There is / There are

What “There is” and “There are” Mean

We use there is and there are to say that something exists or is present somewhere.

There is a book on the table.

There are three cats in the garden.

There is some milk in the fridge.

There are many people at the party.

The word there here is not the same as the place word there. Compare:

There is a cat over there. The first there is says the cat exists. The second there shows location.

Singular vs. Plural

Use there is with singular nouns and uncountable nouns.

Use there are with plural nouns.

Singular / uncountable	Plural
`There is a problem.`	`There are some problems.`
`There is a man at the door.`	`There are two men at the door.`
`There is water in the bottle.`	`There are three bottles of water.`
`There is some bread.`	`There are some sandwiches.`

Contractions

Long	Short
`there is`	`there's`
`there is not`	`there isn't` / `there's not`
`there are not`	`there aren't`

Note: there are does not have a contraction. There is no word there're.

There's a key on the table. ✓

There aren't any cookies. ✓

There're three boys. ✗ (write There are three boys.)

Affirmative, Negative, and Questions

Affirmative (positive)

There is a cat in the garden.

There are five children in the class.

Negative

Add not after is or are.

There is not a dog in the house. / There isn't a dog in the house.

There are not any apples. / There aren't any apples.

With not, we usually use any instead of some:

There aren't any students here. (not There aren't some students.)

Questions

Put is or are before there.

Is there a problem? — Yes, there is. / No, there isn't.

Are there any bananas? — Yes, there are. / No, there aren't.

Is there a bank near here?

Are there many people in the room?

Short answers: do not contract a positive short answer.

Is there a chair? — Yes, there is. ✓ (not Yes, there's.)

Is there a chair? — No, there isn't. ✓

Some, Any, and Numbers

We often use these words after there is/are:

Use with	Example
`a / an` (singular)	`There is a window.`
`some` (positive, plural/uncountable)	`There are some books.` / `There is some sugar.`
`any` (negative or question)	`There aren't any books.` / `Is there any sugar?`
Numbers	`There are five chairs.`
`many` (countable)	`There are many people.`
`much` (uncountable, usually negative)	`There isn't much time.`

Common Mistakes

Mistake	Better	Why
`It is a book on the table.`	`There is a book on the table.`	Use `there is`, not `it is`, to say something exists.
`There is three cats.`	`There are three cats.`	Plural noun → `there are`.
`There are a problem.`	`There is a problem.`	Singular noun → `there is`.
`There're four kids.`	`There are four kids.`	`There are` has no contraction.
`There aren't some books.`	`There aren't any books.`	Use `any` (not `some`) in negatives.
`Have a book on the table.`	`There is a book on the table.`	Don’t translate from other languages — English uses `there is/are`.

Practice: Exercises

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___ a cat on the bed.

Summary

Use there is + singular noun or uncountable noun: There is a book, There is some water.

Use there are + plural noun: There are five chairs.

Contract there is to there's. Do not contract there are — there're is not standard English.

For negatives, add not and use any: There isn't a problem, There aren't any cookies.

For questions, put is/are first: Is there a bank?, Are there many shops?. Reply with Yes, there is/are or No, there isn't/aren't — don’t contract the positive short answer.