es gibt

There Is/Are

Level 1

Use es gibt to say 'there is' or 'there are'. Unlike English, the verb gibt never changes to plural; it stays the same whether you are talking about one thing or many things.

How It Works

The phrase es gibt literally translates to 'it gives,' but it works much like 'there is/are' in English. It is used to state the existence or availability of something.

Key Rules:

  • Fixed Verb: Even if you are talking about 100 people, you say es gibt (singular), never es geben.
  • Accusative Case: The noun following es gibt must be in the accusative case. This is most noticeable with masculine nouns: Es gibt einen Hund (not ein Hund).
  • Negation: To say 'there is no...', use the negative article kein. For example: Es gibt kein Brot.
  • Questions: To ask 'Is there...?', simply swap the positions: Gibt es...?

Examples (5)

  1. Es gibt einen Park in der Stadt.

    There is a park in the city.

    Word by Word: It gives a park in the city.

    Note that 'Park' is masculine, so 'ein' becomes 'einen' in the accusative case.

  2. Gibt es hier ein Restaurant?

    Is there a restaurant here?

    Word by Word: Gives it here a restaurant?

    In questions, the verb 'gibt' moves to the first position.

  3. Es gibt viele Kinder auf dem Spielplatz.

    There are many children on the playground.

    Word by Word: It gives many children on the playground.

    Even though 'children' is plural, the verb remains 'gibt' (singular).

  4. In meinem Tee gibt es keinen Zucker.

    There is no sugar in my tea.

    Word by Word: In my tea gives it no sugar.

    We use 'keinen' (accusative masculine) to negate the existence of sugar.

  5. Was gibt's Neues?

    What's new? / What's up?

    Word by Word: What gives it new?

    In spoken German, 'es gibt' is often contracted to 'gibt's'.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the nominative case instead of accusative.

    Es gibt ein Apfel auf dem Tisch.
    Es gibt einen Apfel auf dem Tisch.

    Because 'es gibt' triggers the accusative case, masculine nouns like 'Apfel' must use 'einen' instead of 'ein'.

  • Pluralizing the verb for plural nouns.

    Es geben viele Probleme.
    Es gibt viele Probleme.

    In German, the subject is always the singular 'es'. The verb must stay 'gibt' regardless of how many things follow it.

  • Using 'da' or 'dort' as the subject.

    Da gibt ein Problem.
    Es gibt ein Problem.

    While English uses 'there' as a dummy subject, German requires 'es'. You can say 'Da ist ein Problem', but with 'gibt', you must use 'es'.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

es gibtLevel 1There Is/Are

Learn This First

To learn 'es gibt', you need to understand that it functions as a fixed expression meaning 'there is/are'. Crucially, you must be familiar with the accusative case because the object following 'es gibt' always takes the accusative form. Additionally, recognizing the stem change in the verb 'geben' (to 'gibt') and the use of the neutral pronoun 'es' is essential.

Words in This Pattern

es gibtgeben