There Have Been or There Has Been? Grammar & Examples

There have been or there has been? Both are correct, but they are used with different kinds of subjects. Use there has been with a singular noun or an uncountable noun, and use there have been with a plural noun.

Examples:

• There has been a mistake.
• There has been progress.
• There have been several mistakes.
• There have been many changes.

Quick Answer: There Have Been or There Has Been?

Form	Use With	Example
There has been	Singular noun	There has been a delay.
There has been	Uncountable noun	There has been progress.
There have been	Plural noun	There have been several delays.

The easiest rule is:

singular or uncountable → has been
plural → have been

Why the Choice Depends on the Noun After the Verb

In existential sentences beginning with there, the word there does not carry the number that decides whether the verb should be singular or plural. The important noun comes later.

Compare:

• There has been a problem.
• There have been three problems.

The first noun phrase is singular, so has is correct. The second is plural, so have is correct.

Cambridge Grammar describes there as a dummy subject in this kind of construction and explains that subject–verb agreement depends on grammatical number. See the Cambridge Dictionary grammar entry on subjects.

When to Use “There Has Been”

Use there has been before a singular countable noun or an uncountable noun.

With a Singular Noun

• There has been a mistake.
• There has been an accident.
• There has been a change in the schedule.
• There has been a delay.
• There has been a complaint.
• There has been an improvement.

With an Uncountable Noun

• There has been progress.
• There has been confusion.
• There has been rain all morning.
• There has been traffic on the highway.
• There has been concern about the issue.
• There has been evidence of improvement.

When to Use “There Have Been”

Use there have been when the noun that follows is plural.

• There have been several changes.
• There have been two accidents.
• There have been many complaints.
• There have been delays this week.
• There have been improvements in the system.
• There have been several attempts to fix the problem.

“There Has Been” Meaning

There has been means that one thing, one situation, or some uncountable condition has existed or happened before now and is relevant to the present context.

Example:

There has been a change in the plan.

This tells us that a change occurred and that it matters now.

“There Have Been” Meaning

There have been means that multiple things, events, or situations have existed or occurred before now.

Example:

There have been several changes in the plan.

The plural noun changes requires have.

There Has Been or There Have Been: Grammar Rule

The structure belongs to the present perfect:

there + has/have + been + noun phrase

The form of have changes according to whether the relevant noun phrase is singular or plural.

Noun Phrase	Correct Form
a problem	There has been a problem.
one mistake	There has been one mistake.
progress	There has been progress.
several problems	There have been several problems.
many mistakes	There have been many mistakes.

If subject–verb agreement is the bit giving you trouble, our guide to Anyone Has or Anyone Have covers another common has/have choice.

There Has Been Some Changes or There Have Been Some Changes?

The standard form is:

There have been some changes.

Why? Because changes is plural.

Incorrect in standard edited English:

There has been some changes.

Correct:

There have been some changes.

However, if the following noun is uncountable, there has been is correct:

There has been some confusion.

There Has Been a Change or There Have Been Changes?

Both are correct:

• There has been a change. One change.
• There have been changes. More than one change.

The noun decides the form, not the general meaning of the sentence.

There Has Been No Change or There Have Been No Changes?

Again, both can be correct.

• There has been no change.
• There have been no changes.

The first treats change as singular. The second uses the plural changes.

Has There Been or Have There Been?

Questions follow the same agreement rule.

Has There Been

Use it with singular or uncountable nouns:

• Has there been a mistake?
• Has there been any progress?
• Has there been a change?
• Has there been enough time?

Have There Been

Use it with plural nouns:

• Have there been any problems?
• Have there been many changes?
• Have there been complaints?
• Have there been delays?

Has There Ever Been or Have There Ever Been?

The same rule applies even when ever appears in the sentence.

• Has there ever been a better opportunity?
• Has there ever been a time like this?
• Have there ever been similar cases?
• Have there ever been problems with this system?

There’s Been or There Has Been?

There’s been is the contraction of there has been.

Example:

• There has been a delay.
• There’s been a delay.

Both are correct. The contraction is more common in informal speech and writing.

For another contraction-focused grammar guide, see Its Self or Itself.

There’ve Been or There Have Been?

There’ve been is a contraction of there have been.

Example:

• There have been several delays.
• There’ve been several delays.

There’ve is grammatically possible but is much more common in speech than in formal writing. In professional or academic writing, there have been is usually clearer.

There’s Been vs There’ve Been

Contraction	Full Form	Use
There’s been	There has been	Singular or uncountable noun
There’ve been	There have been	Plural noun

There Has or There Have?

The same singular/plural principle applies even without been.

• There has to be a reason.
• There have to be several reasons.

English often makes this rule look harder because the noun comes after the verb instead of before it. A small act of grammatical mischief, apparently.

There Has Been vs There Was

These forms are not always interchangeable.

There Has Been

Present perfect. The event has a connection to the present.

There has been an accident, so the road is closed.

There Was

Simple past. It usually places the event in a finished past time.

There was an accident yesterday.

There Have Been vs There Were

The same tense distinction applies in the plural.

• There have been several problems this week.
• There were several problems last week.

This week is still current, so present perfect is natural. Last week is finished, so simple past is natural.

There Has Been vs Has Been

Has been can appear without existential there when a normal singular subject comes first.

Compare:

• There has been a problem.
• The problem has been serious.

The first sentence introduces the existence of a problem. The second describes the problem itself.

There Have Been vs Have Been

Likewise:

• There have been several complaints.
• The complaints have been serious.

In the first, there introduces the existence of complaints. In the second, complaints appears in the normal subject position.

Have Been or Has Been?

Outside the there construction, choose between has been and have been according to the subject.

• He has been busy.
• She has been busy.
• It has been difficult.
• I have been busy.
• You have been busy.
• We have been busy.
• They have been busy.

There Have Been or Has Been Examples

Sentence	Why?
There has been a delay.	Delay is singular.
There have been delays.	Delays is plural.
There has been progress.	Progress is uncountable.
There have been improvements.	Improvements is plural.
There has been an error.	Error is singular.
There have been errors.	Errors is plural.
There has been rain.	Rain is uncountable.
There have been storms.	Storms is plural.

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Matching the Verb With “There”

Do not choose has or have based on the word there. Look at the noun that follows.

Mistake 2: Using “Has” Before a Plural Noun

Nonstandard:

There has been many problems.

Standard:

There have been many problems.

Mistake 3: Using “Have” Before a Singular Noun

Nonstandard:

There have been a problem.

Standard:

There has been a problem.

Mistake 4: Forgetting Uncountable Nouns

An uncountable noun normally takes the singular form:

• There has been information.
• There has been progress.
• There has been concern.

Formal vs Informal English

In formal writing, agreement is straightforward:

• There has been a problem.
• There have been problems.

In casual speech, some speakers use there’s even before plural nouns, such as there’s been a few changes. This occurs in informal spoken English, but if you are writing for school, business, exams, or publication, use standard agreement:

There have been a few changes.

Present Perfect and Time Expressions

There has/have been often appears with time expressions that connect the past to the present.

• There have been several delays this week.
• There has been no progress so far.
• There have been many changes since January.
• There has been a problem recently.
• There have been complaints lately.

For another verb-form comparison, see Complete vs Completed.

Practice: Choose Has or Have

1. There ___ been a mistake.
2. There ___ been several mistakes.
3. There ___ been progress.
4. There ___ been many complaints.
5. ___ there been any change?
6. ___ there been any changes?
7. There ___ been some confusion.
8. There ___ been some delays.

Answers

1. has
2. have
3. has
4. have
5. Has
6. Have
7. has
8. have

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it correct to say have been or has been?

Both are correct. Use has been with a singular third-person subject and have been with I, you, we, they, and plural subjects.

Which is correct: “there has” or “there have”?

Both can be correct. Use there has before a singular or uncountable noun and there have before a plural noun.

Which is correct: “I have been there” or “I had been there”?

Both can be correct, but they use different tenses. I have been there is present perfect. I had been there is past perfect and usually refers to an event earlier than another past event.

Which is correct: “as been” or “has been”?

Has been is correct when you need the verb phrase. As been is not a substitute for it.

Is it correct to say there has been or there have been?

Yes. Both are correct. The following noun determines which one you use.

What’s a better way to say “have been”?

There is no single replacement. Depending on context, alternatives may include were, existed, occurred, remained, became, experienced, or a more direct verb.

What does “has been” mean?

Has been is a present-perfect form of be used with singular third-person subjects. Its exact meaning depends on the rest of the sentence.

What’s another word for has been?

There is no universal synonym. Depending on context, you might use was, existed, remained, occurred, became, or rewrite the sentence with a stronger verb.

Have been or has been examples with answers?

She has been busy. They have been busy. There has been a problem. There have been problems.

Final Answer: There Have Been or There Has Been?

Use there has been with a singular or uncountable noun:

• There has been a mistake.
• There has been progress.

Use there have been with a plural noun:

• There have been mistakes.
• There have been several changes.

The shortest rule to remember is:

one/uncountable = has been
more than one = have been