6 Read the following texts about houses in Russia paying attention to sentences beginning with there is.

Houses in Russia are different.

One can see small private houses in the villages. They usually have a yard surrounded by a fence. People in the villages keep farm animals and poultry in the yard. There is usually a shed for keeping poultry within the yard and a barn for keeping crops. There’s always a sauna in every yard. All houses in Russia have either central or own heating systems.

In the cities people usually live in apartments. Apartments in Russia may be two to twenty-story or even taller. People rent apartments for a long period or buy them though they are expensive. The price of an apartment depends on how many rooms and bathrooms it has. Usually a family of four lives in a three-room apartment with two bedrooms, a living room and a kitchen. They pay for the utilities (electricity, gas, central heating, water and general maintenance) to the state. There is usually a storeroom for unused things and a balcony. In general, people prefer to buy their apartments rather than to rent them.

7 Read again the above description about houses in Russia and answer the following questions based on the description and your knowledge of houses in Russia.

a) Do all apartments in Russia have central heating?

b) What do people generally keep in the yards in the villages?

c) Are the apartments cheap in Russia?

d) Are there saunas in the villages?

e) Do all apartments have balconies?

Remember! Структура there is/are используется для обозначения нахождения, наличия чего-либо где-либо. Например, There is usually a yard surrounded by a fence. – Обычно есть двор, огороженный забором. There are apple-trees in the garden. – В саду есть яблони.

8 Translate the following sentences into Russian.

a) There is a big green book on the table.

b) There are seven hundred people in the village.

c) There is much snow in the street.

d) There are five people in her family.

e) There is one kitchen on our floor in the hostel.

f) There are hundred cents in one dollar.

g) There is a small park near my home.

h) There are curtains on the window.

i) There is a big library at the University.

j) There are hundreds people in the street.

k) There are millions bacteria in the air.

9 Make up your own 5 sentences with “there is /are”.

Конец формы

10 Look at the description of the living room in the picture and complete the descriptions of the other rooms inserting is or are.

There are three sofas in the living room. In the corner there is a TV set. In the other corner there is a standing lamp. In the middle there is a table. There are four pictures on the walls. At the entrance there is a big table with two chairs and a small telephone table. There is a rug on the floor.

In the kitchen there _____ four chairs and a table. There _____ a refrigerator in the corner. Next to it there _____ a stove with an oven. There _____ many kitchen cabinets in the kitchen. There _____ also a sink and a microwave oven.

There _____ a big bath with a shower in the bathroom. Next to it there _____ a sink. Above the sink there _____ a mirror. Near the sink there _____ a toilet with a towel rail above it. There _____ also a rug on the floor. There _____ a blind on the window.

In the bedroom there _____ a queen-size bed near the window. At the bed there _____ a bedside table with a lamp on it. In the corner there _____ a drawer. Near the wall there _____ one more drawer with a mirror above it. There _____ a rug on the floor. There _____ two pictures on the walls.