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es gibt
"There is / there are" — always Akkusativ, singular or plural.
What is es gibt?
es gibt is how German says "there is" or "there are." Literally it means "it gives" — geben = to give, and es is a dummy subject that doesn't refer to anything real. Because es is always the (fake) subject, it stays Nominativ and never changes. The thing that "exists" is grammatically the direct object of "geben" — so it's always Akkusativ, whether it's one thing or many.
Es gibt einen Park in der Stadt.
There is a park in the city.
der Park (maskulin) = park. "Einen" — maskulin Akkusativ (ein → einen), because Park is the object of "gibt," not the subject. "Es" is the subject and never changes.
Es gibt eine Bäckerei hier.
There is a bakery here.
die Bäckerei (feminin) = bakery. "Eine" — feminin Akkusativ, unchanged from Nominativ. Same pattern as any other feminin noun in Akkusativ.
Es gibt viele Studenten hier.
There are many students here.
viele = many. Plural nouns work exactly the same way — "es gibt" doesn't change for singular vs. plural. Only the thing after it changes.
Negating es gibt
To say "there isn't / there aren't," use kein (declined for Akkusativ) — not "nicht." This is the same rule from Negation: a noun with no article or an ein-article gets negated with kein.
Es gibt kein Problem.
There is no problem.
das Problem (neutrum) = problem. "Kein" — neutrum Akkusativ (kein → kein, no change), same pattern as "das."
Hier gibt es keine Milch mehr.
There isn't any milk here anymore.
die Milch (feminin) = milk. "Keine" — feminin Akkusativ. "Mehr" after a negation = "not... anymore" / "no more."
Word order: es doesn't disappear
Like every main clause, the conjugated verb (gibt) stays in position 2. If something other than "es" fills position 1 — a place, a time — then es simply moves to position 3, right after the verb. It does not disappear, unlike some other impersonal constructions.
Hier gibt es einen Supermarkt.
There's a supermarket here.
hier = here, in position 1. "Gibt" stays in position 2, and "es" moves right after it — it's still there, just not first.
Gibt es einen Bahnhof hier?
Is there a train station here?
Yes/no question: the verb "gibt" jumps to position 1, "es" follows right after — same pattern as any other yes/no question. See Questions.
es gibt in one line
es gibt = "there is / there are," always followed by Akkusativ — singular or plural, no exceptions. Negate with kein (Akkusativ), not "nicht." "Es" always stays in the sentence, even when something else takes position 1.
Related
- Akkusativ — the case es gibt always demands
- Negation (nicht & kein) — why kein, not nicht
- Questions — yes/no word order, used above