Existential Sentences (存现句)
存现句
Describe what is located somewhere using place-first word order
存现句 (existential sentences) put the LOCATION first and use 是 or 有 to introduce what occupies that location. English does the same with "there is / there are," but Chinese starts with the place itself: 桌子上有一本书 — literally "table-top has one book."
Two HSK 1 sub-patterns: (1) Place + 是 + Noun (identifies what fills the location), (2) Place + 有 + Number-MW + Noun (introduces something existing there). Negation of pattern (2) uses 没有.
Lesson Targets
Podcast
Podcast: Existential Sentences (存现句) (存现句)
Listen to Jason & Amy explain the 存现句 pattern
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Understanding 存现句
Whenever you need to describe what's located somewhere — a book on the table, a coffee shop next to school, three people in the room — Chinese flips the order English uses. English says "There is a book on the table." Chinese says "Table-top has a book" (桌子上有一本书). The location is the topic; the object that exists there is the new information at the end. The HSK 3.0 syllabus lists TWO sub-patterns at level 1: the 是 form, where the location is "filled by" a specific thing (前面是图书馆 — "what's in front IS the library"), and the 有 form, where the location "contains" one or more things (房间里有两个人 — "in the room there are two people"). Once you internalise "place first," entire categories of HSK 1 sentences become natural.
Key Points
- Pattern (1): Place + 是 + Noun → 前面是医院 (Up ahead is a hospital).
- Pattern (2): Place + 有 + 数量短语 + Noun → 桌子上有两本书 (On the table there are two books).
- The location ALWAYS goes first — it is the topic of the sentence.
- In the 有 pattern, the noun is almost always introduced with a number + measure word (数量短语), not bare.
- Negate the 有 pattern with 没有: 房间里没有人 (There's no one in the room).
- Negate the 是 pattern with 不是: 前面不是医院，是学校 (It's not a hospital up ahead; it's a school).
- Ask yes/no questions with 吗 or 有没有: 桌子上有书吗？/ 桌子上有没有书？
- 是 in this pattern means "is filled by / consists of" rather than "equals" — it gives the IDENTITY of what occupies the spot.
Asking 这附近有没有……？ ("Is there a ___ nearby?") is one of the most useful real-world sentence shapes in China. Whether you're looking for a 便利店, an 厕所, or an 银行, the existential 有 pattern is what unlocks the question.
Key Vocabulary
Example Sentences
桌子上有一本书。
There is a book on the table.
Place + 有 + 数量 + noun.
前面是图书馆。
Up ahead is the library.
Place + 是 + noun — identifies what fills the spot.
房间里有两个人。
There are two people in the room.
学校旁边是一家咖啡店。
Next to the school is a coffee shop.
我家附近有一个超市。
There is a supermarket near my home.
冰箱里没有牛奶。
There is no milk in the fridge.
Negating an existential 有 sentence.
医院后面是公园。
Behind the hospital is a park.
这儿有没有洗手间？
Is there a restroom here?
A-not-A question on existential 有.
街上有很多人。
There are a lot of people on the street.
我家前面不是商店，是饭馆。
In front of my house is not a shop, it's a restaurant.
Negating + correcting the 是 pattern.
Common Mistakes
In an existential sentence, the PLACE comes first, then 有, then the new object. Don't front-load the noun.
Existential 有 prefers a number + measure word before the noun. A bare noun like 书 sounds unfinished — add 一本 (or 几本, 很多, etc.).
When the location is FILLED BY a single, definite institution (the library), use 是 not 有. 有 introduces "some" / a quantity; 是 identifies "which one."
Practice Exercises
Tips & Tricks
Mental flip: every English "there is / there are" becomes Place + 有 + thing in Chinese. Resist the urge to translate "there" as a real word.
是 vs 有 for location: 是 names the specific thing that fills the spot ("up ahead IS the library"); 有 introduces something new and countable ("there is A library up ahead").
In the 有 pattern, ALWAYS include a number + measure word before the noun. Bare nouns sound incomplete.
For asking directions in real life, lock in this template: 这附近有没有 + (place/thing)？ It works for restrooms, ATMs, restaurants, anything.
Homework
Pick one room you know well. Write five existential sentences describing what is on, in, in front of, behind, and next to specific objects. Use the 有 pattern at least three times (with full number + measure word phrases) and the 是 pattern at least once.