Hay - Expressing Existence

Spanish: Hay - Expresar existencia

Level: A1 Beginner

Category: verbs

Explanation

The word "hay" is one of the most useful in Spanish. It is used to express the existence of something or someone, just like "there is" or "there are" in English. The most important thing is that "hay" NEVER changes: the same form is used for singular and plural. We say "hay un libro" (there is a book) and "hay tres libros" (there are three books) with no change at all. "Hay" comes from the verb "haber" and is an impersonal form, which means it has no subject. We do not say "el hay" or "ellos hay"; simply "hay". It is used to talk about things that exist in a place: "Hay un café en la esquina" (There is a café on the corner). When we talk about non-specific things, we use "hay" with indefinite articles (un, una, unos, unas) or with numbers: "Hay una farmacia cerca" (There is a pharmacy nearby), "Hay dos hoteles" (There are two hotels). To ask questions we use "¿Hay...?": "¿Hay un baño aquí?" (Is there a bathroom here?). It is important not to confuse "hay" with "está/están". We use "hay" to say THAT something exists, and "está/están" to say WHERE something we already know is located. For example: "Hay un museo en Madrid" (existence) vs. "El museo está en el centro" (location of something known).

Examples

• Hay un café muy bueno en la esquina. - There is a very good café on the corner.
• ¿Hay leche para el café con leche? - Is there milk for the coffee with milk?
• En el hotel hay una piscina muy grande. - In the hotel there is a very big pool.
• ¿Hay habitaciones libres para esta noche? - Are there free rooms for tonight?
• En el mercado hay frutas muy frescas. - In the market there are very fresh fruits.