There is and There are – English Grammar Exercises for A1
Reporting Supply Shortages
You are at school or in the office. You need to do your work, but you realize that some important supplies are missing! You must report this to your teacher or the office manager so they can refill them. Choose the correct option to complete each sentence.
1 Excuse me, I need to print my essay, but ______ any paper in the printer.
(a) there isn’t
(b) there aren’t
(c) it doesn’t have
2 I want to write down some notes, but ______ any blue pens in the supply box.
(a) there isn’t
(b) there aren’t
(c) they aren’t
3 Teacher, ______ a marker on the desk for the whiteboard. Can I go get one?
(a) there isn’t
(b) there aren’t
(c) there not is
4 We have five students in this study group, but ______ only three chairs here.
(a) there is
(b) there are
(c) they are
5 The printer is stopping. I think ______ no ink left in the cartridge.
(a) there is
(b) there are
(c) there has
6 I looked in the storage cabinet, but there ______ any empty notebooks.
(a) isn’t
(b) aren’t
(c) haven’t
7 I need to finish my art project right now, but there ______ any glue.
(a) aren’t
(b) isn’t
(c) doesn’t
8 ______ any extra staples in the manager’s office? My stapler is empty.
(a) Is there
(b) Are there
(c) Do there
9 Is there a spare computer mouse I can use? – No, ______.
(a) there isn’t
(b) there aren’t
(c) it isn’t
10 Are there any scissors on the back shelf? – No, ______.
(a) they aren’t
(b) there aren’t
(c) there isn’t
11 We can’t clean the blackboard today because ______ no erasers in the classroom.
(a) there are
(b) there aren’t
(c) there have
12 I want to highlight these important words, but there aren’t ______ yellow highlighters.
(a) some
(b) a
(c) any
13 ______ any chalk to write the lesson on the board.
(a) There aren’t
(b) There isn’t
(c) There don’t
14 I need to organize my documents, but ______ any red folders.
(a) there isn’t
(b) there aren’t
(c) there no
15 In this desk drawer, there ______ a pencil or a ruler. It is completely empty.
(a) isn’t
(b) aren’t
(c) don’t have
16 The water dispenser is empty. ______ any water for us to drink.
(a) There aren’t
(b) There isn’t
(c) It hasn’t
17 I have to pack this box, but there ______ no tape on the desk.
(a) are
(b) is
(c) has
18 The wall clock is dead, and there ______ any AA batteries in the box.
(a) isn’t
(b) aren’t
(c) don’t be
19 I need to attach these pages together. ______ there any paper clips left?
(a) Are
(b) Is
(c) Do
20 I checked the whole classroom, and there ______ more blank paper.
(a) isn’t no
(b) is no
(c) are no
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (a) there isn’t
- Why it is correct: “Paper” is an uncountable noun. We use the singular negative “there isn’t” (there is not) with uncountable nouns.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) is for plural countable nouns. (c) “It doesn’t have” is a common translation mistake; we use “There isn’t” to state that something is missing in a place.
2 (b) there aren’t
- Why it is correct: “Blue pens” is plural, so we use “there aren’t” (there are not).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for singular nouns. (c) “they aren’t” means “chúng không phải là” rather than “không có”.
3 (a) there isn’t
- Why it is correct: “A marker” is singular. The negative form is “there isn’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) is for plural. (c) is incorrect word order.
4 (b) there are
- Why it is correct: “Three chairs” is plural, so we use the affirmative “there are” to show what is available.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for singular. (c) “they are” is incorrect for stating existence.
5 (a) there is
- Why it is correct: “Ink” is uncountable, so we use the singular “there is”. Notice that the sentence uses the word “no”. “There is no ink” means exactly the same as “There isn’t any ink”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) is for plural. (c) “there has” is a structural error.
6 (b) aren’t
- Why it is correct: “Notebooks” is plural, so we use “aren’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for singular/uncountable. (c) is grammatically incorrect.
7 (b) isn’t
- Why it is correct: “Glue” is an uncountable noun (you cannot count “one glue, two glues”). Therefore, we treat it as singular and use “isn’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for plural. (c) uses the wrong auxiliary verb.
8 (b) Are there
- Why it is correct: “Staples” is plural, so the question must begin with “Are there”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for singular. (c) uses the wrong auxiliary verb.
9 (a) there isn’t
- Why it is correct: The question asks “Is there…?”, so the matching negative short answer is “No, there isn’t.”
- Why the others are wrong: (b) is for plural. (c) does not match the question word “there”.
10 (b) there aren’t
- Why it is correct: The question asks “Are there…?”, so the short negative answer is “No, there aren’t.”
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “they aren’t” is structurally incorrect for this context. (c) is for singular.
11 (a) there are
- Why it is correct: “Erasers” is plural, so we use “there are”. Wait, why not “aren’t”? Because the word “no” is already in the sentence! “There are no erasers” = “There aren’t any erasers”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) creates a double negative (“aren’t no”), which is grammatically wrong in standard English. (c) is a structural error.
12 (c) any
- Why it is correct: In negative sentences with “there aren’t”, we must use “any” before the plural noun to mean “bất cứ cái nào”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “Some” is used in affirmative sentences. (b) “A” is only for singular nouns.
13 (b) There isn’t
- Why it is correct: “Chalk” is an uncountable noun. We must treat it as singular and use “There isn’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for plural countable nouns. (c) is structurally incorrect.
14 (b) there aren’t
- Why it is correct: “Red folders” is plural, so we use “there aren’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for singular. (c) is missing the verb “are”.
15 (a) isn’t
- Why it is correct: The Rule of Proximity. The list is “a pencil or a ruler”. Because the first item (“a pencil”) is singular, we use “isn’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) breaks the proximity rule. (c) “don’t have” is a common direct translation error.
16 (b) There isn’t
- Why it is correct: “Water” is uncountable, so we use the singular negative “There isn’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for plural. (c) is incorrect grammar for stating existence.
17 (b) is
- Why it is correct: “Tape” is uncountable, so we use “is”. Since the sentence already has the negative word “no” (no tape), the verb must be affirmative (“is”).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for plural nouns. (c) “has” cannot be combined with “there”.
18 (b) aren’t
- Why it is correct: “Batteries” is plural, so we use “aren’t”.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is for singular. (c) is structurally wrong.
19 (a) Are
- Why it is correct: “Paper clips” is plural, so the question must start with “Are”.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) is for singular. (c) uses the wrong auxiliary verb.
20 (b) is no
- Why it is correct: “Paper” is uncountable, so we use the singular verb “is”. “There is no paper” is the correct way to express zero quantity.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) “isn’t no” is a double negative and is incorrect in English grammar. (c) is for plural nouns.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
When you want to report that a supply is missing, using “There is no…” or “There isn’t any…” sounds much more natural and professional than saying “I don’t have…”. It shifts the focus to the fact that the item is missing from the room, not just from you!
- For Plural Things (Pens, folders, batteries, staples):
- There aren’t any pens.
- There are no pens. (This means exactly the same thing!)
- For Uncountable Things (Paper, ink, tape, glue, chalk, water):
- There isn’t any paper.
- There is no paper.
- The “Double Negative” Trap: Never use “not” and “no” together!
- Correct: There is no ink. / There isn’t any ink.
- Wrong: There isn’t no ink.
- The “Any” Rule: We almost always use the word any after “isn’t” and “aren’t” when talking about supplies. (e.g., There aren’t any scissors.)