Grammar & Usage

There Is / There Are

with Nouns in a Series
Reference
Use Examples

• There is a book and a pen on the table.

• There is an apple, a carrot, and an orange in my bag.

Use “there is” when • There is a boy and three girls in my group.
There Is the first noun in a series
is singular or uncountable. • There is sugar and salt on the table.

• There is a lot of snow and ice on the ground.*

*Snow is uncountable, so we use is even with the plural quantifier a lot of.

• There are two cats and one dog in my yard.

• There are cookies, cake, and pizza on the table.

Use “there are” when
There Are the first noun in • There are many boys and girls to invite.
a series is plural.
• There are several adults and one child at the meeting.

• There are a lot of rocks and ice on the road.

Copyright 2017, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( V E R S I O N 1. 0) 1
 There Is / There Are with Nouns in a Series
Grammar & Usage

Practice
A. Complete the Sentences

Fill in the blanks with There is or There are.

1. a computer and a mouse pad on my desk.

2. two shirts and five sweaters on the shelf.

3. money and gum in my bag.

4. a giraffe, two hippos, and a lion at the zoo.

5. eight desks, two blackboards, and a TV in the classroom.

6. sand and rocks in my shoes.

7. a man, two boys, and four girls in that car.

8. a sign and two lights hanging from the ceiling.

9. three cans of Coke and two cans of Pepsi on the counter.

10. four large suitcases and one small bag in the trunk.

B. Write Sentences

Now write your own sentences using There is and There are followed by a series of nouns.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Copyright 2017, Red River Press Inc. For use by ESL Library members only. ( V E R S I O N 1. 0) 2