ある and いる

ある and いる both mean "there is" or "to be" somewhere. ある is for things, plants and events. いる is for people and animals: anything that moves by itself.

The negative of ある is simply ない; there is no あらない. ある is a godan verb and いる an ichidan verb (see Verb groups).

Where: に

The place where something is takes に. Positions are nouns joined with の: 机の上に "on the desk", literally "at the top of the desk".

• 机の上に本があります。
  Tsukue no ue ni hon ga arimasu.
  There's a book on the desk.
• 公園に子供がいます。
  Kōen ni kodomo ga imasu.
  There are children in the park.

Two orders

To say what is in a place, put the place first and mark the thing with が. To say where a known thing is, make the thing the topic with は. In the second pattern です can replace にあります: 銀行は駅の前です.

• 駅の前に銀行があります。
  Eki no mae ni ginkō ga arimasu.
  There's a bank in front of the station.
• 銀行は駅の前にあります。
  Ginkō wa eki no mae ni arimasu.
  The bank is in front of the station.
• トイレはどこですか。
  Toire wa doko desu ka.
  Where is the toilet?

Having

ある and いる also say what someone has. The owner is the topic, with は, and the thing takes が. For owning an object, 持っている "have, hold" is also common: 車を持っています.

• 私は車があります。
  Watashi wa kuruma ga arimasu.
  I have a car.
• 兄弟がいますか。
  Kyōdai ga imasu ka.
  Do you have any brothers or sisters?
• 時間がありません。
  Jikan ga arimasen.
  I don't have time.

Events

Events such as parties, tests and meetings use ある, and the place where they happen takes で, not に.

• 明日、学校で試験があります。
  Ashita, gakkō de shiken ga arimasu.
  There's an exam at school tomorrow.