Have and have got

Start with the meaning

Have and have got can describe the same situation now. You do not need to own something new to use have got. It can describe a family relationship or a feature that has been true for a long time.

You can also use these forms for things you cannot touch, such as an idea, a problem or time to do something.

• I've got a question about the price.
• We have enough time to walk.

A planned event is possible too. Have got can say that an event is on your schedule, even if the event itself is later.

• I've got a dentist's appointment on Friday.

That sentence describes your arrangement now. It does not mean that the appointment is happening as you speak.

Positive forms: have, has, have got and has got

The subject is the person or thing you are talking about. With I, you, we and they, use have. With he, she, it or one person's name, use has.

Got does not change for different subjects. The change is have to has.

• You have got my number.
• Your neighbour has got my number too.

Short forms

A short form, or contraction, puts words together with an apostrophe. I have got becomes I've got. She has got becomes she's got.

A name can also take 's for has in this pattern.

• Lena's got a desk by the window.

Here 's means has, not is. Compare she's got a desk with she's busy, where 's means is. Read the words after the short form.

For plain have, I have a desk is a safe full form. You may also meet I've a desk. It is accepted, but it is not the main pattern taught here. Do not assume that every 've must have got after it.

Negatives: two patterns

A negative says that something is not true. With have got, put not after have or has. Keep got.

• I have not got the receipt.
• The room has not got a balcony.

The short negative forms are haven't got and hasn't got. I've not got and she's not got are also possible: the word not is still after have or has.

• We haven't got enough chairs.
• She's not got your address.

With plain have, use don't have or doesn't have. After doesn't, use have, not has.

Do not combine don't or doesn't with have got in this possession pattern. Choose one complete pattern.

Questions

With have got, move have or has before the subject. Put got after the subject.

• Have we got the right address?
• Has the kitchen got a window?

With plain have, put do or does before the subject. Use have after the subject, including with he, she and it.

• Do we have the right address?
• Does the kitchen have a window?

For a question with what, how many or another question word, put those words at the beginning.

• What have you got in that bag?
• How many bedrooms does the house have?

The pattern is Have you got a key? or Do you have a key? Do not join the two patterns as Do you have got a key?

Short answers: match the question

You can answer a yes/no question without repeating the whole description. Use have or has for a have-got question, and do or does for a do-have question.

Do not add got on its own at the end of the short answer. Yes, I have is complete. Yes, I've got needs something after got, such as Yes, I've got a map.

Keep the positive verb full at the end: Yes, I have, not Yes, I've. Negative short forms are possible: No, I haven't.

Speaking, writing and regional choices (further detail)

Both have and have got are standard forms in these meanings. Cambridge describes have got as more informal than have. British Council describes have got as used more in speaking, and have more in writing.

Have got is especially used in spoken British English. American English often prefers plain have. This is a difference in preference, not a rule that Americans cannot say I've got or that British speakers cannot say I have.

You may also meet questions such as Have you any change? Cambridge calls this rather formal. Do you have any change? is a neutral alternative. With the meaning of possession, negatives such as I haven't any change are also accepted. They are not the main starting patterns here.

These alternatives are why you should not learn an absolute rule that the word have needs do in every question or negative. Use the two main patterns above first, and recognise other patterns when you meet them.

Having something and doing something

With possession and the state meanings above, do not use am, is or are having. A state describes a situation, rather than an action happening now.

• I have a second-hand camera. It belongs to me.
• The camera has got a cracked screen. This describes its condition.

Have can also describe an action or experience: eating a meal, taking a shower, holding a party or spending time with someone. In these meanings, have got is not a direct replacement for have.

• We have lunch at the office every day. We eat there.
• I had a shower after the walk. An action in the past.

For an action happening now, am, is or are having is possible. This is the present continuous.

• She is having a snack. She is eating now.

Questions and negatives for these action meanings use do, does or did in the simple tenses.

• Do you have breakfast before work?
• We didn't have a party this year.

Keep the meaning clear. I've got lunch with a client tomorrow can describe an arrangement. It does not mean the same as I'm having lunch now, which describes eating now. Do not turn the action rule into a ban on every sentence containing have got and the word lunch.

Past and future possession

For a straightforward past description, use had. It is the same for all subjects. Use didn't have for a negative and Did... have? for a question.

• Our first flat had a separate kitchen.
• It didn't have central heating.
• Did it have a bath?

Some beginner guides say have got is present-only and mark past had got wrong. For a safe starting pattern, choose had. But had got also occurs in the past as a less usual form, especially in questions.

For future possession with will, use will have. Use won't have for a negative and Will... have? for a question.

• The new flat will have more space.
• We won't have a garage there.

You can also use have after another verb or after a word such as may.

• I want to have a room of my own.
• The next train may have more seats.

These are plain have patterns. Do not build them by changing got into a past or future form. Have got in I've got an appointment tomorrow is still the present form describing an arrangement now.

Got, gotten and other have patterns (further detail)

Got also belongs to the separate verb get. In British English, get can have the forms get, got, got. In American English, the last form can be gotten. That last form, the past participle, follows have or had in perfect forms.

• By noon, they had got the door open. They had managed to open it before noon.

This is a past perfect use of get, not the present possession pattern. It is another reason not to cross out every had got sentence.

In North American English, compare I've got a permit, meaning I have one, with I've gotten a permit, meaning I have obtained one. Do not add gotten to the possession tables as if it were the same form.

Have got to followed by a verb can express a need or obligation. That is a different pattern from having a thing.

• I've got a ticket. I have one.
• I've got to print the ticket. I need to print it.

Have is also a helping verb in perfect forms such as I have finished. For a possession continuing over a period, you can use have had: I've had this coat for years. These uses have their own pages below.

What comes next

See The present simple for do/does forms, State verbs and action verbs for states and actions, The past simple for had and did, The present perfect: form and uses for have had, Have to and must: obligation for have to and have got to, and Have something done and get something done for arranging a service, such as having a bike repaired.