> Other English exercises on the same topics: Idioms | Food | There is/There are [Change theme]
	> Similar tests: - Vocabulary: at the restaurant - There is / there are - Fruits and vegetables - Eating out-Vocabulary - Fruit and vegetables - There is , there are - Cooking : Verbs-adjectives - English idioms: Food II
	> Double-click on words you don't understand

There is/ there are + other forms...

If you want to speak about  the existence of a person or a thing, you should use THERE IS/ THERE ARE ...:

There is + nominal group in the singular + complements = simple present

- There's a man who knows you.

There are + nominal group in the plural + complements.

- There are many pupils in this school.

BEWARE! More than ever, please don't yield to the temptation of translating (French or Spanish, and possibly other languages) ,  IL Y A or HAY, which would lead you to a huge mistake because of the different AUXILIARY! )

INTERROGATIVE FORM: simple inversion : verb + impersonnel pronoun + nominal group+ ? 

- Is there an exit to the street?

NEGATIVE FORM: There is/ are + not + nominal group + complements. 

- There are't any adjectives in this sentence.

Be careful! If there are several complements, the verb will agree with the first direct object complement (or predicate). 

- There are three boys and a girl in this family.

-There is one table and four chairs in that room.

The expression THERE IS/ ARE exists in all the different tenses and is built with all the different auxiliaries. (In this lesson,  only the simple forms will be used. They correspond to the first level: beginners - but experience has taught me that they don't come naturally to other students either... )

Preterite, or simple past:

- There was a car here, but it went away.

- There were many pedestrians in the street at that time!

Simple future:

- There will be a scandal if people know that. 

Future in "going to":

- Is there going to be a strike tomorrow?

Present perfect:

- There have been lots of victims in the accident.

Modal auxiliaries: 

CAN/ CAN'T: physical or intellectual ability/ inability/ impossibility

- There can only be one explanation.

- There can't be more people in this small room.

MAY: eventuality/ permission

- There may be snow tomorrow.= Perhaps there will be snow tomorrow.

- There may not be a mistake here. = There is certainly no mistake here.

MUST: obligation/ near-certitude/ interdiction

- Must there be 2 policemen with him? (=obligation)

- There mustn't be any kids here! (near-certitude)

SHOULD: advice/ suggestion

- There should be traffic lights at this crossroads.

- There shouldn't be as many fans near the singer.

This lesson is basic, but you must be able to use it almost mechanically... Do not hesitate to learn it over and over again before doing the exercise which is a little long, but quite easy. Good luck and go for it!

Twitter Share
English exercise "There is/ there are + other forms..." created by here4u with The test builder. [More lessons & exercises from here4u]
Click here to see the current stats of this English test

Please log in to save your progress.

Making another chocolate cake...

1. 'Mum, are thereIsn't therethere aren'tthere areI don't know enough ingredients to make a chocolate cake, or should I run to the shop?'


2. 'Look if there'sare thereis thereI don't know black chocolate, real chocolate, in the cabinet above the sink...'


3. 'I know was therethere wasn'tthere wasI don't know some, but a little birdie told me that a greedy little mouse nibbled a great part of it. Do you know about that, Lucy?'


4. 'Don't worry, Mum, I'll run to the shop and there 'll bethere'sthere wasI don't know a lot of chocolate at home, soon...'


5. 'Then, there can't bethere should becan there beI don't know 250g of butter in the fridge, can you check?'


6. ' No, Mum, there isn't somethere isn't ais there aI don't know new pack of butter... You must have already used it,

but there'sthere arethere'll beI don't know six fresh eggs.'


7. 'How can there beis therecan be thereI don't know six fresh eggs left when I hard boiled four an hour ago? '


8. 'Oops! You're right, Mum... There was onlyThere areThere's onlyI don't know only two left in the box...'


9. 'Of course, Lucy, there is somethere are anythere are someI don't know granulated sugar in the plastic box, in the other cabinet next to the fridge.'


10. ' Yes, Mum, but there is not somethere isn't anyis there anyI don't know yeast left. I'll buy some.'


11. ' Let's recap: chocolate, eggs, and yeast... Alright, Mum! There'll beThere wasn't beThere going beI don't know all this at hand in twenty minutes. You can pre-warm the oven...


12. Soon, there'll beenthere' beenthere should beI don't know a good scent of chocolate here... My mouth is watering... I'll be back with all this in a jiffy...