How to translate there is a. The there is (are) construct. Rule and exercises (basic level)

When you open any English textbook for beginners and read its content, you will find the topic "There is (there are)" . Indeed, this topic is considered at the very beginning of the study, but often it is not assimilated properly. Therefore, this article will be useful not only for beginners, but also for everyone who feels that they have not fully understood this topic.

The first problem with the there is (there are) construction is that it is not translated into Russian. This is not entirely true, because it can be translated, but it will not sound very "Russian". Word "there", used in the construction, translates as " there". Verb " is" (or " are" for plural) can be translated as " there is" or " located".

There is ... - There is / There is ... (about one subject):

There are ... - There are / There are ... (several items):

The second problem with the structure in question is that many do not understand why it is needed at all. Let's look at two similar sentences that can be said in the same situation:

So we see that the there is /there are construction is used to describe a place. Sentences that do not use a construction serve to describe a subject, not a place.

So, first rule to remember:

There is (there are) construction used to indicate that something is/is/exists in a particular location.

Of course, when we translate sentences from there is into Russian, we do not use the word "there", we usually start the translation from the place:

There is a man in the room. - There is a person in the room.

There is a car in the garage. - There's a car in the garage.

There are trees in the park. - There are trees in the park.

There are animals in the zoo. - There are animals in the zoo.

There is a book on the table. - There is a book on the table.

There are flowers on the book. - There are flowers on the book.

Let's consider one more variant of using the structure. Often we want to say sentences like:

There are many good writers.
There are many English textbooks.
There is one problem.

As you can see, these sentences do not specify a specific place, but imply. We can add "in the world", "in our country", "in my life" and so on, but this would be inappropriate, because the interlocutors already understand what is at stake. To translate such sentences into English, to keep the meaning, you simply cannot do without the construction there is (there are) :

Second rule usage:

The there is (there are) construct is used when you want to indicate that something exists in general, in some situation, but without specifying a specific location.

Now let's talk about forms. The construction there is (there are) , in addition to the affirmative, has a negative and interrogative form:

Pay attention to the abbreviations: there is has an abbreviation there's, and the statement there are has no abbreviation. But in negatives, both forms can be reduced.

negative form used when you want to say that something is not in a certain place:

Interrogative form is used to ask if something is in a certain place:

As in the case of statements, a specific place may not be indicated, but be understandable to interlocutors by context or situation:

Short Answers for design questions there is (there are) must also contain the word there :

The construction there is (there are) has forms of other tenses, in particular, past and future tenses.

The construction there is (there are) is used to indicate that something is in a certain place. After the mention, you need to use it is or they are :

To practice using the design there is (there are) choose a place (for example, your apartment, office, your desk) and make as many sentences as possible about what is in this place (There is/are) and what is not there (There is not/are not). You can then ask questions using the question form (Is/are there?)

The there is (there are) construction is often used with words and their derivatives.

Use the acquired knowledge and communicate in English fluently. I wish you success!

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Many people, when faced with the English language, do not fully understand this construction. There is\There are. At best, a person remembers a few phrases like: “There are a lot of theaters in Moscow” or “There are 4 rooms in my flat: bedroom, living room, kitchen and bathroom”. And of course, everyone memorizes that if the sentence contains the construction there is\there are in Russian, this sentence is translated starting from the end: “There are many theaters in Moscow” “There are 4 rooms in my apartment: a bedroom, a living room, a kitchen and a bathroom.” This usually ends the knowledge of this design, while its true possibilities are much greater.

So the construction there is\there are allows us to describe things that are somewhere. In Russian, this is translated by the words “lies”, “stands”, “is”, “hangs”, “is (is)” somewhere.

there is \ there are can be placed both at the beginning of a sentence and in middle(more difficult case). For example, let's take two topics: "Food" and "Interior, furniture."

• At the beginning of a sentence, in affirmative sentences: There are a lot of books in the bookcase.— There are many books in the bookcase. Instead of the words a lot of - a lot, you can substitute a certain amount, for example, 56. There are fifty-six books in the bookcase. You can substitute different adjectives that describe these same books: There are many different kinds of books in the bookcase. There are many different books (different types of books) in the bookcase. Further, through a colon, there can be an enumeration of these very types: detective stories, science fiction, fantasy, books for children ... etc. Or maybe there is no enumeration
• In the middle of a sentence, in a special question. How many kind of books are there in the bookcase?- First comes a special question - What kind of books, then, as always, the auxiliary verb (as usual in questions) are + there, and then it is specified where exactly - in the bookcase?
• In the middle of an affirmative sentence. When it is said that someone is somewhere: How many people there are in the street! - how many people (are) on the street!

The design itself:

Affirmative: There is \There are + what? who? (subject) + where.

• There are bedrooms in the house.- In home there is bedrooms.
• There is an armchair in the room.- In the room costs armchair. In the room there is armchair.

Also there is \ there are may not be translated into Russian at all. That is, it is implied that the object is located somewhere. There are twenty students in the classroom - There are 20 students in the class.(It is clear that they are there if they are in the classroom)

• Grammar.

Everything is clear here: we focus on the object that is located somewhere. If there is only one item - put there is , if there are more than one item - put there are.

1. There is a big nice bed in my room. - In my room (standing, located, there is) a big good bed.

Bed - one, so IS.

2. There are many flowers in the vase- There are many flowers in the vase.

There are many flowers, which means ARE.

Also often with there is \ there are prepositions of place are used.

under- under

behind- behind

opposite- against

on on (the surface of something)

in in (inside something)

by\next to\near- near, near, near.

There is some sugar in my tea - I have sugar in my tea.

There are two apples next to the vase. — There are 2 apples near the vase.

There is a street. There is a big house in the street. There is a long iron fence opposite the house. There is a long road between a fence and a house. There are a lot of leaves on the road because it is autumn. There are a few trees at the end of the road.- It's a street. There is a big house on the street. Opposite the house is an iron fence. There is a road between the fence and the house. There are many leaves on the road because it is autumn. There are several trees at the end of the road.

The tense forms of the verb to be in the turnover there is / there are !!!:

Present Indefinite: there is / there are - is, is;

Past Indefinite: there was / there were - was, was;

Future Indefinite: there will be (one form for plural and singular) - will be;

Present Perfect: there has been / there have been - was, was;

past perfect: there had been (one form for plural and singular) - was, was;

Let's take some kind of picture, where objects are located in space, and try to describe it using this construction.

There is a large comfortable living room in the house. There is a big wooden table in the middle of the room. There is a nice brown fur carpet on the floor. There are two sofas in the room. There are light pillows on the sofas. There are a few pictures on the walls above the sofas. There is a vase on the sofa table between the sofa and an armchair with some flowers in it. There is a white floor lamp near it. There are two caps and a teapot on the table.

The house has a large comfortable living room. There is a large wooden table in the center of the room. There is a beautiful woolen carpet on the floor. The room has 2 sofas. There are light colored pillows on the sofas. Several paintings hang on the walls above the sofas. Between the sofa and the armchair on the table is a vase of flowers. Near it is a large floor lamp. There are two cups and a teapot on the table.

You can continue indefinitely and even describe objects and their location in even more detail. You can describe by color, size, material of manufacture, your assessment (beautiful, dirty, attractive, ugly, comfortable, etc.), pattern, and many other characteristics.

• Interrogative sentences + answer to a general question. Is \ Are are placed at the beginning of the sentence.

Are there nice pictures on the wall? Yes, there are.

Is is there any sugar in your tea? — Do you have sugar in your tea? Yes, there is

• negative suggestions.

They are built in two ways: There is - There are

1. Using the verb to be + NOT: There is not(isn’t) any cheese in the fridge.- There is no cheese in the fridge. There aren't any nice clothes in the store. - There are no beautiful clothes in the store (Remember that clothes are singular)
2. With the help of the negative particle NO (can be used in the sense of "not at all"): There is no sugar at home. Let's go to get some. Not a grain of sugar at home. Let's go buy?

Instead of NOT ANY, you can use NO: There is no money in my pockets - I have no money in my pockets.

How they are built and already wrote in the same topics. I will not repeat myself, go to the links and look. The schemes are the same, only the words change.

There is= There's is a short form. There are - no short form!

Various examples:

• There is a letter on your desk. - There is a letter on the desk.
• There are some people in the office. - There are several people in the office.
• look! There is a beautiful rainbow in the sky. - Look! There is a beautiful rainbow in the sky.
• There are two parks in this town. There are two parks in the city.
• Are there any pens in the bag? — Are there any pens in the bag?
• There aren't any pens in the bag. - There are no pens in the bag.
• There are no pens in the bag. - There are no pens in the bag.

There is / there are turnover is faced by every person who studies English. And already at the most basic level. Often this turnover causes difficulty, since there is no analogue in Russian. It is worth understanding that the structure of sentence construction in English differs from the grammar of the Russian language. To correctly use the there is/are construction, you do not need to try to build an English sentence "in Russian". You need to start thinking in English. If you change your thinking, this turnover will not cause any difficulties.

What is this turn for?

The construction is used if you need to indicate the presence or absence of a person or object in a certain place. In other words, if you want to say that something or someone is, exists in a place you know, or happens at some time, you use there is or there are . For example:

There is a dog in the doghouse.
In the kennel (there is) a dog.

There are some trees near the house.
Near the house (there are) several trees.

Please note that the turnover is used if we are talking about some new (unknown) object that is located in a place we already know.

Here are two similar suggestions:

1. There is a map on the wall.
2. Map on the wall.

In the first sentence, in a place known to us (on the wall) there is an object (map) unknown to us. Therefore, in English it will sound like this:
There is a map on the wall.

In the second case, we report where (in what place) the object known to us (map) is located. In English we say:
The map is on the wall.

If you understand this difference, then using the phrase there is/there are will no longer be difficult.

Building a sentence

You have probably already noticed that the construction there is / there are at the beginning of a sentence, contrary to the rules for constructing an English sentence. The subject in this case is placed after this turnover. Schematically, this can be represented as follows:

The order of words in such a sentence cannot be changed.

It is worth noting that the circumstance in the proposal may be absent:

There are two armchairs.
Here (here) are two chairs.

There is some milk.
Here is (here) milk.

If the subject is a countable noun in the singular, then the article is placed in front of it - a.

With uncountable nouns and nouns in the plural, the pronouns some, any, a lot, many (with countable nouns), much (with uncountable nouns) are used. As well as quantitative numbers.

How to translate a sentence

The turnover there is / there are in its meaning corresponds to the Russian “is”, “is”, “lies”, “there is”. It is better to translate the sentence from the end, that is, from the circumstance of revenge or time. The word there is most often not translated into Russian. For example:

There is a plant near the window.

We begin to translate from the circumstance: where? - near the window. Then we translate the subject: what? - plant. We get the following translation:

Near the window (there is, is) a plant.

Is orare

Let's take a closer look at when to use there is and when there are . If the subject is in the singular and it is uncountable, we put - is. If the subject is plural, then you need to use - are. Everything is simple here.

But what if after the turnover there are several subjects, that is, there is a listing of items? In this case, the verb to be usually agrees with the subject immediately following it.

There is a cat and three kittens on the couch.
There is a cat and three kittens on the couch.

There are three kittens and a cat on the couch.
There are three kittens and a cat on the sofa.

Various temporary forms

The turnover there is/there are can be used in the tenses of Indefinite and Perfect. The verb to be will always be in the third person form:

Present Indefinite: there is/there are

Past Indefinite: there was/there were

Future Indefinite: there will be

Present Perfect: there has been/there have been

Past Perfect: there had been

Future Perfect: there will have been

For example:

There was a letter here. Where is it?
There was a letter here. Where is it?

There will be snow tomorrow.
Tomorrow it will snow.

Question formation

To form a general question, the verb to be in the appropriate form must be placed before the word there:

Is there a movie theater in this town?
Is there a cinema in this city?

Were there many visitors in the café yesterday?
Were there many visitors in the cafe yesterday?

These questions can be answered briefly:

Yes, there is/are. - Yes.
Yes, there was/were. - Yes.

No, there isn't/aren't. - Not.
No, there wasn't/weren't. - Not.

With the turnover there is/there are special questions can be built. In this case, the question word is put in the first place in the sentence, and then the word order is the same as in the general question.

When posing a question to the subject, the interrogative pronouns What? or who?

What is there for dinner today?
What's for dinner tonight?

Questions to determine the subject may begin with interrogative words: How many? How much? What? Which?

How many apple trees are there in your garden?
How many apple trees are in your garden?

negative form

A negative there is/there are clause can be formed in two ways.

First, with the help of a negative particle not, which must be placed after the verb to be. In colloquial speech, the shortened negative form is usually used:
in the present tense there isn't or there aren't.
in the past tense there wasn't or there weren't.

In a negative sentence, singular countable nouns are preceded by the indefinite article, and plural nouns and uncountable nouns are preceded by the pronoun any.

There isn't an air bag in my car.
My car doesn't have (none) airbags.

There weren't any messages for me yesterday.
There were (no) messages for me yesterday.

Secondly, negation can be expressed using the pronoun no. It is placed before the noun and is its definition:

There's no milk in this store.
There is no milk in this store.

There are no trains to Moscow today.
Today there are no trains to Moscow.

The phrase there is/there are is quite often used in English. To make your speech literate, lively and interesting, it is important to learn how to use this phrase in colloquial speech. For the practice of English, the channel "English - speak freely!" in a programme . On this channel you will meet like-minded English learners and you will be able to put your knowledge into practice.

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The there is / there are construction is used to report the location of objects and persons. Remember a simple rule: if the Russian sentence begins with the adverb of place (the first word of the Russian sentence answers the question "where?"), then we will start the English sentence with there is / there are. For example: "There is a mouse in the box" - There is a mouse in the box. In this case, the circumstance of the place itself (in the box - in the box) must be placed at the end of the sentence. English sentences with the construction there is / there are are translated from the end (while There is ... there are not translated). For example: There is a bench in the garden - There is a bench in the garden.

If the sentence begins with the subject (“who?” Or “what?”) This construction is not used, we translate it as it is: the car is on the street - the car is in the street.

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Let's compare two sentences "a vase is on the table" and "a vase is on the table". The first one begins with the adverb of the place, and the second with the subject, respectively, to translate the first sentence, we use There is a .... - “there is a vase on the table”, and the second sentence is translated without this construction - “the vase is on the table”. If the subject (the subject referred to in the sentence) is singular, then there is is used, and if it is plural, then there are.

• Please note that (is, are) in such sentences can be translated as “lies”, “stands”, “hangs”, “grows”, “is”: There are toys in the box lie toys, there is a big tree in front of my house - In front of my house growing a big tree.
• When listing items, use There is, if the first item listed is singular (There is a copy book, three pencils and a ruler on the table) and there are if the first item listed is plural (There are three pencils, a copy book and a ruler on the table).

Word order in affirmative, interrogative and negative sentences with the construction there is / there are

Prepositions of place are functional words that connect the members of a sentence and are closely related to the use of the there is / there are construction, so we consider them in this post. First, remember the prepositions of place and direction in English.

• On - on: there is an apple on the plate - there is an apple on the plate
• In - inside: there are pens in the bag - there are pens in the bag
• Above / over - above: there is a picture above the fireplace - a picture hangs above the fireplace
• At - y: at the wall - against the wall
• Near - near, about, nearby: near my house - near my house
• Under - under: under the table - under the table
• Below - below, under: below the window - under the window
• Behind - behind: behind the tree - behind the tree
• To - indicates movement towards the subject: to school - to school, to work - to work, to a friend - to a friend
• Into - inside: into the room - into the room
• From - indicates movement from the subject: from school - from school, from work - from work, take the cup from that boy - take the cup from that boy, take the book from the table - take the book from the table
• Out of - from (from inside): out of the bag - from the bag
• In front of - before: in front of my house - in front of my house
• Between - between: between the cupboard and the sofa - between the cupboard and the sofa
• Up - up: up the street - up the street
• Through - through, through: through the window - through the window
• Across - through (crossing): across the street - across the street
• Beside / next to - next (next in a row): sit next to me - sit next to me

• We recommend paying attention to the difference between the prepositions in and into. Phrases with the preposition in answer the question "where?" - in the cupboard - in the closet, in the bag - in the bag, in the box - in the box. Phrases with the preposition into answer the question “where?” - into the cupboard - into the closet, into the bag - into the bag, into the box - into the box.

More about the offer into see our video:

• Remember the exceptions: on the tree - in the tree, on the street - in the street, in the picture - in the picture.

Prepositions in English perform many functions, act as case endings that are absent in English, are an integral part of an uncountable number of expressions and should never be neglected.

Have you heard about the situation with the fly in the bowl of soup? If (God forbid) this happens to you, then you should complain to the waiter and demand a replacement of the dish immediately! Waiter! There's a FLY in my soup! Woop!

The construction of the sentence seems quite simple, but, oddly enough, in the English language the phrase “there is” / “there are” often causes many difficulties both in construction and in translation and, accordingly, in use. So when is there is, and when is there are?

But since you're with us! There'll be no problem! You will remember this turnover forever and will be with him "on you", carefully reading and remembering this article, of course. So, check it out!

What does there is/there are mean

Turnover "there" + "be" is translated, starting from the circumstance of the place, which is usually found at the end of a sentence:

There is a cat in the box.
There is a cat in the box.

If there is no circumstance of place, then when translating the sentence begins with the words “there is”, “there is”, “exists”, “it happens”, “is”, etc. In principle, often “there is / there are” and is not translated at all . Like this
"invisible", but extremely necessary turnover.

When to use there is and there are

« There is" and " there are» is used when they want to say that something exists (does not exist) or is (is not) in a particular place.

« There is" indicates the presence in a certain place of some kind one object (person). Also used with indefinite subjects (this is when the indefinite article ("a", "an") is used when there is no article, or the words "some", "any", "no" are used), and with indefinite pronouns like "somebody", "nothing".

There's something that makes me feel worried. - Something's bothering me.

« There are' indicates the presence in a particular location several(many) objects (persons).

There are two cats on the couch. - There are 2 cats on the sofa.

note: the word "there" (there) in the turnover "there is / there are" does not have an independent meaning and is an inseparable whole with "is / are". If, according to the meaning, it is necessary to express the circumstance of the place with the word “there” - “there”, then “there” is repeated at the end of the sentence.

There are so many boxes there. - There (there are) so many boxes.

Sentence structure with there is and there are

To make everything look clearer, we present you a simple formula and below is an example with numbers for clarity:

(one) " There is/there are» + (2) subject + (3) circumstance of place or time.

(1) There are (2) a lot of flowers (3) in the garden.

affirmative sentences

There is one table in the classroom.
There are three cats on the couch.
There is a spider in the bath.
There are many sinners in Hell.

« There is» also used with uncountable nouns(uncountable nouns):

There is milk in the fridge.
There is some sugar on the table.
There is ice cream on your shirt.

The number of the verb "be" is determined by the number of the first noun after this turn:

There is a table and two chairs in the room.
There are two cats and a midget in the car.

Abbreviations (contractions). "There is" in a simplified version becomes " there's". Almost always, in informal correspondence or in colloquial speech, this particular turnover option is used.

There's a good song on the radio.
There's only one chocolate bar left in the box.

As you know, you can abbreviate in different ways, but pay attention to the option with “are”:

there is not = there's not = there isn't/ there are not = there aren't. There's no contraction of "there are". Pay attention!

There are nine cats on the roof.
There are only five weeks until my birthday.

Speaking of informal communication, we can use "there" s "even when it comes to the plural. But do not try to use this in formal correspondence or in an exam. This is forbidden.

There's three other people who are still to come.
There's lots of cars in the car park.

Usually " there» not used with specific subject.

The door was open. - The door is open. (Error: "There was the door open.")

Interrogative sentences

Questions are formed by the usual permutation (subject " there"changes places with the predicate" be»):

Is there anyone at home?
Are there any cats on the floor?

When posing a question to determine the subject, interrogative words are used " how many», « how much» how much and interrogative pronoun « what", which precede the subject:

How many cats are there on the couch?
how much water is there in the bottle?
What is there in the box?

In the answer to the last question, the verb "to be" can also be used in the plural if the fact of the presence of several objects or phenomena is stated (or, for example, if they are listed):

« How many" with " are there". If we want to know the number of existing objects, then we use "how many" according to the following structure:

« How many» + plural noun + « are there» (+ addition).

How many dogs are there in the park?
How many students are there in your class?
How many gangsters are there in Chicago?
How many horror movies are there in your collection?

"There" can also be used in " question tags” (a short general question, stating the question).

There'll be enough boxes for everyone won't there?

Negative sentences

In negative sentences after the verb " to be» is used either « not» (when the noun following the negation is preceded by pronoun or numeral), or " no" (in other cases).

There is not(isn't) any money in the wallet. - There is no money in the wallet.
There is no money in the wallet. - There is no money in the wallet.

A short negative answer consists of the word " no' followed by ' there" and the verb " to be» in the appropriate form with the negative particle « not»:

Are there any cats on the couch? no,there are not(aren "t).
Is there a dog in the supermarket? - no, there isn't.

There "aren "t" with "any". When we want to say about the zero amount of something, we use " there aren't any».

There aren't any people at the party.
There aren't any trees in my street.

The same goes for uncountable nouns:

There isn't any water in the swimming pool.
There isn't any sugar in my coffee.

« There" can also be used in sentences where " be» is an auxiliary verb in the form progressive or passive. Pay attention to word order:

There have been more Americans killed in road accidents than in all the wars since 1900.
There'll be somebody meeting you at the airport.

The construction can also be used with modal verbs:

There must be somebody inside - ring again.
There may be a mistake - check again.
There might be some prey running around - I should be careful.

This structure should also be translated into Russian from the end.

Temporal forms there + be

What about other temporary forms? Or is only Present in charge here? By no means!

"There" is used with various forms of "be" in a variety of tenses. Use to your health!

There were fire-breathing dragons in the streets. ( past simple)
I think there'll be loads of people at the festival. ( Future Simple)
There haven't been many entries for the competition. ( present Perfect)
The examination concluded that there had been no ill-treatment during detention. ( Past Perfect)
By the time he hopes that there will have been fuller consultation with the human rights bodies. ( Future Perfect continuous).

It should be noted that in the question in the future tense before « there» put « will", and the verb " to be» is put after him.

Will there be your friends there? - Will your friends be there?

Difference between there is/there are and it/they

Take a look at the following suggestions. First, we get acquainted with the essence of the proposal with the help of " there is / there are", and then we refer to the mentioned with the help of " it" or " they».

There's a good movie on channel 2. It starts at 10 o "clock (it = the movie).
There are 3 new students in our class. They're from Brazil (they = the students).

The constructions "there is" and "there are" are used only in relation to new information. If anything already mentioned in the context, then you should use "it is" or "they are".

We also use " it» + « to be» + adjective + infinitives ( infinitive clauses). In such sentences, the emphasis falls on the infinitive construction:

It's nice to meet you.
It's hard to hear anything with this noise.
Was it easy to understand him?
It "ll be difficult to fit into the box.

Conclusion

Today we have repeated / studied the main nuances of using the “there is” / “there are” construction in different tenses and types of sentences.

We hope you will not have any more questions on this topic!

Keep going forward like there's no tomorrow!

And stay classy!

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