Hi ha molta gent, però aviat serà el meu torn.

Hi ha is the standard Catalan way to express existence, like there is / there are in English.

• Hi is an old locative element, roughly connected to there
• ha is from the verb haver

So:

• Hi ha molta gent = There are many people

Even though gent is grammatically singular, the idea is plural in meaning, so in English it often becomes there are a lot of people.

Because gent in Catalan is usually an uncountable collective noun meaning people.

So you normally say:

• molta gent = a lot of people
• poca gent = few people / not many people

Not usually:

• moltes gents

Also, gent is grammatically feminine singular, which is why the adjective is molta, not molt.

This is a very common learner question. Gent works like a collective noun: it refers to many individuals, but grammatically it behaves as a singular feminine noun.

That is why you get:

• molta gent
• aquesta gent
• la gent

So in grammar it is singular, even though in meaning it refers to a group.

Però means but.

The accent mark helps distinguish pronunciation and stress. In Catalan, written accents often show where the stress falls and sometimes which vowel quality is used.

So:

• però = but

The accent tells you the stress is on the second syllable: pe-RÒ.

Because aviat means soon, so the speaker is talking about something that has not happened yet.

That is why Catalan uses the future:

• serà = will be

So:

• aviat serà el meu torn = it will soon be my turn

Using the present tense here would usually sound unnatural, because your turn is still in the future.

Catalan often uses ser with expressions about turns:

• És el meu torn = It’s my turn
• Serà el meu torn = It will be my turn

This is similar to English it is my turn.

So ser is not meaning to exist here; it is linking el meu torn to the situation, like a normal copular verb.

In Catalan, possessives are very often used with a definite article:

• el meu torn = my turn
• la meva mare = my mother
• el seu cotxe = his/her car

This is one of the most noticeable differences from English. English usually says just my turn, but Catalan normally says the my turn, literally speaking.

So el meu torn is the normal form.

Here torn means turn, as in one’s moment in a sequence.

Examples:

• És el teu torn = It’s your turn
• Ara és el meu torn = Now it’s my turn

Be careful, because torn can also mean work shift in other contexts. The meaning depends on the sentence.

Grammatically, the noun phrase molta gent is singular because gent is singular.

But the whole meaning is plural in English:

• Hi ha molta gent = There are a lot of people

So when translating, English usually uses are, even though the Catalan noun is singular.

A simple learner-friendly pronunciation guide would be:

• Hi ha molta gent, però aviat serà el meu torn
• roughly: ee AH MOL-tuh JENT, puh-ROH uh-vyat suh-RAH ul MEH-oo TORN

A few notes:

• hi ha is often pronounced smoothly together
• però is stressed on the last syllable
• serà is also stressed on the last syllable
• meu is usually one syllable or very close to it in natural speech

Pronunciation varies somewhat by dialect, but this gives a good general idea.

Yes, it could, but it sounds a bit different.

• molta gent = the most natural everyday way to say a lot of people
• moltes persones = also correct, but slightly more explicit or formal depending on context

In ordinary conversation, molta gent is extremely common and natural.

It breaks down like this:

• Hi ha = there is / there are
• molta gent = a lot of people
• però = but
• aviat = soon
• serà = will be
• el meu torn = my turn

So the structure is:

• existence: Hi ha molta gent
• contrast: però
• future statement: aviat serà el meu torn

This is a very natural way to say that there are many people ahead, but your turn is coming soon.