	No, there aren't.

Practical examples and exercises

Make affirmative sentences (model answers):

five shops. → There are five shops.
a lot of restaurants. → There are a lot of restaurants.
a building. → There is a building.
some parks. → There are some parks.
a library. → There is a library.
a bus station. → There is a bus station.
a sports centre. → There is a sports centre.

Change them to negative:

There aren't five shops.
There aren't a lot of restaurants.
There isn't a building.
There aren't some parks. (More natural: There aren't any parks.)
There isn't a library.
There isn't a bus station.
There isn't a sports centre.

Turn them into questions (add short answers about your city):

Are there five shops in your city? Yes, there are. / No, there aren't.
Are there a lot of restaurants in your city? Yes, there are. / No, there aren't.
Is there a building like that in your city? Yes, there is. / No, there isn't.
Are there some parks in your city? Yes, there are. / No, there aren't.
Is there a library in your city? Yes, there is. / No, there isn't.
Is there a bus station in your city? Yes, there is. / No, there isn't.
Is there a sports centre in your city? Yes, there is. / No, there isn't.

Choose the correct words (answers):

There's a TV.
There are four chairs in the living room.
Are there any windows in the kitchen?
Is there a teacher in the classroom?
There aren't any pencils on the table.
There isn't any milk in the fridge. (Or: There isn't milk in the fridge.)
Is there a bookcase?

Complete the questions and short answers (sample answers):

Is there a tree in this park? No, there isn't.
Is there an internet café in your city? Yes, there is.
Are there any hospitals near here? No, there aren't.
Are there any buildings next to your school? Yes, there are.
Is there a shop in this street? No, there isn't.
Is there a cinema in your town? Yes, there is.
Are there any students in the school? No, there aren't.

Tips and common mistakes

Use "there is" with singular nouns and uncountable nouns: "There is milk." not "There are milk."
Use "there are

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Existential There

Klíčová slova: Existential there (There is / There are)

Klíčové pojmy: Use 'there is' for singular and uncountable nouns, Use 'there are' for plural nouns, Form questions by inverting verb and 'there' (Is there?/Are there?), Make negatives with 'there isn't' or 'there aren't', Short affirmative answer: 'Yes, there is/are', Short negative answer: 'No, there isn't/aren't', Use 'there's' as contraction of 'there is', Prefer 'any' in questions/negatives with plural/uncountable nouns (Are there any...? There aren't any...)

## Introduction The existential "there" ("there is" / "there are") is used to talk about the existence or presence of people, places, things or ideas. In English it performs the same role as the Spanish verb "haber" in sentences like "Hay alguien". > The existential "there" introduces the existence of something: use "there is" for singular or uncountable nouns and "there are" for plural nouns. ### When to use - To state that something exists or is present: "There is a bank on my street." - To ask whether something exists: "Are there any questions?" - To make negative statements about existence: "There isn't a problem." / "There aren't any seats." ## Form and structure ### Affirmative - Use **There + is** with singular countable nouns and uncountable nouns: "There is an apple." / "There is water in the bottle." - Use **There + are** with plural nouns: "There are books on the shelf." | Use | Example | | --- | --- | | Singular / uncountable | There is an apple on this tree. | | Plural | There are books in his bag. | ### Questions - Move the verb before "there": **Is there... ? / Are there... ?** - Examples: "Is there an apple on this tree?" "Are there books in his bag?" ### Negative - Add not to the verb: **There isn't / There aren't** - Examples: "There isn't an apple on this tree." "There aren't books in his bag." > Contractions: "there is" → "there's"; "there is not" → "there isn't"; "there are not" → "there aren't". ## Quick comparison table | Aspect | Singular / Uncountable | Plural | | --- | --- | --- | | Affirmative | There is an apple. | There are apples. | | Question | Is there an apple? | Are there apples? | | Negative | There isn't an apple. | There aren't apples. | | Short answers (yes) | Yes, there is. | Yes, there are. | | Short answers (no) | No, there isn't. | No, there aren't. | ## Practical examples and exercises 1) Make affirmative sentences (model answers): - five shops. → There are five shops. - a lot of restaurants. → There are a lot of restaurants. - a building. → There is a building. - some parks. → There are some parks. - a library. → There is a library. - a bus station. → There is a bus station. - a sports centre. → There is a sports centre. 2) Change them to negative: - There aren't five shops. - There aren't a lot of restaurants. - There isn't a building. - There aren't some parks. (More natural: There aren't any parks.) - There isn't a library. - There isn't a bus station. - There isn't a sports centre. 3) Turn them into questions (add short answers about your city): - Are there five shops in your city? Yes, there are. / No, there aren't. - Are there a lot of restaurants in your city? Yes, there are. / No, there aren't. - Is there a building like that in your city? Yes, there is. / No, there isn't. - Are there some parks in your city? Yes, there are. / No, there aren't. - Is there a library in your city? Yes, there is. / No, there isn't. - Is there a bus station in your city? Yes, there is. / No, there isn't. - Is there a sports centre in your city? Yes, there is. / No, there isn't. 4) Choose the correct words (answers): 1. There's a TV. 2. There are four chairs in the living room. 3. Are there any windows in the kitchen? 4. Is there a teacher in the classroom? 5. There aren't any pencils on the table. 6. There isn't any milk in the fridge. (Or: There isn't milk in the fridge.) 7. Is there a bookcase? 5) Complete the questions and short answers (sample answers): 1. Is there a tree in this park? No, there isn't. 2. Is there an internet café in your city? Yes, there is. 3. Are there any hospitals near here? No, there aren't. 4. Are there any buildings next to your school? Yes, there are. 5. Is there a shop in this street? No, there isn't. 6. Is there a cinema in your town? Yes, there is. 7. Are there any students in the school? No, there aren't. ## Tips and common mistakes - Use "there is" with singular nouns and uncountable nouns: "There is milk." not "There are milk." - Use "there are