{"id":24934,"date":"2025-07-07T08:40:03","date_gmt":"2025-07-07T08:40:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ec.itmonks.dev\/en\/?post_type=free_lesson&p=24934"},"modified":"2025-07-07T08:40:03","modified_gmt":"2025-07-07T08:40:03","slug":"using-have-and-has","status":"publish","type":"free_lesson","link":"https:\/\/ec.itmonks.dev\/en\/learn-english-for-free\/grammar\/using-have-and-has\/","title":{"rendered":"Using have and has"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Have <\/strong>you ever been to Malta? Malta has <\/strong>such colourful fishing boats, and you don\u2019t have<\/strong> to walk very far to see them. My sister has <\/strong>never seen them; I\u2019ve<\/strong> got to show her around the island someday!”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are plenty of ways to use ‘have’ and ‘has’ in the English language.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s start with the basics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

has or have<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Has and Have can both be used to show possession. The choice between has or have depends on the subject (the noun that performs the action).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>\n\n\n\n

We use has <\/strong>with the third person singular (She, He, It)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • She has <\/strong>a great personality.<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Mark has<\/strong> a new haircut.<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The washing machine has <\/strong>a leak in it.<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • My favourite shirt has<\/strong> a stain.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    We use have <\/strong>with I, You (singular)<\/strong>, and plural pronouns (We, You, They)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I honestly have a great English teacher.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I think you have toothpaste on your chin.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We should have a meeting at 12.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Nurses have a difficult job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Tip<\/strong>: Singular nouns and uncountable nouns use has<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    The traffic has made me late.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I heard this shop has the best clothes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    contractions<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In present tense sentences we use have with I, You (singular), and plural pronouns (We, You, They)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I have = I’ve<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    you have = you’ve<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    we have = we’ve<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    they have = They’ve<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    he has = he’s<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    it has = it’s<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    negative contractions<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    has not = hasn’t<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    have not = haven’t<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    had not = hadn’t<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘have\u2019 and \u2018has\u2019 in questions<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When forming sentences, have\/has comes before the subject<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Have you been to Australia?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Has Andrew left yet?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘Who has my pen?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Has anyone seen my mobile phone?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Tip: “Anyone” functions as a singular third-person subject, just like all indefinite pronouns. These are pronouns that refer to unspecified persons or things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u2018have got\u2019 and \u2018have\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Both ‘have got’ and ‘have’ mean the same thing. There is no difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘I have got an iPhone.’ = ‘I have an iPhone’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘You have got a message.’ = \u2018You have a message.’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘She has got no time to sleep.’ = ‘She has no time to sleep.’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \u2018has\u2019 and \u2018have\u2019 verb tenses<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Past simple<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘Had’ is the past tense of both ‘has’ and ‘have’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    She had a difficult time moving on from her loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    They had a lot of fun at the party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Continuous tense<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In the continuous tense, we use having with all pronouns. However, only when have is used as an action verb\u2014not when it’s used to show possession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Call an ambulance, he is having a heart attack! (Correct)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    He is having two brothers (Incorrect)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Perfect tense<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Has\/have is added to the past participle of the main verb to make the perfect tense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Present Perfect<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    She has lived here for a long time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    We have seen this TV show before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I have cut my finger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Past Perfect<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    ‘I had already decided not to go before he asked me.’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘They had finished the race before it started raining.’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘She had already left when he arrived’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    modal verbs: \u2018have to\u2019<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    ‘have to’ is used to mean that something is necessary. It is used in the following way in affirmative sentences:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    subject + modal (have to \/ has to) + verb<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I have to wash my car today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    He has to write a report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    I had to go to the bank yesterday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    She had a difficult time moving on from her loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    They had a lot of fun at the party.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    negative sentences<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

    In negatives to show that something is not necessary we follow this rule:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    subject + doesn’t have to + verb<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘We don’t have to work tomorrow.’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘She doesn’t have to wear a uniform to school’<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    ‘I didn’t have to make my bed when I was young’<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    “Have you ever been to Malta? Malta has such colourful fishing boats, and you don\u2019t have to walk very far<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":8141,"parent":0,"template":"","free_lesson_category":[281,291],"class_list":["post-24934","free_lesson","type-free_lesson","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","free_lesson_category-grammar","free_lesson_category-verb-tenses"],"acf":{"related_posts":""},"yoast_head":"\nUsing have and has | EC English<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"There are plenty of ways to use 'have' and 'has' in the English language. 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