1. I have: saying what I possess
Have lets us say that someone has something now. Use a subject, such as I, followed by the verb have to identify who has the thing.
You can use it for belongings, available resources or opportunities. It need not imply legal ownership: I have a key may simply mean that the key is with me now.
Who / what + have or has + what they have
I have a key.
I have a key.
I identifies the person who has the key now.
We have time.
We have time.
Time is a resource, rather than a physical object; the construction is the same.
2. Two forms, rather than a regular -s
In a present positive statement, use have with I, you, we and they. Use has with he, she and it. You takes have even when you are addressing one person.
Has is a special form of have. Do not add -s to have: haves is not a form used for this meaning.
I / you / we / they + have; he / she / it + has
You have a seat by the window.
You have a seat by the window.
Even singular you needs have.
He has a small bag.
He has a small bag.
He is third-person singular, so use has.
It has a handle.
It has a handle.
It can refer to an object, such as a suitcase; use has.
3. Look at the head word of the subject
A name or a noun phrase can replace the pronoun. One person or object in the third person takes has: Anna, my friend, this room. A plural subject takes have: the students, these rooms.
In a longer subject, find the head word: the owner of two shops is one owner. Shops being close to the verb does not make the subject plural. Two separate participants joined by and, such as Anna and Leo, form a plural subject.
The number of things AFTER have/has does not determine the verb form: one person can have many things, and several people can have one shared object.
The owner of two shops has a bike.
The owner of two shops has a bike.
The head word owner is singular; shops only adds information about it.
Anna and Leo have one car.
Anna and Leo have one car.
Two participants → have, even though there is only one car.
My friend has three keys.
My friend has three keys.
Has agrees with friend, rather than keys.
4. Family and characteristics also use have/has
Have/has describes more than belongings. She has two sisters describes a family relationship, rather than ownership of the sisters. We also use it to describe appearance and the parts of an object.
Keep the required noun phrase after the verb: a pocket, two pockets, blue eyes. Do not insert a before a plural noun or the uncountable noun time.
My neighbour has a brother.
My neighbour has a brother.
This describes a family relationship; the verb agrees with one neighbour.
They have brown eyes.
They have brown eyes.
A description of appearance with the subject they.
This coat has two pockets.
This coat has two pockets.
The coat has particular parts; two does not change has.
5. Build a positive statement and change the viewpoint
The basic order is subject → have/has → what they have. Do not add am/is/are to this simple positive statement.
When you restate someone else’s words as a current fact from your own viewpoint, check the form again. I have a map in Nina’s words becomes Nina has a map when you state the fact about Nina.
I have a map.
I have a map.
The speaker gives information about themselves; an additional am is unnecessary.
Nina has a map.
Nina has a map.
The subject is now Nina, so the form changes to has.
6. Have got: another valid pattern
For many statements about possession, have got / has got conveys the same meaning. Have got is common in conversation. It is neither an error nor a negative.
Here we practise the full forms have/has without got. When the task requests this pattern, a version with have got may be grammatical but fail to meet the learning objective. Do not turn that task instruction into a general ban on other valid English alternatives.
We have a garden.
We have a garden.
The simple pattern targeted in this lesson.
We have got a garden.
We have got a garden.
Also a valid statement about possession; a separate pattern.
7. Where this lesson ends
We describe present possession and characteristics. Had can correctly describe possession in the past, but it is not the required form in a task about the current situation.
Not every have means possession. Have breakfast describes having breakfast as an activity. Have to work means that working is necessary. In have finished, have helps form another tense. These constructions, along with questions and negatives, are practised separately.
For your own answer, first identify who you are talking about, then choose have/has and add a thing or characteristic relevant to the listener. You may invent facts if the task allows your own example. If it already specifies people or things, keep those facts.
I had a red bike.
I had a red bike.
A correct sentence about the past, rather than an error in the form have.
I have breakfast at eight.
I have breakfast at eight.
Have breakfast is an activity, rather than ownership of breakfast; it is outside the target meaning.
I have a pen. Sara has paper.
I have a pen. Sara has paper.
Two statements about present possession help organise work together.
Common mistakes
Incorrect:She have a ticket.
Correct:She has a ticket.
She needs has in this present positive statement.
Incorrect:I has two bags.
Correct:I have two bags.
Use have with I; two bags does not determine the verb form.
Incorrect:He haves a camera.
Correct:He has a camera.
The third-person singular form is has, rather than have + s.
Incorrect:We are have a room.
Correct:We have a room.
Have is already the verb in a simple statement about possession; are is unnecessary here.
Incorrect:The woman with two dogs have a car.
Correct:The woman with two dogs has a car.
The head word of the subject is woman. The phrase with two dogs does not change its singular number.