Today we are going to learn the verb “have” and the verbal construction “have got.”

I want to encourage you: native speakers use both variants interchangeably. Our goal is to find the use of the verb “have” and the verbal construction “have got.”

As usual, we start from conjugation of the verb:

• I have = I have got = I’ve got
• You have = You have got = You’ve got
• We have = We have got = We’ve got
• They have = They have got = They’ve got
• She has = She has got = She’s got
• He has = He has got = He’s got
• It has = It has got = It’s got

The short forms of this verb are used only with the constructions using the verb “to have” as have got, so don’t panic. Take a deep breath, it always helps me when I want to panic.

So, when we use “have” and “have got” exactly?
Let’s look through the examples:

1. I have a cat. = I’ve got a cat.
2. You have a good friend. = You’ve got one best friend.
3. We have two tickets for this play! = We have got two tickets for this play!
4. They have a car. = They have got a car.
5. He has a dog. = He’s got a dog.
6. She has a beautiful dress. = She’s got a beautiful dress.

With this verb, we have got a particular trick. We can use «have got» in negative, question and short answers. It will look like this:

1. I haven’t got a gun.
2. You haven’t got a car.
3. Has she got a dress?
4. Has he got a dog?
5. Have you got a ticket? Yes, we have.
6. Have they got a house? No, they haven’t.

When we use the verb “have” alone, we use the verb “do” as an auxiliary verb:

1. Do you have an apple tree in your garden? No, I don’t.
2. Do we have these ingredients, darling? No, we don’t.
3. Do they have brothers or sisters? Yes, they do. They live in a large family.
4. Does he have an umbrella? No, he doesn’t.

Find out the homework for this lesson here.