3/20/23, 5:52 PM Using 'have' and 'have got' | LearnEnglish

Grammar (/grammar) > A1-A2 grammar (/grammar/a1-a2-grammar) > Using 'have' and 'have got'

Using 'have' and 'have got'

Do you know how to use have and have got? Test what you know with interactive
exercises and read the explanation to help you.

Look at these examples to see how we use have/has got.

I've got a big family.

We haven't got a garden.
Have you got any pets?

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation
We use I/you/we/they + have got or he/she/it + has got to talk about things that we
have.

In many situations, have and have got mean the same thing. Have got is a little less
formal than have. We often use have got more in speaking and have more in writing.

They have got a big garden. = They have a big garden.

She has got a good job. = She has a good job.

We can use have/has got to talk about appearance, family and friends or
possessions. We often contract the verb, especially when we're speaking.

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3/20/23, 5:52 PM Using 'have' and 'have got' | LearnEnglish

I have got brown hair. = I've got brown hair.

My sister has got long hair. = My sister's got long hair.
He has not got many friends. = He hasn't got many friends.
They have got a new car. = They've got a new car.

We can also use have/has got for timetabled events, illnesses or abstract things.

They've got basketball practice this evening.

He's got a terrible cold. 
I've got a good idea!

Affirmative

I
you
have got 've got
we
they

he
she has got 's got
it

Negative
For negatives, use not after have/has. We can contract negatives.

We have not got any pets. = We haven't got any pets.

She has not got a brother. = She hasn't got a brother.

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3/20/23, 5:52 PM Using 'have' and 'have got' | LearnEnglish

I
you
have not got haven't got
we
they

he
she has not got hasn't got
it

Questions
To make questions, use have/has + subject + got.

Have you got a big house?

How many rooms has it got?

Subject Question with question word, e.g. what,

yes/no question
pronoun who, how many, etc.

I
you Have (we) got
What have (you) got?
we (time)?
they

he
Has (she) got (a
she What has (he) got?
car)?
it

Short answers
For yes/no questions, we can use short answers.

Have you got a new job? No, I haven't.

Has she got a meeting this morning? Yes, she has.

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3/20/23, 5:52 PM Using 'have' and 'have got' | LearnEnglish

Yes, I/you/we/they have. No, I/you/we/they haven't.

Yes, he/she/it has. No, he/she/it hasn't.

Have/has got is only used in the present tense. For the past, use had without got.

I had got a red bike when I was young.

I had a red bike when I was young.

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Grammar test 2

Language level

A2 - Pre-intermediate (/taxonomy/term/1496)

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