Avoid Starting Sentences with "There is/are"

This rule identifies instances where sentences begin with "There is" or "There are", either at the start of a sentence or after a semicolon or dash. This pattern often creates weak, unnecessarily wordy constructions that can be rewritten more directly and actively. Using "There is/are" at the start of sentences can make writing less engaging and less concise.

Examples of what this rule flags:

  • ❌ "There are three reasons why this fails." ✅ "Three reasons explain this failure."

  • ❌ "There is a problem with the system." ✅ "The system has a problem."

  • ❌ "The test failed; There are multiple errors in the log." ✅ "The test failed; Multiple errors appear in the log."

  • ❌ "The build crashed - There is an issue with dependencies." ✅ "The build crashed - Dependencies caused the issue."

The rule helps maintain more direct, active writing by encouraging authors to restructure sentences to avoid these weak openings.

Rule Source

This rule comes from: https://github.com/mesosphere/dcos-docs-site

Rule Definition

extends: existence
message: "Don't start a sentence with '%s'."
ignorecase: false
level: error
raw:
  - '(?:[;-]\s)There\s(is|are)|\bThere\s(is|are)\b'