Welcome to Lesson 7: The Verb “To Have.”
In Lesson 6, you learned how to use the verb to be.
Now you will learn another very important English verb: to have.
Use Google Translate if you need help.
What Does “To Have” Mean?
We often use to have to talk about something that belongs to someone or something someone possesses.
I have a car.
She has a phone.
But have can mean more than ownership.
We also use have to talk about family, characteristics, experiences, illnesses, food, and many other everyday situations.
Examples
I have two children.
She has blue eyes.
We have a problem.
He has a headache.
They have lunch at noon.
Present Tense of “To Have”
In the present tense, we use have or has.
| Subject | To Have | Example |
|---|---|---|
| I | have | I have a car. |
| you | have | You have a question. |
| he | has | He has a job. |
| she | has | She has a phone. |
| it | has | It has four legs. |
| we | have | We have a class. |
| they | have | They have two children. |
Remember:
I / you / we / they → have
he / she / it → has
Positive Statements
For positive statements, use:
Subject + have/has + more information
Examples
I have a car.
You have a question.
He has a job.
She has two children.
It has four legs.
We have English class today.
They have a new house.
Negative Statements
For most present-tense negative sentences with have, we use do not or does not.
Use:
I / you / we / they + do not have
he / she / it + does not have
Examples
I do not have a car.
You do not have a question.
He does not have a job.
She does not have a phone.
We do not have class today.
They do not have children.
Notice:
After does not, use have, not has.
She does not have a car. ✓
She does not has a car. ✗
Negative Contractions
In everyday English, we often use contractions.
do not → don’t
does not → doesn’t
Examples
I don’t have a car.
She doesn’t have a phone.
He doesn’t have a job.
We don’t have class today.
They don’t have children.
Questions with “To Have”
For most present-tense questions with have, use do or does.
Use:
Do + I/you/we/they + have…?
Does + he/she/it + have…?
Examples
Do you have a car?
Do they have children?
Does he have a job?
Does she have a phone?
Does it have four legs?
Again, after does, use have, not has.
Does she have a car? ✓
Does she has a car? ✗
Short Answers
| Question | Yes | No |
|---|---|---|
| Do you have a car? | Yes, I do. | No, I don’t. |
| Does he have a job? | Yes, he does. | No, he doesn’t. |
| Does she have a phone? | Yes, she does. | No, she doesn’t. |
| Do they have children? | Yes, they do. | No, they don’t. |
Statement → Question → Negative
Look at how one idea changes.
I / You / We / They
Statement: They have a car.
Question: Do they have a car?
Negative: They don’t have a car.
He / She / It
Statement: She has a car.
Question: Does she have a car?
Negative: She doesn’t have a car.
Notice that has changes to have when we use does or doesn’t.
Practice
Choose have or has.
- I ______ a question.
- She ______ a new phone.
- They ______ two children.
- He ______ a job.
- We ______ English class today.
- It ______ four legs.
- You ______ a car.
- My teacher ______ a computer.
Now change each statement into a question.
- She has a car.
- They have children.
- He has a job.
- You have a question.
Remember
In the present tense:
I / you / we / they → have
he / she / it → has
For questions:
Do/Does + subject + have
For negatives:
Subject + don’t/doesn’t + have
After does or doesn’t, always use have, not has.
Goal
After completing this lesson, you should be able to:
- Choose have or has for the correct subject.
- Make positive statements with have and has.
- Make negative statements using don’t have and doesn’t have.
- Ask questions using do/does + have.
- Give short answers to simple questions.
- Use to have in common everyday situations.