There has been and There have been

There has been (for singular or uncountable nouns) and there have been (for plural) are used when we want to confirm (in the affirmative), deny (in the negative) or check (in the interrogative) that something existed in the past and continued in the present.

They have the following forms:

• affirmative: there has been followed by singular noun/uncountable noun (singular); there have been followed by plural noun (plural);
• negative: there has not been followed by singular noun/uncountable noun (singular); there have not been followed by plural noun (plural);
• interrrogative: has there been followed by singular noun/uncountable noun and interrogative mark (singular); have there been followed by plural noun and interrogative mark (plural).

For example:
— Affirmative: “There has been a strange trend lately.” (singular) / “There have been many earthquakes in this century.” (plural);
— Negative: “There hasn’t been a strange trend lately.” (singular) / “There haven’t been many earthquakes in this century.” (plural);
— Interrogative: “Has there been a strange trend lately?” (singular) / “Have there been many earthquakes in this century?” (plural).
♦ “There is a strange trend lately.” = There is is the present form of there has been and is related to present situations that did not exist in the past. Therefore we cannot use it with the adverb lately as it connects the present to the past.

Let’s revise this content within the {Form} section. Take a look at the {Example} section that shows its use within a context.