"there is a ... and a ..." vs "there are a ... and a ..."

dunchee

TL;DR 要應付考試的話，特別是 GMAT 這類專考這是語法的英文測驗，複數動詞 are/were 通常是正確答案。考的是(偏)日常英文，遇到題幹或是答案是單數動詞 is/was 不用吃驚。接觸日常英文時碰到單數動詞 is/was 很尋常，也不用吃驚。

GMAT Prep Course - Page 498
books.google.com › books
Jeff Kolby · 2016

In these constructions, it is tempting to mistakenly use a singular verb before the plural subject.
Example (wrong):

There is a wallet and a key on the dresser.

…. It requires a plural verb:

There are a wallet and a key on the dresser.

This error occurs often in daily speech because …

https://www.dictionary.com/browse/there
The Random House Unabridged Dictionary
Grammar note 7:

… With compound subjects in which all the coordinate words are singular, a singular verb often occurs, although the plural may also be used: There was (or were) a horse and a cow in the pasture….

dunchee

https://www.csueastbay.edu/scaa/files/docs/student-handouts/subject-verb-agreement-lovelyn-george.pdf
Subject: Writing
Created by: Lovelyn George
Subject-‐Verb Agreement
Rule 5
A plural verb is used when a compound subject follows it.
Examples:
WRONG: In the room, there is a boy, a girl, and a box.
CORRECT: In the room, there are a boy, a girl, and a box

dunchee

https://www.csueastbay.edu/scaa/files/docs/student-handouts/subject-verb-agreement-lovelyn-george.pdf
California State University East Bay
Subject: Writing, Created by: Lovelyn George, page 3

Subject‐Verb Agreement

Rule 5
A plural verb is used when a compound subject follows it.
Examples:
WRONG: In the room, there is a boy, a girl, and a box.
CORRECT: In the room, there are a boy, a girl, and a box.

dunchee

There was a man and a woman and two children– …
– The Extinction Trials by A. G. Riddle

There was a maid and a cook.
– Persuader by Lee Child

There was a pocketbook and a small briefcase thrown on the back seat.
– Echo Burning by Lee Child (and many of Lee Child’s books)

There was a daybed and a cupboard with boxes of tea and jars of honey.
– Angelopolis by Danielle Trussoni

In the back of the house there was a brick patio and a wading pool.
– Star Trek: Destiny - Book 2 - Mere Mortals by David Mack

There was a stove and a clattery fridge.
– 11/22/63 by Stephen King

There was a hotel there and a cabstand.
– Memory Man by David Baldacci

dunchee

There are a lion and a kneeling woman framing this section. (dialogue)
– The Seventh Plague by James Rollins

…, and there were a cased bow and a quiver fastened to his saddle.
– Crossroads of Twilight by Robert Jordan

There were a king with a large jaw and a queen with a plain face, on the throne of England; there were a king with a large jaw and a queen with a fair face, on the throne of France.
– A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, 1859, Chapter 1

There were a white bank, and a red brewery, and a yellow town-hall; …
– Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens

Clearly there were a library and a laboratory elsewhere;…
– The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, IV. A Mutation and a Madness by H. P. Lovecraft

dunchee

額外補充。縮寫的 “there’s” 有另外的(非正式)用法，比如 there’s + 複數名詞，這其中也包含多個項目裡頭混有 “a + noun” 的情況。