There Has Been vs There Have Been: Which Is Correct?

“There has been” and “there have been” are both grammatically correct expressions, but they are used with different subjects. The main difference is subject verb agreement. We use “there has been” when the noun that follows is singular or uncountable, while “there have been” is used when the noun is plural. For example, “There has been a problem” is correct because problem is singular, while “There have been several problems” is correct because problems is plural.

The confusion often comes from the word “there.” In these sentences, “there” does not determine whether we use has or have. Instead, the real subject comes after the verb. Once you identify that noun, choosing between “there has been” and “there have been” becomes much easier. This guide explains the difference, provides plenty of examples, and shows how to avoid the most common mistakes.

Quick Answer

Use “there has been” with a singular or uncountable noun:

There has been a mistake.

Use “there have been” with a plural noun:

There have been several mistakes.

The key is to look at the noun after been, not at the word there.

Why Do People Confuse “There Has Been” and “There Have Been”?

The confusion happens because “there” appears at the beginning of both constructions.

Compare:

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

The verb changes because problem is singular and problems is plural.

This is an example of subject-verb agreement.

The simple rule

Singular or uncountable noun → has been

Plural noun → have been

For example:

• There has been an accident.
• There have been several accidents.
• There has been some confusion.
• There have been many complaints.

There Has Been

“There has been” is used when the noun following it is singular or uncountable.

Singular nouns

There has been a delay.

There has been an accident.

There has been a change.

There has been a misunderstanding.

The nouns delay, accident, change, and misunderstanding are singular, so has is correct.

Uncountable nouns

We can also use “there has been” with uncountable nouns.

There has been some progress.

There has been a lot of confusion.

There has been considerable growth.

There has been little improvement.

Words such as progress, confusion, growth, and improvement are generally uncountable in these contexts, so they take has.

There Have Been

“There have been” is used when the noun that follows is plural.

For example:

There have been several delays.

There have been many changes.

There have been three accidents.

There have been numerous complaints.

The nouns delays, changes, accidents, and complaints are plural, so have is required.

There Has Been vs There Have Been

Expression	When to use it	Example
There has been	Singular noun	There has been a problem.
There has been	Uncountable noun	There has been some progress.
There have been	Plural noun	There have been several problems.
There have been	More than one person/thing	There have been many visitors.

The easiest way to remember

Look at the noun after been:

There has been a problem. ✅

There have been problems. ✅

The singular/plural noun determines the verb.

When to Use “There Has Been”

Use “there has been” when you are talking about:

One thing

There has been a mistake in the report.

One event

There has been an accident on the highway.

One change

There has been a significant change in the schedule.

An uncountable amount or concept

There has been considerable progress.

An uncountable substance

There has been too much noise.

When to Use “There Have Been”

Use “there have been” when referring to two or more countable things or people.

Multiple things

There have been several mistakes in the report.

Multiple events

There have been three accidents this week.

Multiple changes

There have been many changes to the policy.

Multiple people

There have been several visitors today.

Multiple problems

There have been a number of problems with the system.

15 Examples of “There Has Been”

1. There has been a delay in the delivery.
2. There has been an unexpected change in the schedule.
3. There has been a misunderstanding.
4. There has been a serious accident nearby.
5. There has been a lot of discussion about the issue.
6. There has been considerable progress this year.
7. There has been some confusion about the instructions.
8. There has been a significant increase in prices.
9. There has been little improvement in the situation.
10. There has been a problem with the computer.
11. There has been enough evidence to support the claim.
12. There has been too much noise outside.
13. There has been a noticeable change in his behavior.
14. There has been an increase in demand.
15. There has been no communication from the company.

15 Examples of “There Have Been”

1. There have been several delays this week.
2. There have been many changes to the plan.
3. There have been three accidents today.
4. There have been numerous complaints from customers.
5. There have been several mistakes in the document.
6. There have been many improvements recently.
7. There have been some problems with the software.
8. There have been significant developments in the case.
9. There have been several attempts to contact him.
10. There have been many discussions about the issue.
11. There have been a number of questions about the policy.
12. There have been fewer visitors this month.
13. There have been several reports of delays.
14. There have been multiple changes to the schedule.
15. There have been no complaints so far.

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Using “has” with a plural noun

❌ There has been several problems.

✅ There have been several problems.

Problems is plural, so use have.

Mistake 2: Using “have” with a singular noun

❌ There have been a problem.

✅ There has been a problem.

Problem is singular, so use has.

Mistake 3: Thinking “there” controls the verb

Some learners assume that because there is the first word, it determines whether the sentence takes has or have.

It does not.

Compare:

There has been a problem.

There have been problems.

The noun problem/problems determines the agreement.

Mistake 4: Ignoring uncountable nouns

❌ There have been some progress.

✅ There has been some progress.

In standard English, progress is normally uncountable, so use has.

Similarly:

There has been some information.

There has been considerable growth.

A Number of vs The Number of

This is a particularly useful distinction.

A number of + plural noun → have

There have been a number of complaints.

Here, a number of means several, so the verb is plural.

The number of + plural noun → has

There has been an increase in the number of complaints.

Or:

There has been a rise in the number of complaints.

The grammatical subject is the number, which is singular.

This distinction is important in formal writing.

There Has Been vs There Have Been in Questions

The same agreement rule applies when asking questions.

Singular

Has there been a problem?

Has there been any progress?

Plural

Have there been any problems?

Have there been any changes?

Notice the same pattern:

• Has there been + singular/uncountable
• Have there been + plural

There Has Been vs There Have Been in Negative Sentences

The rule also remains the same in negative sentences.

Singular or uncountable

There has not been a decision.

There hasn’t been enough time.

Plural

There have not been any problems.

There haven’t been many complaints.

The contractions hasn’t and haven’t follow the same singular/plural distinction.

Memory Trick

Use this simple trick:

HAS = one

There has been one problem.

HAVE = more than one

There have been several problems.

You can also remember:

Has → singular
Have → plural

And for uncountable nouns:

Uncountable → has

American vs British English

The basic rule is the same in American and British English.

Both varieties use:

There has been a problem.

and:

There have been several problems.

There is no major American-versus-British difference in this particular grammatical distinction.

Both varieties follow subject-verb agreement in standard formal English.

Similar Structures

The same idea appears in other forms of the verb be.

Present

There is a problem.

There are several problems.

Past

There was a problem.

There were several problems.

Present perfect

There has been a problem.

There have been several problems.

Future

There will be a problem.

There will be several problems.

The important point is that the verb generally agrees with the noun that follows.

FAQs

Is “there has been” correct?

Yes. “There has been” is correct when the following noun is singular or uncountable.

There has been a mistake.

There has been some progress.

Is “there have been” correct?

Yes. “There have been” is correct when the following noun is plural.

There have been several mistakes.

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

The correct form is:

There have been problems.

Because problems is plural.

Which is correct: “there has been a problem” or “there have been a problem”?

The correct form is:

There has been a problem.

Because problem is singular.

Can “there has been” be used with an uncountable noun?

Yes.

There has been some progress.

There has been enough information.

Can I say “there have been a number of”?

Yes.

There have been a number of complaints.

Here, a number of means several, so the plural verb have is appropriate.

What is the easiest rule for “there has been” vs. “there have been”?

Look at the noun that follows been:

Singular or uncountable → there has been

Plural → there have been

Final Verdict

Both “there has been” and “there have been” are correct. The choice depends on whether the noun that follows is singular/uncountable or plural.

Use “there has been” with one thing or an uncountable noun:

There has been a delay.
There has been some progress.

Use “there have been” with multiple things:

There have been several delays.
There have been many improvements.

Remember This

There has been = singular or uncountable

There have been = plural

Don’t let the word “there” confuse you. Find the noun after been, determine whether it is singular, plural, or uncountable, and choose has or have accordingly.

Conclusion

The difference between “there has been” and “there have been” is mainly a matter of subject verb agreement. Although “there” appears at the beginning of the sentence, it is not what determines the verb form. A singular or uncountable noun calls for has, while a plural noun calls for have.

Once you get into the habit of looking at the noun after been, the choice becomes easy. Remember the basic pattern: “There has been a problem” but “There have been problems.” This simple rule will help you use both expressions confidently in everyday, academic, and professional English.