There is\are

There ___ a couple of things I need to do.

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Hi Everybody I am interested in this website and would like to learn more about English.
 
I think that the correct answer is there is acouple of things

because (couple) singular so if it is 2 couples or more we can say that there are 2 couples of.....whaterver


I don't know if my answer is correct so tha English native speakers should help us here to understand this point

Best Wishes ;-)
 
I would say, "there are a couple of things I need to do" rather than, "there is a couple of things I need to do", but I would be more likely still to say simply "there's a couple of things I need to do".
 
Well....

In my opinion there's a couple of things I need to do. It's correct :up:

Because as someone else said couple refers to a unite

Plural will be There're many things I need to do :lol: many refers to more than two things and couple is an uncountable noun also.

I'll wait for your comments....
 
I ain't a native one
but all I know when there's a sentence using 'a' or 'an' in front of a noun, it means singular :)

there ... a couple of things I need to do
So, I choosed is instead of are

It was confusing for me when seeing 'things' (plural) after 'a couple' (singular), could someone explain to me, please? :D
 
Andi Pangeran said:
I ain't a native one
but all I know when there's a sentence using 'a' or 'an' in front of a noun, it means singular :)

there ... a couple of things I need to do
So, I chose is instead of are

It was confusing for me when seeing 'things' (plural) after 'a couple' (singular), could someone explain to me, please? :D
Click to expand...

"A couple of" has two different meanings. If it refers to two things or two people of the same kind, it is considered as a unit. Then we use a singular verb: There is a couple of things.... If it refers to "several or a few" individual things, then we can use a plural verb: There are a couple of things...

Look at the following sentences:

There is a pair of shoes in the box.
A number of students are absent from class.
The number of unemployed people is astonishing.

But when we see definite collective nouns considered as a unit in structures like a bunch of, an army of, a bundle of, a herd of, or a fleet of followed by a plural noun, we usually use a singular verb.

For example,

A fleet of ships was floating in the harbor.
A herd of cows was walking across the road.

I hope this helps! :)
 
"Couple" means "two" but "a couple of" can refers to "several" instead of just "two". For example, I can say "a couple of things to do" when I want to say "several things to do".
 
thincat said:
"Couple" means "two" but "a couple of" can refers to "several" instead of just "two". For example, I can say "a couple of things to do" when I want to say "several things to do".
Click to expand...

Thank you, but this comment has nothing to do with whether "is" or "are" is the correct choice.

(And I disagree. While "a couple of" could mean "a few" it does not mean "several.")
 
"is" is using for singular,'n' are for plural
...read only 1st page..:)
 
yah, i just need the answer.. is or are?
 
There are a couple of things I need to do. In this case are is for two, a couple of, some, some more, things. Is would be for singular, one thing, something.
 
I'd also go for "are", I really wonder which one is correct.
 
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