Have or has? How to choose

Short answer: Use have with I, you, we and they. Use has with he, she, it and with one name (Ben, my sister, the cat). Have and has tell what someone owns and what the body has. Use a or an before one thing: He has a robot.

▶ Open the rule card · ✏️ Practice this rule

At a glance

In short

• I, you, we, they + have.
• he, she, it, one name + has.
• Use a or an for one thing: He has a robot.

What is the rule for “have and has”?

The rule

I, you, we and they use have. He, she, it and one name use has.

How it looks

I / you / we / they + have · he / she / it + has

What it means

have and has tell what someone owns, or what the body has.

When to use it

Use them to talk about owning things and body parts.

How it works

• Find the subject. Is it I, you, we or they? Use have.
• Is it he, she, it or one name or one thing? Use has.
• Use have and has for owning (I have a bike) and for the body (The cat has four legs).
• For eating and drinking, English uses have too: I have breakfast. She has a drink.

Examples of “have and has”

• I have a kite.
  I goes with have.
• My sister has a hat.
  One person, my sister: has.
• The cat has four legs.
  The cat is one animal: has. It tells about the body.
• We have two hands.
  we goes with have.
• They have a big garden.
  they goes with have.
• Our teacher has a red car.
  One person, our teacher: has.
• The table has four legs.
  has also tells about the parts of a thing.
• I have breakfast at seven.
  have also means eat or drink: have breakfast.

Common mistakes with “have and has”

• He have a robot. → He has a robot.
  he goes with has.
• She has hat. → She has a hat.
  One hat needs a: a hat.
• I has a ball. → I have a ball.
  I goes with have.
• My sister have a cat. → My sister has a cat.
  my sister means one person: has.
• They has two bags. → They have two bags.
  they takes have.

Exceptions: watch out

• One name
  Ben, Mia, my sister, the cat are each one: they all use has.

Have, has and have got

have got and has got mean the same as have and has when you talk about owning things. have is used in more situations (have breakfast, have fun).

See also: have got and has got

Check yourself

1. Fill the gap: “He ___ a robot.”
   Show the answer

   has he takes has.

2. Fill the gap: “We ___ two hands.”
   Show the answer

   have we takes have.

3. Correct this: “She have a hat.”
   Show the answer

   She has a hat. she takes has.

How to practice “have and has”

The interactive version adds step-by-step help, spoken instructions and a quick check. One rule card, one sound lesson and the first lesson of every stone are free to try; the rest is part of Full Access. See Full Access.

• Practice lesson: have and has

Questions

Why “has” and not “haves”?

Has is the special form of have for he, she and it. It is irregular, so learn it as a word on its own.

Can I say “I have six” for my age?

No. In English we use be for age: I am six.

Is “has got” the same?

Yes, when it means owning. She has a bike and She has got a bike mean the same. The version with got is a little more informal.

More Grammar Foundations rules

• Naming words: nouns: A noun is a naming word. It names a person, an animal, a place or a thing.
• A or An?: Before one thing, say a or an. Choose by the first sound.
• One and many: plural -s: For more than one thing, add -s: one cat, two cats.
• Plurals: -es, -ies and special nouns: Most nouns add -s. Some add -es or -ies, and some change a lot.
• this, that, these, those: Use this and these for things near you. Use that and those for things far away.
• I am, you are, it is: Use am with I, are with you and is with it.

Used in these writing topics

• Connected sentences: descriptive
• Connected sentences: narrative

Part of the 📘 Grammar tool. Level G1: Grammar Foundations. Đọc bằng tiếng Việt.

Written for English learners by the English for Fun team. How we write our lessons · Last updated 2026-11-05.

Reviewed by Chinh Q. Hoang, PhD, founder, English for Fun · 2026-10-30

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