MODULE 14

THERE IS/ THERE ARE

INVERSION

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 AFFIRMATIVE
THERE IS + SINGULAR NOUN THERE ARE + PLURAL NOUN

• There is an apple on the • There are two chairs in the

table. room.

• There is a dog under the • There are some pencils in

table. the pencil case.

NEGATIVE
THERE ISN´T + SINGULAR
NOUN THERE AREN´T + PLURAL NOUN

• There isn´t an apple on the • There aren´t two chairs in the

table. room.

• There isn´t a dog under the • There aren´t any pencils in

table. the pencil case.

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 INTERROGATIVE
IS THERE + SINGULAR NOUN ? ARE THERE + PLURAL NOUN ?

• Is there an apple on the • Are there two chairs in the

table? room?

Yes, there is No, there isn´t Yes, there are No, there
aren´t

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 THERE IS or THERE ARE

THERE IS
___________ a cat in the garden.

THERE IS or THERE ARE

THERE ARE
___________three English teachers
in my school.

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 THERE IS or THERE ARE

THERE ARE fifteen students in

___________
my class.

THERE IS or THERE ARE

THERE IS
___________ a pen in my pencil
case.

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 THERE IS or THERE ARE

THERE IS a book on the table.

___________

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THERE IS or THERE ARE

THERE IS
___________ a computer in my
bedroom.

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 IS or ARE

IS there a telephone in your

_____
house?

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IS or ARE

ARE there any posters in your

_____
bedroom?

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 IS or ARE

ARE there any books on the table?

_____

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IS or ARE

IS there a dog in the garden?

_____

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 IS or ARE

ARE there any pencils in your

_____
pencil case?

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IS or ARE

IS there a piano in your

_____
classroom?

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 IS or ARE

ARE there pictures on the wall?

_____

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IS or ARE

IS there a chair next to the

_____
bed?

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Is there a cat?
No, there isn’t.
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Are there any books?
Yes, there are.
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Is there a computer?
Yes, there is.
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 Is there a desk?
Yes, there is.
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Are there two beds?

No, there aren’t.
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There is a camera on the desk.

TRUE.
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 There are books under the bed.
FALSE.
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There is a bag between the books.

TRUE.
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There are some clothes next to the desk.
FALSE.
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There are books next to the desk.

TRUE.
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There is a picture on the wall.
FALSE.
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There is

There are
There is

There are
There are

There is
There is

There are

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Work in groups
Look at the picture of a messy
room and discuss the questions.
Remember to use Prepositions of
place, structure THERE IS/ARE.

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The Messy
Room
Oral Activity
There be, prepositions and vocabulary

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 INVERSION

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EXPLANATION
The term inversion refers to an irregular verb placement form and it
covers two different grammatical operations:

1. Using a question form of the main verb

“Not only did he get late to work, but also came completely
unprepared for the meeting”.

2. Changing the normal positions of verb and subject, mainly

for emphasis.

“Along came Polly”.

“Up in the air went the ballon”.

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 INVERSION AFTER NEGATIVE ADVERBIALS
 After time expressions such as never, rarely, before, little, seldom,
hardly, barely, scarcely, no sooner.
“Seldom have I felt so alone”
“Scarcely had I got out of bed when the doorbell rang”
‘’Little did he know that we had called the police’’
Rarely have I seen Lucy so excited’’
 After ONLY (only by, only after, only then, only when, only if…)
“Only after understanding the situation does the teacher make a comment”
‘’Only by looking at her, did he realise how hurt she was.’’
‘’Only when we lose something, do we realise its importance’’
 After phrases containing NO/NOT (under no circumstances, no
account, at no time, in no way, on no condition, not until, not
only…(but also))
“Under no circumstances can you leave this house!”
“Not only will she have to study hard, but she will also have to concentrate
to do well on the exams”
‘’Under no condition should you drive this car!’’
‘’ No way I’m sitting next to him!’’
‘’’Not only can he cook, but his baking is excellent as well.’’ 65

INVERSION AFTER SO/SUCH WITH THAT

 This occurs with so and adjectives when the main
verb is be. It is used for emphasis and is more
common than the example with such. It only
happens if so/such is the first word in the clause.
 So + adjective ... that' combines with the verb 'to
be'.
“So difficult is the test that students need three months to
prepare”.
‘’So excited was the crowd that they bagan to cheer’’’’So hard
a worker is he that he deserves a raise’’
 Such + to be + noun ... (that)‘.
“Such was the force of the storm that trees were uprooted”.
‘’Such a hard worker is he that he deserves a raise.’’

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INVERTED CONDITIONAL SENTENCES
WITHOUT IF

Sometimes conditional forms are inverted as a means of sounding

more formal. In this case, the conditional 'if' is dropped and the
inverted forms takes the place of the 'if clause'. This makes the
event less likely.

“Had he understood the problem, he wouldn't have committed those

mistakes”
(If he had understood the problem,…) 3rd

“Should he decide to come, please telephone”.

(If he decides to come, …) 1st

‘’Were I in your position, I’d aplogize.’’

(If I were…..)
2nd
‘’Were I not to have been successful, I would have quit» 67
MIXED
(If I wasn’t successful)

 INVERSION AFTER AS
This is more common in formal or written
language.
“We were really tired, as were most people who
came to the trip”
‘’We always attend meetings and so do most of
our friends.

 INVERSION AFTER SO, NEITHER AND NOR

“A: I don´t like onions; B: Neither do I”.
‘’Carol can use this computer program and so
does Ken.’’ 68

‘’Jane didn’t call me; Nor did Debbie.

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 PRACTICE
 Turn the following into inverted sentences
1. We had no sooner left the house that it exploded.
No sooner had we left the house that it exploded.
2. Half a dozen apples fell down.
Down fell half a dozen apples.
3. If Mr Chan had been kinder to his employees, his business would
not have collapsed.
Had Mr Chan been kinder to his employees, his business
would not have collapsed.
4. There are no circumstances where audience members may
consume alcohol. (Under no circumstances)
Under no circumstances may audience members consume
alcohol.
5.I did not say I would accept late homework. (at no time)
At no time did I say I would accept late homework.

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PRACTICE
1)Cathy has no idea the amount of
work I’ve put into this project (know)
Little does Cathy know how much work
____________________
5) We were so busy that we had
I’ve put into this project.
almost no time for lunch. (barely)
2) Because they were disappointed that barely did we have
We were so busy ________________
with their team, they stopped going
to games. (was) For lunch.
Such was_________________
their disappointment that they
stopped going to games. 6) No one can leave until everyone in
3) No matter what happens, I’ll never the room is finished. (anyone)
invite them for dinner again. (ever) Not until everyone _______________
in the room is finished
Under no ________________________
circumstances will I ever invite can anyone
_______________ leave.
for dinner again
4) As soon as the bell rang all the 7)There isn’t any other way to lose
students got up and rushed out of weight but to be careful with your diet.
class. (sooner) (when)
sooner had the bell rang
No ___________________ all the you are careful
It is only ______________________
students got up and rushed out of that you will lose weight.
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class.

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HOMEWORK

SELF-STUDY & PRACTICE:

UNIT 95-100, ADVANCED
GRAMMAR IN USE

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