Definition

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There is / There are 

The phrases “there is" and "there are" indicate that something or a group of things exist or do not exist. e.g.

a) There's a fly in my soup

b) There are several mistakes in this report.

Note that it is possible to say the following:

a) A fly is in my soup.

b) Several mistakes are in this report.

Using the pronoun there as a subject in these example sentences stresses the fact that the "the fly" or "the mistakes" exist. By using "there" in the sentences, the speaker makes a clear declarative statement, drawing more attention to his statement.

The Verb To Be in the Simple Past Tense: Was / Were 

The past forms of the verb to be are was and were, and the conjugation of the verb is as follows:

I / he / she / it = was

You / we / they= were

The forms was and were are used to describe a situation or situations in the past that no longer exist, e.g.

There were two men on that corner, but they are gone now.

Terry was thin when he was young.

The concert last night was fabulous!