Verb have/has and verb have got/has got translated into Russian as having or possessing. Often these verbs are used interchangeably. But there are cases in which replacing the “shade” and grammatical aspect is simply not possible. It is these cases that we will consider in this article and fully understand the issue of using the verb have got and has got.

In what cases do have/has and have got/has got replace each other?

1. When we're talking about about something belonging to someone.

I have (have got) an interesting book.I have an interesting book.

He has (has got) a work. He has a job.

She has (has got) a lot of money.She has a lot of money.

2. When we describe appearance.

She has (has got) blue eyes. She has blue eyes.

I have (have got) slim body. I have a slim body.

3. When the conversation is about relationships and family.

We have (have got) a friendly family.We have a friendly family.

I have (have got) a sister. I have a sister.

4. When the topic of diseases came up.

He has (has got) a back pain. His back hurts.

I have (have got) a toothache.I have a toothache.

In what cases can you use only have/has?

When the action takes place in the Present Continuous. The verb have got/has got cannot be used in this tense.

I am having a swim now. I'm swimming now.

They are having watch TV at the moment.They are watching TV at the moment.

Using a verb in the past tense

In the past tense, the verbs have/has, have got/has got are replaced by the verb had.

He has (has got) an apple. He has an apple. In present time.

He had an apple. He had an apple. In the past time.

How are verb abbreviations written in affirmation and negation?

Verbs have/has has no abbreviations. Have got/Has got, on the contrary, they are very often used in abbreviated form. In the table below you can see their abbreviations in detail.

Questions and answers with verbs have/has, have got/has got

Remember the golden rule: if the question begins with have/has, then we need got, if got is not used, then we start the question with auxiliary verb do, does.

Have you a book? Do you have a book? It's wrong to say that.

Have you got a book? Do you have a book? Right!

Do you have a book? Do you have a book? Right!

This article will focus on verbs have got and has got, have and has, as well as the difference between them.

How to translate have got and has got?

Have got / has got - these are forms of the same verb. They are translated into Russian in the same way - have. Moreover, have got and has got in English language are used much more often than the verb "to have" in Russian. The fact is that instead of saying “I have...” the English always say “I have.” For example, if you decide to brag that you have a car, then you would say:

I have got a car.
Literally this will be translated as “I have a car.”

You have good idea? Use have got and say:

I have got a good idea!

When is have got used and when has got?

There is a very simple rule about this. Have got, has got - these are two forms of one verb. Have got is replaced by has got in one of the following cases:

1) In the third person singular. Third person is when the subject is one of the following pronouns: he (in English - he), she (she), it (it).

2) When any singular noun is used as the subject.

He has got a good job.
He has a job. (3rd person singular - use has got)

This car has 6 wheels.
This car has 6 wheels. (Singular noun - has got)

I have got many friends.
I have a lot of friends. (1st person singular - have got)

They have got a lot of money.
They have a lot of money. (3rd person, but plural- have got)

Are have and have got the same thing?

Have and have got are translated the same way. Have got is used mainly by the British, and only in colloquial speech. We can say that we have got it colloquial form verb have. However, there are some situations in which have cannot be replaced by have got.

If you don’t want to remember these exceptions, then you can simply forget about have got, and in all suitable situations make do with the verb have. This way you will never make a mistake.

It is worth mentioning that the verb have can play English sentence different roles. He can be auxiliary verb or modal verb. You can read about all the meanings of the verb to have in the article "The verb to have in English".

When should you not use have got instead of have?

This cannot be done in one of the following cases:

• In past and future tense. Have got you must use only in the present tense.
• In letters and official documents. Have got is intended for colloquial use only.
• In some set expressions that are formed only with the help of the verb have:

Interrogatives and negative sentences with have got.

Please note that have got and have are put differently in the interrogative and negative form. For example, I say that I have no problems:

I haven't got any problems.
I don't have any problems.

The example shows that have requires the auxiliary verb do, but have got does not. Questions are structured according to a similar rule:

Do you have problems?
Have you got problems?

Students learning English often wonder what the difference is between have got and have. How and in what cases are these two expressions used? Use in certain proposal have or have got?

When we talk about ownership of something, family ties or relationships, illnesses, or characteristics of people or things, we can use both have and have got. At the same time, have got is a more common form in an informal style.

Have got has the same meaning as have, and both are used in the present tense. It should be noted that have got is not a form Present Perfect verb get.

For the formation of negative and interrogative forms The auxiliary verb do is usually used. To construct similar sentences with have got, have acts as an auxiliary verb.

Study the following examples and notice that in informal conversation one form often follows another.

- How many subsidiaries does your company have? (How many subsidiaries does your company have?)
- It has two.(Two.)

- How many sisters do you have? (How many sisters do you have?)
- I’ve got three (sisters). (I have three [sisters].)
- Do you all have your own bedrooms? (Do you all have separate bedrooms?)
- Sue’s got her own bedroom, but neither Debbie nor I have. We have to share. (Sue has a separate bedroom, but Debbie and I don't. We have to share one.)

In the last sentence, have is used as an alternative to must because the sisters must share.

- Have you got a new car, Paul? (At your place new car, Floor?)
- Yes I have. I bought it last week. (Yes, I bought it last week.)
- Has it got air conditioning? (Is there an air conditioning system?)
- No it hasn’t. But it's got a CD player. (No. But it does have a CD player.)
- Do you have very many CDs? (Do you have a lot of CDs?)
- I’ve got hundreds. (I have hundreds of them.)

Notice how short answers and interrogative qualifiers are formed at the end of sentences using have got and have:

- Have you got a sore throat as well as a runny nose? (Do you have a sore throat and a runny nose?)
- No, I haven’t.(No.)
- But you’ve got a high temperature, haven’t you?(But you heat, is not it?)
- Yes, I have.(Yes it is.)

- Does this music school have enough pianos? (Does this music school have enough pianos?)
- No, it doesn’t. (No, not enough.)
- But you have enough opportunities to practice, don’t you? (But you have the opportunity to practice, right?)
- No, we don’t. (No, we don't have that option.)

In all other cases have got cannot be used instead have(for example, when talking about experiences or actions):

Right: I usually have dinner at 18:00.
Wrong: I usually have dinner at 18:00

Future form of the verb have

The form have got is usually used only in the present tense. In relation to the future, other forms of the verb have are used. Compare the following example sentences:

- Have you got tickets for the match on Saturday? (Do you have tickets for the match on Saturday?)
- No, I haven’t. Not yet.(No, not yet.)
- Will you have them by tomorrow? (Will you have them by tomorrow?)
- I hope so.(Hope.)

- Have you got any time to help me with my maths homework? (Do you have time to help me with my math homework?)
- Not now I haven’t. Sorry. (Not at the moment. Sorry.)
- Are you going to have any time at the weekend, do you think? (You'll have time this weekend, do you think?)
- Yes, I’ll probably have some time then.(Yes, I'll probably have some time.)

Past tense of the verb have

Similarly, to form the past tense we use a different form of have rather than have got. Compare the following sentences:

- Have you still got a bad headache? (Do you still have a terrible headache?)
- Yes, I have.(Yes.)
- How long have you had it? (How long have you had it?)
- I’ve had it on and off since yesterday. (She has been visiting me from time to time since yesterday.)
- Did you have it at the concert last night? (Did you have a headache at the concert last night too?)
- Yes, I did. I couldn't concentrate on the music properly. (Yes. I couldn't concentrate on the music very well.)

A verb in English is a part of speech that denotes an action, a state of a person or an object.

The verb to have is the same. Its translation from English is the meaning of the synonyms “to have”, “to possess” or “to own”. But this verb differs from other verbs in English in that it has separate forms for third person singular nouns and pronouns.

Forms of the verb to have

The verbs have, has or had are the same verb. Only in different forms and time. Let's look at the formal difference for now.

I have been to Spain last week. - I was in Spain last week (that is, I was in Spain last week and now I’m still there).

She has been to Moscow yesterday. - She was in Moscow yesterday (that is, she was in Moscow yesterday and now she is there too).

My mother has been to England last year. - My mother was in England last year (and now she is there too).

This is an expression of actions that have occurred up to the present moment or have already been completed or stopped by this moment, as well as states or actions that began in the past and continue at the moment of speech.

Examples with was in the Past Simple, without signs of duration of action or state:

I was here some times. - I have been here several times (that is, I am not here now).

I was at the office last week. - I was in the office last week (but now I’m not in the office).

She was on a farm for helping. - She was at the farm to help (but she is not at the farm now).

They were at school. - We were at school (and now we are not there).

We were in the library many times. - We have been to the library many times (but at this moment we are not in the library).

The last two examples are the use of the plural form of the verb to be - was.