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ESL forum > Grammar and Linguistics > There isn ´t or there aren ´t    

There isn ´t or there aren ´t



gabrielaalonso9
Spain

There isn ´t or there aren ´t
 
Hello!!!
I have a doubt regarding the use of there isn ´t and there aren ´t in this sentence:

There isn ´t any pen in my pencil case.
There aren ´t any pens in my pencil case.

In the first sentence we have is and singular pen, so that ´s right, but I think we can ´t use any followed by a singular noun. So, the sentence is not right?

I think that the right sentence is the second one, and you?

Please answer my doubt.

Thanks a lot!!!

1 Mar 2010      





Mariethe House
France

There isn �t a pen .... or: damn, there isn ´t one single pen in my pencil case!

There aren ´t any pens in my....

Any can ´t be used with countable singular nouns.

Hope it helps! Wait for Zora!! She will have a better answer!!Wink

1 Mar 2010     



gabrielaalonso9
Spain

Thanks a lot Mariethe!!!

1 Mar 2010     



coyote.chus
Spain

There aren ´t any pens
or  There isn ´t a pen

1 Mar 2010     



gabrielaalonso9
Spain

Thanks Chus!!!

1 Mar 2010     



zoemorosini
United States

There isn ´t a pen/There is no pen = I don ´t have a pen, although someone expected me to have one or expected there to be one.
There isn ´t any pen = There are no ink marks.
There aren ´t any pens  =  I don ´t have any pens (plural), but someone expected me to or expected there to be some.

2 Mar 2010