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“There is/There are” is a key topic for early English learners. Using it, students can easily describe WHAT is located SOMEWHERE.
There are general rules of using “There is/There are” phrases.
We use there is for singular and there are for plural.
- There is a dog in the car
- There are two cats on the roof
We also use There is with uncountable nouns:
- There is milk in the fridge.
The contraction of there is is there’s. You cannot contract there are.
- There’s a good song on the radio.
The negative is formed by putting not after is or are:
- There is not a horse in the field.
- There are not eight children in the school.
To form a question we place is / are in front of there. We also use there is / are in short answers.
- Is there a dog in the supermarket? – No, there isn’t.
- Are there any polar bears in Antarctica? – No, there aren’t.
- Is there any ice-cream in the freezer? – Yes, there is.
Use there are when you’re talking about “a lot” of countable nouns. There is comes with uncountable nouns.
- There are a lot of apples in the basket.
- There is a lot of money in the wallet.
When you’re making a list of things, use there is or there are depending on the first item.
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There is a kitchen, a living room, and a bedroom in my apartment.