verb 'have'

The Verb to have in American English

1. Present Forms

In American English, the verb to have has two main present forms:

• I/you/we/they have
• he/she/it has

Examples:

• “I have a car.” (I possess a car.)
• “She has two brothers.” (She possesses two brothers.)

2. Formation

The verb to have is regular in the present tense, except for the third person singular, which changes to has.

To make the negative, American English typically uses do not / does not + have:

• “I do not have time.”
• “He does not have a bike.”

To form questions, American English uses do / does + subject + have:

• “Do you have any siblings?”
• “Does she have a pet?”

3. Use for Possession

The most common use of to have is to express possession:

• “They have a new house.”
• “He has a lot of homework.”

4. American vs. British English

In British English, it is also possible to use have got to express possession, especially in casual speech:

• British: “I have got a car.”
• American: “I have a car.” (preferred)

American English rarely uses “have got” in negative or question forms. Instead of British “Have you got…?”, Americans say “Do you have…?”