Grammar – using ‘there’
Lower level (A1)

An important way to start a sentence in English is to use ‘there’. We can use it to tell people about what we can see and do etc.Let’s look at an example where 2 people are talking:

A. Tell me about where you live.
B. There’s a park, a zoo and a large shopping centre.
A. Is there somewhere good to eat?
B. Yes, there’s a fantastic Italian restaurant near my house and a really good Chinese about a mile away.
A. What a about a pub?
B. There are a lot of decent pubs in the town centre.
A. What’s the zoo like?
B. Quite large. There are lots of different animals -.giraffes, rhinos and even a few elephants.

Try to translate this conversation into your language and notice how ‘there’ can be used in English.

Here is another example:

A. Can you tell me some things about Oxford? Are there a lot of universities?
B. Well, in fact Oxford only has 2 universities: Oxford University, the traditional one, and Oxford Brookes, which is much newer.
A. I thought there were lots of universities.
B. Oxford University is made up of a large number of colleges. Is this what you mean?
A. Yes it is.
B. Some of the best-known colleges are St John’s College, Magdalen College, Christ Church college and New College.
A. What about the nightlife?
B. There are lots of pubs and restaurants, a number of theatres and of course some nightclubs. You should try the nightlife on Cowley Road. It is very different from the city centre.
A. Thanks.

There are other meanings of ‘there’ but it is best to learn them one at a time.