il y a
/i.l‿i.j‿a/
The English phrase 'is there' is translated into French as il y a.
il y a is a phrase used to ask if something exists or is present in a particular place.
What does it mean word for word?
Literally, il y a is composed of il (it), y (there) and a (has).
How does it change in a sentence?
The negative form of il y a is il n'y a pas.
How do you pronounce it?
/i.l‿i.j‿a/
What mistakes should you avoid?
Because il y a is an impersonal expression, the subject never changes. English speakers should not mistakenly try to change il to elle to match the gender of the object.
Did you know?
- While il y a translates to 'there is' or 'there are', it is also the standard way to say 'ago' when talking about time, such as il y a deux jours for 'two days ago'.
- In very informal spoken French, you might hear people drop the il and simply say y a to mean 'there is'.
- The word y in il y a is actually a descendant of the Latin word for 'here' or 'there', which makes the phrase literally 'it there has'.
Examples in context
- Il y a quelqu'un ?Is there anyone here?Tatoeba #126571 by TRANG, translation #2092619 by CK
- Est-ce qu'il y a de l'eau ?Is there water?Tatoeba #7048767 by Micsmithel, translation #773342 by marloncori
- Il y a un parking par ici ?Is there a car park here?Tatoeba #10969254 by lbdx, translation #10965768 by sundown
- Y a-t-il une banque près d'ici?Is there a bank nearby?
- Existe-t-il une solution à ce problème?Is there a solution to this problem?
- Est-ce qu'il y a une fête ce soir?Is there a party tonight?
- Y'a-t-il quelqu'un à la maison?Is anyone at home?
- Y a-t-il un restaurant de sushi ici?Is there a sushi restaurant here?
- Existe-t-il un moyen de transport plus rapide?Is there a faster means of transportation?
- Est-ce qu'il y a des desserts sans gluten?Are there any gluten-free desserts?
- Y'a-t-il des billets disponibles pour le concert?Are there any tickets available for the concert?
- 47 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Hugo and Manon are looking for a bakery in the street.
- HugoEst-ce qu'il y a une boulangerie ?Is there a bakery?
- ManonOui, il y a une boulangerie juste là.Yes, there is a bakery right there.
- HugoParfait, j'ai très faim.Perfect, I am very hungry.
- ManonMoi aussi, allons-y.Me too, let's go.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry il y a, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries a, il, y, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
