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‘it’ and ‘there’ as dummy subjects
There is a coffee shop next to the clothing store.
Yes, I know. It is very good.
Most English sentences start with a subject.
Subject + Verb + Object
_____ _____ _____
I drink coffee.
Sometimes we need to use a ‘dummy’ subject when there is no subject.
* It and there are two dummy subjects used in English.
THERE
We use ‘there is’ to talk about
- to say that something exists:
There is a hole in my sock.
There is a book on the table.
There is a meeting tomorrow.
There is a library next to the school.
There is a big problem.
There is a woman waiting outside.
- with numbers and amount:
There are two markets in town.
There are plenty of tomatoes in the fridge.
- We can use there with any tense of ‘be’:
There were twenty people at the party.
There was a lot of traffic.
- We can use there with model verb + be:
There must be 8 students in the class.
IT
We use ‘it is’ to talk about
- a specific thing, place, situation
How was your trip?
It (the trip) was good.
- weather
It is hot.
It is getting dark.
- time and dates
What day is it?
It’s Monday.
It’s three o’clock.
There is a meeting tomorrow. It starts at one.
- distance
How far is it from your house to the airport?
It’s about 10 kilometers.
It’s about 10 minutes by bus.
Is it raining hard?
Yes, it is. Look, there is a man standing outside.
It’s my brother, Tom.
There is someone at the door.
It is Tom.
There used to be a cinema in that corner.
Look at that building! It used to be a cinema.