います
A person or animal is there
You’ll be able to say that people or animals are present in a given place.
公園に子どもがいます。
kouen ni kodomo ga imasu.
What do you think this sentence means?
There are children in the park.
Say that a person or animal is present
Use います for living beings such as people and animals when you say that they exist or are present somewhere.
教室に先生がいます。
kyoushitsu ni sensei ga imasu.
There is a teacher in the classroom.
Person or animal + が + います
Mark the person or animal that exists with が and end with います.
公園に子どもがいます。
kouen ni kodomo ga imasu.
There are children in the park.
うちに猫がいます。
uchi ni neko ga imasu.
There is a cat at my house.
駅に友達がいます。
eki ni tomodachi ga imasu.
My friend is at the station.
あります vs います
Both mean “there is”. Use います for people and animals (such as children, friends, and cats) — living beings. Use あります for everything else: objects, vehicles, plants, and events (such as benches, cars, flowers, and tests).
います, living
公園に子どもがいます。
kouen ni kodomo ga imasu.
There are children in the park.
Children are people (living beings), so use います.
あります, non-living
公園にベンチがあります。
kouen ni benchi ga arimasu.
There is a bench in the park.
A bench is an inanimate object (non-living), so use あります.
駅に友達がいます。
eki ni tomodachi ga imasu.
My friend is at the station.
教室に先生がいます。
kyoushitsu ni sensei ga imasu.
There is a teacher in the classroom.
うちに猫がいます。
uchi ni neko ga imasu.
There is a cat at my house.
13 more examples in the grammar path — free for a limited time.