There is - There are Exercises

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This page contains free 'there is/are' grammar exercises with answer keys when necessary.

Exercise I
Write the interrogative and negative form of the following sentences according to the models:

Model 1:

There is a pen on the desk.
Is there a pen on the desk?
There is no pen on the desk.

1. There is a magazine on the desk.
2. There is a garden near the house.
3. There is a hole in my trousers.

Model 2:

There is some tea in the glass.
Is there any tea in the glass?
There is no tea in the glass.

1. There is some butter on the plate.
2. There is some milk in the jug.
3. There is some bread on the table.

Model 3:

There are some dogs in the park.
Are there any dogs in the park?
There are no dogs in the park.

1. There are some pictures in the room.
2. There are some chairs in the kitchen.
3. There are some people outside.

Exercise II

Read and answer according to the model.

Model:

A.: There are two books on the table.
B.: And on the shelf? (one)
C.: There is one book on the shelf.

1. A.: There is one car in the garage.
    B.: And in the street? (fifteen)
    C.: ...

2. A.: There are six chairs in the room.
    B.: And in the kitchen? (three)
    C.: ...

3. A.: There are seven of us in my family.
    B.: And in your family? (four)
    C.: ...

Exercise III

Read the following questions and answer them according to the model.

Model 1:

A.: Is there a book on the desk?
B.: No, there isn’t. There is no book on the desk.

1. A.: Is there a yellow carpet in the room?
    B.: ...

2. A.: Is there any spare room at the hostel?
    B.: ...

3. A.: Are there apple trees in your garden?
    B.: ...

4. A.: Is there a car factory in your city?
    B.: ...

Model 2:

A.: How many chairs are there in the room? (four)
B.: There are four chairs in the room.

1. How many people are there in the room? (three)
2. How many children are there in the bus? (a lot of)
3. How many women were there at the table? (few)
4. How many students were there in your group? (thirteen)

Exercise IV

Fill in the spaces with 'is' or 'are'. Practise in using 'There is/are' with plural and singular subjects.

1. There ... many animals here.
2. There ... a large city near the mouth of this river. 
3. There ... some beautiful flowers there.
4. There ... many trees near our house.
5. There ... many different birds there. 
6. There ... a big black cat in the bathroom.
7. There ... a newspaper on the table.
8. There ... newspapers on the table.
9. There ... different newspapers there.
10. There ... ice on the lake.
11. There ... no children in this house.
12. There ... two girls and a woman in the room.
13. There ... nothing to do.

Answers: 1. are; 2. is; 3. are; 4. are; 5. are; 6. is; 7. is; 8. are; 9. are 10. is; 11. are; 12. are; 13. is

Exercise V

Fill in the spaces with  'there is' or 'there are', 'are there' or 'is there'.

1. ... a forest at our village.
2. ... seven days in a week.
3. ... a river at your village?
4. ... some coffee in his cup.
5. What ... in your living room?
6. What ... more on the earth –- grass or sand? 
7.  'Are there many students?' 'No, ... only one student.'
8. 'Are there many rooms in the house?' 'Yes, ... many.'
9. ... many pictures on the wall?
10. ... anything in the fridge?
11. ... not a cloud in the sky.
12. ... a fine view from here.
13. ... nobody in.
14. ... a needle and thread in her fingers.

Answer key: 1. There is; 2. There are; 3. Is there; 4. There is; 5. is there; 6. is there; 7. there is; 8. there are; 9. Are there; 10. Is there; 11. There is; 12.There is; 13. There is;  14. There is

Exercise VI

Note that 'there' can be used with all tenses of 'be'. Practise 'there + be' in various tenses.

1. Open the brackets and put the verb 'to be' in the Present Indefinite.
a. There (to be) a fine view from here (J. Galsworthy).
b. There (to be) no knowing when he will come.
c. There (to be) no going against bad blood.
d. (to be) there anybody there? 

2. Open the brackets and put the verb 'to be' in the Future Indefinite.
a. There (to be) snow on high ground.
b. There (to be) enough for everybody, won’t there?

3. Open the brackets and put the verb 'to be' in the Past Indefinite.
a. There (to be) a child with her.
b. There (to be) nothing to say.
c. There (to be) not any flowers on the balconies.
d. There (to be) no sign of him in the hall.  
e. There (to be) no talking that evening.
f. There (to be) all of them on the bank.
g. There (to be) nothing to do.
h. There (to be) something wrong about the whole situation.
i. Once upon a time there (to be) three wicked brothers.
j. There (to be) circles under her eyes as though she had not slept (J. Galsworthy).
 
4. Open the brackets and put the verb 'to be' in the Present Perfect.
a. There has never been anybody like you.
b. There has been a meeting at our plant this week.

Answers:
1.
a. There is a fine view from here (J. Galsworthy).
b. There is no knowing when he will come.
c. There’s no going against bad blood.
d. Is there anybody there?

2.
a. There will be snow on high ground.
b. There’ll be enough for everybody, won’t there?

3.
a. There was a child with her.
b. There was nothing to say.
c. There weren’t (were not) any flowers on the balconies.
d. There was no sign of him in the hall.  
e. There was no talking that evening.
f. There were all of them on the bank.
g. There was nothing to do.
h. There was something wrong about the whole situation.
i. Once upon a time there were three wicked brothers.
j. There were circles under her eyes as though she had not slept (J. Galsworthy).

4.
a. There has never been anybody like you.
b. There has been a meeting at our plant this week. 

Exercise VI

Answer the following questions.

1. How many states are there in the USA?
2. How many stars are there on the American flag?
3. How many stars and stripes are there on the American flag?
4. How many cities are there in United Kingdom?
5. How many planets are there in the Solar System?
6. How many letters are there in the English alphabet?
7. How many continents are there in the world? 

Key answers:

1. There are fifty (50) states and Washington D.C. in the USA.
2. There are fifty stars on the American flag.
3. There are fifty stars and thirteen stripes on the U.S. flag. The 13 alternatingred and white stripes represent the original 13 colonies, and the are 50 whitestars on a blue background represent the 50 modern states.
4. There are sixty nine (69) official cities in the United Kingdom (51 in England, 5 in Northern Ireland, 7 in Scotland and 6 in Wales).
5. There are eight planets in our Solar System (List of planets: Mercury, Venus,Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune. Pluto also was listed as a planet until 2006.)
6. There are twenty six letters in the English alphabet.
7. There are six continents in the world. (Eurasia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia. Eurasia is sometimes considered as two continents, Europa and Asia.)

Exercise VII

Solve the problems:

1. There twelve months in a year and thirty-six months in three years. How many months are there in nine years?

Answer: There are one hundred eight (108) months in nine years.

2. What is there more on the earth – land or water?

Answer: There is more water on Earth than land (surface area). (Water covers nearly 3/4 of the planet.)

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