HAY / THERE IS (ARE)

Hay is a conjugated form of the auxiliary verb haber/ to have. It is used to express both there is and there are depending on the context of a sentence. Furthermore, it has no subject.

EXAMPLES

·         Hay mucho esmog en Los Angeles./ There is a lot of smog in Los Angeles.

·         Hay muchos aviones en el aeropuerto./ There are many planes at the airport.

NOTE: It is important not to confuse hay with es (it is) and son (they are).

 

More Expressions of Existence

The following conjugations of haber are also used to express existence:

1.      hubo, había / there was (were)

2.      cuando haya/ whenever there is (are)

3.      tiene que haber/ there has (have) to be

4.      va a haber/ there is (are) going to be

EXAMPLES

·         Hubo un debate entre los empleados./ There was a debate among employees.

·         Cuando haya nieve iremos a esquiar./ Whenever there is snow, we'll go skiing.

·         Tiene que haber refugiados en la frontera./ There have to be refugees at the border.

·         Va a haber mucha gente en la fiesta./ There is going to be a lot of people at the party.

 

The Expression Hay que/ one (we) must or need to

Hay que is equivalent to one must (in a general sense) in English. This is an invariable expression, and no subject is required.

EXAMPLES

·         Hay que ser sincero./ One must be sincere.

·         Hay que tener compasión para los desafortunados./ We need to be compassionate to the unfortunate ones.

NOTE: Hay que has to be followed by an infinitive.