9.47 The noun phrase is usually followed by an adverb or prepositional phrase, a wh-clause, or one of the adjectives available, present, or free.
There were thirty boys in the class.
There are three reasons why we should support this action.
There were no other jobs available.
Prepositional phrases relating to place can be put either in front of there or after the noun phrase.
On a small table there was a white china mug.
There was a box in the middle of the room.
saying that something happened: There was a sudden noise
9.48 You can also use there followed by be and a noun phrase referring to an event to say that something happened or will happen.
There was a knock at his door.
There were two general elections that year.
There will be trouble tonight.
describing something that is happening: There was a man standing next to her
9.49 When you are describing a scene or situation, you can use a structure consisting of there followed by be, a noun phrase, and an -ing participle.
For example, instead of saying Flames were coming out of it, you can say There were flames coming out of it.
There was a storm raging outside.
There were men and women working in the fields with horses.
There was a revolver lying there.
verb agreement
9.50 Usually a plural form of be is used if the noun phrase after it is plural.
There were two men in the room.
You use a singular form of be when you are giving a list of items and the first noun in the list is singular or uncountable.
There was a sofa and two chairs.
Note that you use a plural form of be in front of plural quantity expressions beginning with a, such as a lot of, and a few of.
There were a lot of people there.
You also use a plural form of be in front of numbers beginning with a, such as a hundred, a thousand, and a dozen.
There were a dozen reasons why a man might disappear.
contractions with there
9.51 In spoken and informal written English, there is and there has are often contracted to there’s; there had and there would to there’d; and there will to there’ll.
There’s no danger.
I didn’t even know there’d been a fire.
there with adjectives
9.52 There is also used with adjectives such as likely, unlikely, sure, and certain to indicate the likelihood of something occurring.
There are unlikely to be any problems with the timetable.
there with other verbs
9.53 A few other verbs can be used after there in a similar way to be. If you want to say that something seems to be the case or that something seems to have happened, you can use there with seem or appear followed by to be or to have been.
There seems to have been some carelessness recently.
There appears to be a lot of confusion on this point.
To be is sometimes omitted, especially in front of an uncountable noun.
There seems little doubt that he was hiding something.
There is sometimes used followed by a passive form of a reporting verb and the infinitive to be to indicate that people say or think that something exists. For more information on reporting verbs, see the section beginning at paragraph 7.5.
There is expected to be an announcement about the proposed building.
Behind the scenes, there is said to be intense conflict.
Happen is used in the same type of structure to indicate that a situation exists by chance.
There happened to be a roll of sticky tape lying on the desk.
You can also use tend in this kind of structure to say that something generally happens or exists.
There tend to be a lot of parties at this time of year.
formal and literary uses
9.54 Exist, remain, arise, follow, and come are sometimes used after there to say that something exists or happens. These structures occur only in formal English or literary writing.
There remained a risk of war.
There followed a few seconds’ silence.
There comes a time when you have to make a choice.
9.55 Another construction commonly used in literary writing is to begin a sentence with a prepositional phrase relating to place followed by there and a verb of position or motion.
For example, instead of saying The old church stands at the top of the hill, a writer might say At the top of the hill there stands the old church.
From the hook there hung a long black coat.
Beside them there rises a twist of blue smoke.
Focusing using adverbials
Commenting on your statement: sentence adverbials
9.56 There are many adverbials that are used to show your attitude to what you are saying or to make your hearer have a particular attitude to what you are saying. These are dealt with in paragraphs 9.57 to 9.63.
There are also some that are used to make a statement narrower or to focus attention on a particular thing that it applies to. These are dealt with in paragraphs 9.64 to 9.68.