She has two daughters.
He has a bad temper.
He has no patience.
I have a bad cold.

Instead of have, we often use have got. Got forms of have are especially common in an informal style.

She has got two daughters.
He has got a German girlfriend. (More natural than ‘He has a German girlfriend.’)

In questions and negatives, have is almost always used with got or do. Note that in American English, short question and negative forms like have I? and I have not are not normally used.

Has she got a new car? OR Does she have a new car? (More natural than ‘Has she a new car?’)
I haven’t got an answer. (More natural than ‘I haven’t an answer.’)
She does not have manners. OR She hasn’t got manners. (More natural than ‘She hasn’t manners.’)

Note that got-forms of have are common in the present. They are not normally used in the past. We don’t, for example, say had got.

I had a strange experience last week. (NOT I had got a strange experience last week.)

I had a strange thing happen to me last week. (= I experienced a strange thing last week.)
We had a beggar come to the door yesterday.
We would like to have children playing in the garden again.

Note that in this structure we use an infinitive to talk about something that happened.

An –ing form, on the other hand, is used to talk about things that are or were happening.

When I looked up I found that we had water dripping through the ceiling. (An ongoing activity)

The structure have + object + infinitive / -ing form can also mean ‘cause somebody / something to do something’.

The joker had us laughing all through the show. (The joker caused us to laugh.)

Have + object + past participle

This structure is used to talk about getting things done by others. In this structure the past participle usually has a passive meaning.

I must have my car repaired. (= I want my car to be repaired.)
Because he refused to get out of my house, I had him arrested.

This structure can also mean ‘experience’.

I had my car stolen last week.

‘I won’t have’ can mean ‘I won’t allow’.

I won’t have my house turned into a pub.

Let’s have a drink.
Have a nice time.
She said that she was going to have a bath.
I have breakfast at 8 am.

In expressions like these, have can mean ‘enjoy’, ‘eat’, ‘drink’, ‘experience’ or many other things. The exact meaning of the expression depends upon the following noun.

Common expressions with have

Have is used in a number of common expressions:

have breakfast / have lunch / have supper / have dinner / have tea / have coffee / have a drink / have a meal
Have a bath / have a wash / have a shave / have a shower
have a rest / have a lie-down / have a sleep / have a dream
have a good time / have a bad day / have a nice evening / have a day off / have a holiday
have a good journey /have a flight / have a trip
have a talk /have a chat / have a word with somebody / have a conversation / have a quarrel / have a fight / have a row
have a walk / have a swim / have a ride / have a dance
have a try / have a go / have a look

Have can also mean ‘receive’.

I have had a phone call from my boss. (= I have received a phone call from my boss.)

Won’t have can mean ‘won’t allow’.

I won’t have her in my house. (= I won’t allow her in my house.)

In expressions like these, have is used as the principal verb. Questions and negatives are made with do. Got is not used.

I had a nice holiday.
Did you have a nice holiday? (NOT Had you a nice holiday?)

Sorry, I have (got) to go. (= I must go.)

Have got to can be used to express certainty.

You have got to be joking. (= You must be joking.)

This structure was once peculiar to American English, but is now becoming common in British English as well.

When have is followed by to, it can be used like an ordinary verb or like an auxiliary verb. When have is used like an ordinary verb, questions and negatives are made with do. When have is used like an auxiliary verb, questions and negatives are made without do.

When do I have to be back? OR When have I got to be back?

To talk about a future obligation we use ‘will have to‘. If the obligation already exists, we may use ‘have got to’.

I will have to find a new job.
She will have to get a new passport.

Will have to is often used to make instructions sound more polite.

You can go out, but you will have to be back before ten.

Gotta
Gotta is the conversational pronunciation of got to. It is common in informal American English.

I gotta go home. (= I got to go home.)

He has got a new girlfriend. (More natural than ‘He has a new girlfriend.)
Has she got a car? OR Does she have a car? (More natural than ‘Has she a car?’)

Got-forms of have (and forms with do) are especially common in questions and negatives. In fact, in American English have is not normally used without got in questions and negatives.

Compare:

She hasn’t got a car. or She hasn’t a car. OR She doesn’t have a car. (British English)
She hasn’t got a car. OR She doesn’t have a car. (American English)
Have you got my keys? (More natural than ‘Have you my keys?’)

They do not have adequate facilities. OR They haven’t got adequate facilities. (More natural than ‘They have not adequate facilities’.)

Notes

Got forms of have are not normally used in short answers or question tags.

‘Have you got a new car?’ ‘No, I haven’t.’ (NOT No, I haven’t got.’)
She has got a new car, hasn’t she? (NOT …hasn’t she got?)

Got-forms of have are not very common in the past tense.

I had flu last night. (NOT I had got flu last night.)

Got is not generally used with the infinitive or -ing forms of have.

Got is not used with the do-forms of have.

Do they have a car? (NOT Do they have got a car?)

In British English have without got is possible in questions and negatives, although it is formal.

Have you a meeting today? OR Have you got a meeting today? OR Do you have a meeting today?

Questions are formed by putting the auxiliary before the subject. Negatives are formed by putting not after the auxiliary.

I have seen her.
Have I seen her?
I have not seen her. OR I haven’t seen her.

I had told him that.
Had I told him that?
I had not told him that.

He has come.
Has he come?
He has not come.

They have arrived.
Have they arrived?
They have not arrived.

When has, have and had are used as principal verbs, expressing the idea of possession – either of material things or of characteristic features – questions and negatives may be formed with or without do.

She has a sweet voice.
Has she a sweet voice? OR Does she have a sweet voice?
She hasn’t a sweet voice. OR She doesn’t have a sweet voice.

I have a sister.
Have you a sister? OR Do you have a sister?
I haven’t a sister. OR I don’t have a sister.

She has curly hair.
Has she curly hair? Does she have curly hair?
She hasn’t curly hair. OR She doesn’t have curly hair.
Notes
Questions and negatives with do are more common than questions and negatives without do.

When have is used to express other ideas (e.g. receive, experience, take etc.), questions and negatives are made with do.

I had (= experienced) an accident.
Did I have an accident? (NOT Had I an accident?)
I didn’t have an accident. (NOT I hadn’t an accident.)

I had (= received) a letter from my son.
Did I have a letter from my son? (NOT Had I a letter from my son?)
I didn’t have a letter from my son. (NOT I hadn’t a letter from my son.)

I have (= take) a bath in the morning.
Do I have a bath in the morning?
I don’t have a bath in the morning.

I must have my hair cut.
I must have my shoes mended.
We must have our roof repaired.
He had his watch repaired.
She has had her photos taken.

Get can be used instead of have in this structure.

I must get my hair cut.
I must get my shoes mended.
We must get our roof repaired.
He got his watch repaired.
She has got her photos taken.

The structure have/get + object + past participle can also be used to talk about things that happen to us.
We had/got our roof blown off in the storm.

Last week I had/got my car stolen.

Rewrite the following sentences using have or get followed by a participle.

1. This cobbler mends my shoes for me.
2. A famous architect designed our house for us.
3. My shoes need mending.
4. My brother washed my car for me today.

Answers
1. I get/have my shoes mended by this cobbler.
2. We got/had our house designed by a famous architect.
3. I must get/have my shoes mended.
4. I got/had my car washed by my brother today.

The anomalous finites do, does and did can be placed before the verb to show emphasis. Note that after do, does and did, we use a verb in its present tense form.

I do want you to come. (More emphatic than I want you to come.)
I did invite them. (More emphatic than I invited them.)
She did accept the invitation. (More emphatic than She accepted the invitation.)

Notes on the anomalous finites

Is, am, are, was, were

These verbs are usually anomalous and their negatives are formed by the simple addition of not or n’t.

She isn’t very intelligent.
You aren’t hard working.
They weren’t expected to come.
She wasn’t anxious about it.

Interrogatives are formed by the simple inversion of subject and verb without the use of do.

Isn’t she very intelligent?
Wasn’t she anxious about it?

Has, have and had

These are anomalous when used as auxiliaries to form the present perfect and past perfect tenses.

I have seen him. Have I seen him? I haven’t seen him.
I had told him. Had I told him? I hadn’t told him.
They have disappeared. Have they disappeared? They haven’t disappeared.

Has, have and had can be used as anomalous when used as a principal verb expressing the idea of possession.

She has a car. Has she a car? She hasn’t a car.
I have a watch. Have I a watch? No, I haven’t a watch.
She has long hair. Has she long hair? No, she hasn’t long hair.

Note that the questions ‘Has she a car?’, ‘Have I a watch?’, etc., are uncommon in American English. Instead, Americans use a structure with got.

I have got a watch. Have I got a watch? No, I haven’t got a watch.

Questions and negatives made with do/does/did are also common.

Do I have a watch? (More common than Have I a watch?)

No, I don’t have a watch. (More common than I haven’t a watch.)

Note that has, have and had aren’t anomalous when they express other ideas. In this case questions and negatives are formed with do and did.

I had (= experienced) an accident.
Did I have an accident? (NOT Had I an accident?)
I didn’t have an accident. (NOT I hadn’t an accident.)
I have (= take) a bath in the morning.
Do I have a bath in the morning?
I don’t have a bath in the morning.

As a principal verb do is used in the sense of perform or act.

I did my duty well.
Do as I do.
Can’t you do it yourself?

As an auxiliary verb

The auxiliary do is used in three ways.

To ask a question

The auxiliary do and its forms does and did are used to ask questions in the simple present and simple past tenses.

Read the sentences given below:

I know where John lives. (Affirmative)
Do you know where John lives? (Interrogative)
They take him for a fool. (Affirmative)
Do they take him for a fool? (Interrogative)

To form a negative statement

The auxiliary do and its forms are used to change an affirmative sentence in the simple present and simple past tense into the negative.

I saw him last week. (Affirmative)
I did not see him last week. (Negative)
They want an answer. (Affirmative)
They do not want an answer. (Negative)
He gave me a gift. (Affirmative)
He did not give me a gift. (Negative)

To emphasize an assertion

The auxiliary be is sometimes used to emphasize an assertion.

I do admit that I was wrong. (More emphatic than I admit that I was wrong.)
Do sit down.
They did say that they would help.
He did come.

Exercise

Fill in the blanks with appropriate forms of be, have and do.

1.    I will leave for Mumbai after I —————– finished my work here.

a)    Am
b)    Have
c)    Do
d)    Did

2.    She ————— playing the piano when I entered the room.

a)    Is
b)    Has
c)    Was
d)    Do

3.    The boy ——————— become unconscious before the doctor came.

a)    Had
b)    Have
c)    Did
d)    Was

4.    ——————– you ever been to Darjeeling?

a)    Do
b)    Have
c)    Were
d)    Had

5.    That is what he —————- not seem to understand.

a)    Do
b)    Does
c)    Has
d)    Had

Answers

1.    Have
2.    Was
3.    Had
4.    Have
5.    Does

Be and its forms can be used as principal verbs. They are then called linking verbs because they link the subject with a following word.

Susie is my teacher. (Here the principal verb is links the subject Susie with the noun teacher.)
She is very kind. (Here the principal verb is links the subject she with the adjective kind.)
The car was in the garage. (Here was links the subject with an adverbial phrase.)
They are very efficient. (Here are links the subject they with the adjective efficient.)

Be can be used as a full verb by itself in the sense of exist.

God is. (= God exists.)
I think, therefore I am. (=I think, therefore I exist.)

Be can be used to express a command or request.

Be quiet.
Don’t be silly.
Be a good girl.

Be as an auxiliary verb

Be can be used as an auxiliary verb. Read the sentences given below:

I am writing.
She is sleeping.
We are coming.
They were waiting.
He was working.

In the example sentences given above, the different forms of be (is, am, are, was, were) combine with the present participles of verbs to form the present and past continuous tenses.

I was being victimized.
You are being considered for the job.
The dinner is being prepared.
They were being questioned.

Here the forms of be combine with the passive of the present participle to form the passive of the continuous tenses.

I was sent to the market.
He was punished for stealing.
They were treated badly.
You are invited.

Here the forms of be combine with the past participles of transitive verbs to form the passive voice.

He is gone.
You are grown up.
They were engaged in a heated argument.

Here the forms of be combine with the past participles of certain intransitive verbs. Note that the sentence He is gone means the same as the sentence He has gone. Similarly, You are grown up means the same as You have grown up.

Uses of Have

As a principal verb

Have can be used as a principal verb in the sense of possess, take, experience, receive etc.

They have a car. (Possess)
I have two kids. (Possess)
We had a strange experience. (Experience)
We have dinner at 8 pm. (Take)
I had a letter from my mother. (Receive)

When have is used as a principal verb, it connects the subject with a following noun.

Have as an auxiliary verb

As an auxiliary verb have combines with the past participle to form the present and past perfect tenses.

I have finished writing.
She has created a problem.
You have turned down my offer.
I have decided to quit.
I have heard of this before.
She had left before I arrived.
They had forgotten to post the letter.