There Is vs There Are: Describing What You Can See
Learn when to use there is and there are for singular, plural and uncountable nouns, with room descriptions, questions, negatives and practice tasks.
Use there is with a singular noun or an uncountable noun: “There is a chair” and “There is some water.” Use there are with a plural noun: “There are three books.” These patterns introduce something that exists or is present in a place.
You can use them to describe a room, tell a visitor what is nearby or check supplies for an activity. First decide what noun you are introducing, then choose is or are.
Match the verb to the noun
Noun | Positive sentence | Negative sentence |
|---|---|---|
Singular countable | There is a lamp. | There isn't a lamp. |
Plural countable | There are two lamps. | There aren't any lamps. |
Uncountable | There is some water. | There isn't any water. |
Scroll sideways to see all columns.
Say “There is a table in the corner”, with a before the singular countable noun. Say “There are two tables” when you give a plural number. Our a, an and the guide helps with articles, and the countable and uncountable nouns lesson explains the noun types.
The word there in this pattern does not have to mean “over there”. In “There is a plant here,” there introduces the plant and here gives its location. Keeping those jobs separate can make the sentence easier to understand.
Use contractions carefully
There's is a common short form of there is: “There's a cafe near my house.” For clear writing with plural nouns, use there are: “There are two cafes near my house.” You may hear “there's” before plural nouns in informal speech, but there are is the useful standard pattern to practise.
For negatives, use there isn't or there aren't. “There isn't any milk” means no milk is available. “There isn't much milk” means the amount is small, not necessarily zero. The earlier quantity words lesson gives more practice with some, any and much.
Put is or are first in questions
Change “There is a lift” to “Is there a lift?” Change “There are clean cups” to “Are there any clean cups?” You do not need do or does in these questions. “Does there is a lift?” mixes two different question patterns.
Short answers keep the same verb: “Yes, there is,” “No, there isn't,” “Yes, there are,” and “No, there aren't.” In a positive short answer, say “Yes, there is,” rather than ending with “Yes, there's.”
Introduce something, then describe it
Compare “There is a garden behind the library” with “The garden is quiet.” The first introduces the garden. The second tells us something about a garden the listener can now identify. You can also say “It's quiet” when it clearly refers to the garden.
A connected description might be: “There is a small reading room upstairs. There are four desks by the window. There is some space for bags near the door. The room is bright, and it's usually quiet.” Our people and places speaking lesson shows how to extend a description.
Practise describing and checking
Your turn · self-review
Choose is or are
Write complete sentences before revealing the models.
Practice only. Your writing stays on this page; it is not submitted or saved.
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Model answer and explanation
There is a sofa. There are two windows. There is some furniture. Furniture is uncountable in this meaning, even when the room contains several pieces.
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Model answer and explanation
Is there a car park? Are there any rooms available? Yes, there is. A car park is singular; rooms is plural.
Make a short room tour
Choose a room you know, or use a picture.
Introduce three things with there is or there are.
Add a location for each, such as by the door or near the window.
Ask one question and give a short answer.
Check each noun separately. If a sentence lists several different items, you can avoid uncertainty by splitting it: “There is a table. There are two chairs beside it.” Clear short sentences are a good foundation for longer descriptions.
