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JLPT N5 · Grammar
Highlighted parts are the fixed pieces of the pattern; the rest changes with the word you attach it to.
## What it means This pattern is how you say something or someone exists in a certain place, like saying "In this place, there is..." in English. Which word you use for "is" depends on whether the thing is alive.
## When to use it The basic shape is Place + に + Thing/Person + が + あります or います. Use あります for things without life, like books, chairs, or buildings. Use います for living things, like people, cats, and dogs. If you already know what the thing is and just want to say where it is, you can flip the sentence around: [Thing]は[Place]にあります/います.
## Don't confuse it with The biggest mistake beginners make is picking あります or います out of habit instead of checking whether the subject is alive. A toy robot might trip you up, but the rule stays simple: alive and moving on its own, like people and animals, means います; everything else means あります.
机の上に本があります。
There's a book on the desk.
教室に学生がいます。
There are students in the classroom.
公園に猫がいますか。
Is there a cat in the park?
冷蔵庫の中に牛乳がありません。
There's no milk in the fridge.
駅の前に銀行があります。
There's a bank in front of the station.
家に誰もいません。
There's nobody home.
部屋に椅子が三つあります。
There are three chairs in the room.
図書館に先生がいますか。
Is there a teacher at the library?