THERE


Meaning of THERE in English

I

adverb

BAD : My sister often goes to the indoor pool but I don't like going to there.

GOOD : My sister often goes to the indoor pool but I don't like going there.

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See note at HERE 2 (↑ here )

II

pronoun

1

BAD : If you aren't busy is something I'd like to ask you about.

GOOD : If you aren't busy, there's something I'd like to ask you about.

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When you say that something exists or takes place, the sentence must have a subject. When there is no other subject, use there : 'There's a hair in your soup.' 'Suddenly there was a loud bang.' 'There are two police officers waiting to see you.'

Note that in this pattern there has no meaning. It simply fills the subject position.

2

BAD : There was four people in the car.

GOOD : There were four people in the car.

BAD : In Barcelona there is plenty of things for visitors to do.

GOOD : In Barcelona there are plenty of things for visitors to do.

BAD : There was a lot of girls watching the game.

GOOD : There were a lot of girls watching the game.

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Use there is/was when the following noun is singular/uncountable: 'There was a letter on the mat.' 'There was smoke all over the house.'

Use there are/were when the following noun is plural: 'There were babies crying in every room.' 'There are many times when I would prefer to be alone.'

Note that a lot of, plenty of, etc do not affect the number of the verb. Compare: 'There was a lot of traffic on the road.' 'There were a lot of cars on the road.'

3

See GOOD 2 (↑ good )

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