diff --git a/src/measure_theory/measure/measure_space.lean b/src/measure_theory/measure/measure_space.lean
index 27657aa96cd3c..600ffe9a8c022 100644
--- a/src/measure_theory/measure/measure_space.lean
+++ b/src/measure_theory/measure/measure_space.lean
@@ -2831,6 +2831,22 @@ lemma is_locally_finite_measure_of_is_finite_measure_on_compacts [topological_sp
   exact ⟨K, K_mem, K_compact.measure_lt_top⟩,
 end⟩
 
+lemma exists_pos_measure_of_cover [encodable ι] {U : ι → set α} (hU : (⋃ i, U i) = univ)
+  (hμ : μ ≠ 0) : ∃ i, 0 < μ (U i) :=
+begin
+  contrapose! hμ with H,
+  rw [← measure_univ_eq_zero, ← hU],
+  exact measure_Union_null (λ i, nonpos_iff_eq_zero.1 (H i))
+end
+
+lemma exists_pos_preimage_ball [pseudo_metric_space δ] (f : α → δ) (x : δ) (hμ : μ ≠ 0) :
+  ∃ n : ℕ, 0 < μ (f ⁻¹' metric.ball x n) :=
+exists_pos_measure_of_cover (by rw [← preimage_Union, metric.Union_ball_nat, preimage_univ]) hμ
+
+lemma exists_pos_ball [pseudo_metric_space α] (x : α) (hμ : μ ≠ 0) :
+  ∃ n : ℕ, 0 < μ (metric.ball x n) :=
+exists_pos_preimage_ball id x hμ
+
 /-- If a set has zero measure in a neighborhood of each of its points, then it has zero measure
 in a second-countable space. -/
 lemma null_of_locally_null [topological_space α] [second_countable_topology α]