Learn Russian: Есть ли среди вас желающие? - Are there any interested people among you?

Есть ли среди вас желающие?

Are there any interested people among you?

Breakdown of Есть ли среди вас желающие?

вы

you (plural or formal)

есть

is, there is, to have

ли

whether / if (in indirect questions)

среди

among

Questions & Answers about Есть ли среди вас желающие?

How does the word желающие function in this sentence?

It acts as a substantivized participle, which is simply a participle doing the job of a noun. It is the present active participle of the verb желать (to wish). While it literally translates to "the wishing ones," it is the standard Russian term for "volunteers" or "interested people."

Why is желающие in the nominative case rather than the genitive?

In Russian, questions about existence using Есть keep the subject in the nominative case. You only switch to the genitive case to express absence or non-existence, such as if you were stating that there are no interested people (Нет желающих).

Why does the question particle ли come right after Есть?

The particle ли is placed directly after the word that forms the core focus of the question. Because the speaker is primarily asking whether these people exist at all ("Are there...?"), Есть is the most important word, so ли attaches immediately to it.

Which case is used for the pronoun вас here?

It is in the genitive case because the preposition среди (among) always requires the genitive case.