{"id":142834,"date":"2023-03-24T18:59:14","date_gmt":"2023-03-24T22:59:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/learn\/what-does-hay-mean-in-spanish\/"},"modified":"2025-02-26T02:46:48","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T07:46:48","slug":"what-does-hay-mean-in-spanish","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fluentu.com\/blog\/spanish\/what-does-hay-mean-in-spanish\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Use “Hay” in Spanish"},"content":{"rendered":"

One of the most versatile words in Spanish is hay<\/em>. This little word, derived from the verb haber<\/em>, helps us talk about the existence of people, objects and even abstract concepts.<\/p>\n

Understanding hay<\/em> and how it differs from similar verbs like estar<\/em> can clarify many common sentences in Spanish. Let’s have a look at how it interacts with specific words and grammar structures and help you use it confidently in any conversation.<\/p>\n

You can also take a look at this video lesson from our YouTube channel<\/a>:<\/p>\n

<\/lite-youtube><\/p>\n

[fluentu-toc]<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Meaning and Use of the Spanish Hay<\/em><\/h2>\n

Hay<\/em> Meaning “There Is”<\/h3>\n

We use hay<\/em> to say that something or someone exists in some place. In other words, hay <\/em>means “there is.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n

Hay<\/strong> una llama en mi sal\u00f3n.<\/em> (There is a llama in my living room.)<\/p>\n

Hay<\/strong> un gato en mi cocina.<\/em> (There is a cat in my kitchen.)<\/p>\n

Hay<\/strong><\/em> una<\/em> jirafa en mi ba\u00f1o.<\/em> (There is a giraffe in my bathroom.)<\/p>\n

Hay <\/em>is the impersonal form of the verb haber<\/em><\/a> (to be, to have). Since it’s impersonal, it doesn’t change, no matter the person, gender or the number we’re using in the sentence.<\/p>\n

It can have other forms in other tenses but never changes.<\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n

Hab\u00eda<\/strong> una llama en mi sal\u00f3n.<\/em> (There was a llama in my living room. [imperfect])<\/p>\n

Habr\u00e1<\/strong> un gato en mi cocina.<\/em> (There will be a cat in my kitchen. [future simple])<\/p>\n

Hubo<\/strong> unas jirafas en mi ba\u00f1o.<\/em> (There were some giraffes in my bathroom. [preterite])<\/p>\n

Hay<\/em> Meaning “There Are”<\/h3>\n

But that’s not all!<\/p>\n

Hay <\/em>also means “there are”<\/strong> if we’re referring to multiples of something:<\/p>\n

Hay<\/strong> unas llamas en mi sal\u00f3n.<\/em> (There are some llamas in my living room.)<\/p>\n

Hay<\/strong> gatos en mi cocina.<\/em> (There are [some] cats in my kitchen.)<\/p>\n

Hay<\/strong> unas jirafas en mi cuarto de ba\u00f1o.<\/em> (There are some giraffes in my bathroom.)<\/p>\n

Hay <\/em>vs.\u00a0Estar<\/em><\/h2>\n

Many learners get lost when first encountering hay<\/em> because they don’t understand the difference between haber <\/em>and estar<\/em>.<\/p>\n

When you studied the difference between ser <\/em>and estar<\/em><\/a>,<\/em> you learned that estar <\/em>is used to say where a person or object is, like:<\/p>\n

El ni\u00f1o est\u00e1<\/strong> en el parque.<\/em> (The kid is in the park.)<\/p>\n

Los juguetes est\u00e1n<\/strong> en la caja.<\/em> (The toys are in the box.)<\/p>\n

So, if hay <\/em>is used to say that something or someone exists, and estar <\/em>is used to say where a person or object is, what’s the difference?<\/p>\n

Hay = A person or object exists somewhere<\/h3>\n

When using hay,<\/em> you’re just stating that a person or object exists somewhere. <\/strong>But when you use estar,<\/em> you locate a specific person or object.<\/p>\n

Let’s have a look at two examples:<\/p>\n

Hay<\/strong> un ni\u00f1o en el parque.<\/em> (There’s a kid in the park. [existence])<\/p>\n

El ni\u00f1o est\u00e1<\/strong> en el parque.<\/em> (The kid is in the park. [location])<\/p>\n

The first example only tells you about a kid’s existence\u00a0in the park.<\/strong> It’s an impersonal sentence\u2014it has no subject.<\/p>\n

The second example tells you about the location of the<\/em> kid, a specific kid and it has a subject (the kid).<\/p>\n

If you still have problems remembering both constructions, this is what they look like when broken down into their components:<\/p>\n

Sentences with hay:<\/em> hay + <\/strong><\/em>person\/object + (place [optional])<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sentences with estar:<\/em> subject + estar <\/em>+ place
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

Let’s end this section with another couple of examples:<\/p>\n

\u00bfHay<\/strong> zumo de naranja en la nevera? S\u00ed hay.<\/strong><\/em> (Is there orange juice in the fridge? Yes, there is.)<\/p>\n

\u00bfD\u00f3nde est\u00e1<\/strong> el zumo de naranja? Est\u00e1<\/strong> en la nevera.<\/em> (Where’s the orange juice? It’s in the fridge.)<\/p>\n

Words That Trigger the Use of\u00a0Hay<\/em> in Spanish<\/h2>\n

Certain words give you a hint that you should use\u00a0hay<\/em> in your sentence.<\/p>\n

But keep in mind that seeing these words doesn’t mean you’ll definitely<\/em> also see\u00a0hay.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

For each trigger word or phrase below, I’ve added examples of when they lead to the use of hay<\/em> and when they don’t.<\/p>\n

1. An indefinite article<\/h3>\n

The indefinite article<\/a> is your best friend when choosing between hay <\/em>and estar.<\/em><\/p>\n

This is because you cannot use hay <\/em>with a definite article (like “the”), and you cannot use estar <\/em>with an indefinite article (like “a” or “an”).<\/strong><\/p>\n

Un, una, unos <\/em>and unas <\/em>(a\/one, some) are the perfect companions for hay,<\/em> and you’ll see them together very often:<\/p>\n

Hay un<\/strong> perro en mi jard\u00edn.<\/em> (There’s a dog in my garden.)<\/p>\n

En el parque hay una<\/strong> ni\u00f1a perdida.<\/em> (There’s a lost girl in the park.)<\/p>\n

Hay unas<\/strong> monedas en mi cartera.<\/em> (There are some coins in my wallet.)<\/p>\n

An example of an indefinite article not<\/strong> triggering hay\u00a0<\/em>is:<\/p>\n

Unos hombres est\u00e1n<\/strong> preguntando por ti.<\/em> (Some men are asking for you)<\/p>\n

In the above sentence,\u00a0unos hombres <\/em>is the subject of the sentence. And since the sentence has a subject, we can’t use\u00a0hay<\/em>!<\/p>\n

2. A plural without an article<\/h3>\n

There are times when we can use a plural form<\/a> without articles.<\/p>\n

Without the article, we’re being more general and aren’t specifying the quantity (it could be some, it could be one or it could be 500).<\/p>\n

For example:<\/p>\n

Hay monedas<\/strong> en mi cartera.<\/em> (There are coins in my wallet.)<\/p>\n

En esa bolsa hay naranjas.<\/strong><\/em> (There are oranges in that bag.)<\/p>\n

Hay libros<\/strong> en la estanter\u00eda.<\/em> (There are books on the shelf.)<\/p>\n

Here’s an example of no article\/plural not<\/strong> triggering hay<\/em>:<\/p>\n

Vinieron personas de todo el mundo.<\/em> (People from all around the world came.)<\/p>\n

The people\u00a0have an action attached to them (they came), so the sentence isn’t just stating their existence.<\/p>\n

3. Numbers<\/a><\/h3>\n

Just as you can say there’s a kid in the park, you can say there are 25 kids in a class.<\/p>\n

Have a look:<\/p>\n

Hay dos<\/strong> perros en mi cocina.<\/em> (There are two dogs in my kitchen.)<\/p>\n

Hay cinco<\/strong> ni\u00f1os en el parque.<\/em> (There are five kids in the park.)<\/p>\n

Hay veinticinco<\/strong> alumnos en la clase.<\/em> (There are 25 pupils in the class.)<\/p>\n

Example of numbers not<\/strong> triggering hay<\/em>:<\/p>\n

Tengo cinco perros y dos gatos.<\/em> (I have five dogs and two cats.)<\/p>\n

4. Uncountable nouns<\/h3>\n

Uncountable nouns<\/a>\u00a0can’t be counted<\/strong> (what, did you expect something more profound?).<\/p>\n

Most uncountable nouns consist of powders, liquids and abstract nouns like love, intelligence and peace.<\/p>\n

Uncountable nouns love to appear in sentences together with hay,<\/em> and the following examples are proof of that:<\/p>\n

Hay harina<\/strong> en el suelo.<\/em> (There’s some flour on the floor.)<\/p>\n

\u00bfHay agua<\/strong> en la nevera?<\/em> (Is there water in the fridge?)<\/p>\n

Hay arroz<\/strong> pero no hay az\u00facar.<\/em> (There’s some rice but there isn’t any sugar.)<\/p>\n

Example of an uncountable noun not<\/strong> triggering hay<\/em>:<\/p>\n

Necesito harina y az\u00facar.<\/em> (I need some flour and some sugar.)<\/p>\n

Remember that\u00a0hay<\/em> indicates the existence (or lack thereof) of something! This example is expressing a need\/desire, instead of mere existence.<\/p>\n

5. Adjectives of quantity<\/a><\/h3>\n

Quantity adjectives trigger hay<\/em> more often than not.<\/p>\n

They trigger hay<\/em> for the same reason numbers do: we’re talking about the number of people or objects that exist somewhere.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The four main quantity adjectives are:<\/p>\n

1. mucho<\/em>\/a\/os\/as(a lot, many)<\/p>\n

Hay mucha<\/strong> fruta en ese \u00e1rbol.<\/em> (There’s a lot of fruit in that tree.)<\/p>\n

No hay mucho<\/strong> caf\u00e9.<\/em> (There isn’t a lot of coffee.)<\/p>\n

2. poco<\/em>\/a\/os\/as <\/em>(few, little, a little)<\/p>\n

Hay pocos<\/strong> ni\u00f1os en la clase.<\/em> (There are few children in the classroom.)<\/p>\n

Hay poco<\/strong> dinero para comprar comida.<\/em> (There’s little money to buy food.)<\/p>\n

3. bastante<\/em>\/s,<\/em><\/strong> suficiente<\/em>\/s <\/em><\/strong>(enough)<\/p>\n

Hay bastante<\/strong> comida para dos personas.<\/em> (There’s enough food for two people.)<\/p>\n

Hay suficientes<\/strong> libros para todos.<\/em> (There are enough books for everyone.)<\/p>\n

4. demasiado<\/em>\/a\/os\/as <\/em>(too much)<\/p>\n

Hay demasiada<\/strong> comida aqu\u00ed.<\/em> (There’s too much food here.)<\/p>\n

No hay demasiados<\/strong> bocadillos.<\/em> (There aren’t too many sandwiches.)<\/p>\n

Example of quantity adjectives not triggering hay<\/em>:<\/p>\n

Tenemos poco dinero pero mucho amor.<\/em> (We have little money but a lot of love.)<\/p>\n

Can you figure out by yourself why this sentence doesn’t use hay?<\/em> (Hint: The English translation begins with “we have,” not “there are\/is”!)<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Learning how to use hay <\/em>isn’t difficult if you remember the difference between haber <\/em>and estar, <\/em>and get to know the words that trigger hay<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Remember that hay <\/em>always appears\u00a0in impersonal sentences, while estar <\/em>needs a subject. A program like FluentU<\/a> can help you learn more about how to use each word in context, through hundreds of real-world videos.

FluentU<\/strong> takes authentic videos\u2014like music videos, movie trailers, news and inspiring talks\u2014and turns them into personalized language learning lessons.<\/p>\r\n

You can try FluentU for free for 2 weeks. Check out the website or download the iOS app<\/a> or Android app.<\/a><\/p>\r\n

P.S. Click here to take advantage of our current sale! (Expires at the end of this month)<\/a><\/i>\r\n<\/p>\r\n \r\n\r\n \"FluentU\r\n

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