have
Americanverb (used with object)
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to possess; own; hold for use; contain.
He has property. The work has an index.
- Antonyms:
- lack
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to hold, possess, or accept in some relation, as of kindred or relative position.
He wanted to marry her, but she wouldn't have him.
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to get, receive, or take.
to have a part in a play; to have news.
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to experience, undergo, or endure, as joy or pain.
Have a good time. He had a heart attack last year.
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to hold in mind, sight, etc..
to have doubts.
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to cause to, as by command or invitation.
Have him come here at five.
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to be related to or be in a certain relation to.
She has three cousins. He has a kind boss.
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to show or exhibit in action or words.
She had the crust to refuse my invitation.
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to be identified or distinguished by; possess the characteristic of.
He has a mole on his left cheek. This wood has a silky texture.
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to engage in or carry on.
to have a talk; to have a fight.
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to partake of; eat or drink.
He had cake and coffee for dessert.
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to permit or allow.
I will not have any talking during the concert.
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to assert, maintain, or represent as being.
Rumor has it that she's going to be married.
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to know, understand, or be skilled in.
to have neither Latin nor Greek.
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to beget or give birth to.
to have a baby.
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to hold an advantage over.
He has you there.
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to outwit, deceive, or cheat.
We realized we'd been had by an expert con artist.
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to control or possess through bribery; bribe.
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to gain possession of.
There is none to be had at that price.
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to hold or put in a certain position or situation.
The problem had me stumped. They had him where they wanted him.
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to exercise, display, or make use of.
Have pity on him.
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to invite or cause to be present as a companion or guest.
We had Evelyn and Everett over for dinner. He has his bodyguard with him at all times.
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to engage in sexual intercourse with.
verb (used without object)
auxiliary verb
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(used with a past participle to form perfect tenses).
She has gone. It would have been an enjoyable party if he hadn't felt downcast.
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to be required, compelled, or under obligation (followed by infinitival to, with or without a main verb).
I have to leave now. I didn't want to study, but I had to.
noun
verb phrase
idioms
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have it in / out for, to plan or wish to do something unpleasant to; hold a grudge against.
She has it in for intelligent students who fail to use their abilities.
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had better / best, ought to.
You'd better go now, it's late.
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have on,
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to be clothed in; be wearing.
She had on a new dress.
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to have arranged or planned.
What do you have on for Christmas?
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to tease (a person); make the butt of a joke.
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had rather. rather.
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have had it,
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to become weary of or disgusted with whatever one has been doing.
I've been working like a fool, but now I've had it.
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to suffer defeat; fail.
He was a great pitcher, but after this season he'll have had it.
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to have missed a last opportunity.
He refused to take any more excuses and told them all that they'd had it.
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to become unpopular or passé.
Quiz shows have had it.
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have it coming, to merit or deserve.
When they lost their fortune, everyone said that they had it coming.
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have done, to cease; finish.
It seemed that they would never have done with their struggle.
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have it out, to come to an understanding or decision through discussion or combat.
We've been in disagreement about this for a long time, and I think we should have it out, once and for all.
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have to do with,
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to be connected or associated with.
Your lack of confidence probably had a lot to do with your not getting the job.
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to deal with; be concerned with.
I will have nothing to do with their personal squabbles.
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to have and to hold, to possess legally; have permanent possession of.
The house, with the mortgage finally paid, was at last their own to have and to hold.
verb
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to be in material possession of; own
he has two cars
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to possess as a characteristic quality or attribute
he has dark hair
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to receive, take, or obtain
she had a present from him
have a look
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to hold or entertain in the mind
to have an idea
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to possess a knowledge or understanding of
I have no German
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to experience or undergo
to have a shock
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to be infected with or suffer from
to have a cold
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to gain control of or advantage over
you have me on that point
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slang (usually passive) to cheat or outwit
he was had by that dishonest salesman
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(foll by on) to exhibit (mercy, compassion, etc, towards)
have mercy on us, Lord
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to engage or take part in
to have a conversation
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to arrange, carry out, or hold
to have a party
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to cause, compel, or require to (be, do, or be done)
have my shoes mended
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(takes an infinitive with to) used as an auxiliary to express compulsion or necessity
I had to run quickly to escape him
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to eat, drink, or partake of
to have a good meal
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slang to have sexual intercourse with
he had her on the sofa
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(used with a negative) to tolerate or allow
I won't have all this noise
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to declare, state, or assert
rumour has it that they will marry
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to put or place
I'll have the sofa in this room
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to receive as a guest
to have three people to stay
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to beget or bear (offspring)
she had three children
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(takes a past participle) used as an auxiliary to form compound tenses expressing completed action
I have gone
I shall have gone
I would have gone
I had gone
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ought to: used to express compulsion, obligation, etc
you had better go
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to consider or find preferable that
I had rather you left at once
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See done
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informal
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to be exhausted, defeated, or killed
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to have lost one's last chance
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to become unfashionable
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to win a victory
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slang to have sexual intercourse
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informal to be about to receive or to merit punishment or retribution
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informal to wish or intend harm towards
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to have so many benefits, esp material benefits
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to have dealings or associate with
I have nothing to do with her
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to be of relevance to
this has nothing to do with you
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informal I know the answer
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slang to launch or deliver an attack on, esp to discharge a firearm at someone
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informal (foll by of) refusing to take part or be involved (in)
noun
Spelling
See of 2.
Synonym Usage
Have, hold, occupy, own, possess mean to be, in varying degrees, in possession of something. Have, being the most general word, admits of the widest range of application: to have money, rights, discretion, a disease, a glimpse, an idea; to have a friend's umbrella. To hold is to have in one's grasp or one's control, but not necessarily as one's own: to hold stakes. To occupy is to hold and use, but not necessarily by any right of ownership: to occupy a chair, a house, a position. To own is to have the full rights of property in a thing, which, however, another may be holding or enjoying: to own a house that is rented to tenants. Possess is a more formal equivalent for own and suggests control, and often occupation, of large holdings: to possess vast territories.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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havesimple
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hassimple
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have hadperfect
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has hadperfect
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am havingprogressive
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are havingprogressive
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is havingprogressive
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have been havingperfect progressive
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has been havingperfect progressive
Past
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hadsimple
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had hadperfect
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was havingprogressive
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were havingprogressive
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had been havingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of have
First recorded before 900; Middle English haven, habben, Old English habban; cognate with German haben, Old Norse hafa, Gothic haban “to have”; perhaps akin to heave
Explanation
To have something means you possess it somehow. You may have a big house or have a lot of freckles on your nose. English gives us a lot of ways to have — this is a common word. You can have brown eyes and black hair, have the flu, have a red bike, and have strong feelings about football. You might have doubts about whether having a party at your house is a good idea. Adults can have babies. Babies have parents and blankies. You could have a good time or a bad time while you're having friends over for a visit.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It was a setback that inspired her push to get the sport to a place where it did not have to rely on the host country to include it among Olympic events.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
The suspect is believed to have been among a group of men who attended the darts tournament dressed in lobster costumes.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
While the duo set the trail ablaze, they have passed the baton to a trio of coaches — Inouye-Perez, Walker and Fernandez, who have spent a combined 72 years in Westwood.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
What do a former US president, the Canadian prime minister and two of the world's biggest rock stars have in common?
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
She will have to wear the map somehow.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Smith’s recent recovery progress, since shutting down baseball activities and receiving an injection to address the discomfort and inflammation, has been encouraging enough for the team to feel confident in his return.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
Andrea Pirlo has said he is no longer a candidate to coach the Italian national side following days of controversy over his ties to a Russian betting company.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Díaz was hurt for most of it, and Tucker has had an underwhelming offensive season.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
British actor David Jonsson has been praised by fellow actors and fans after he was named as the new Black Panther.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
Another time, she has a message hidden in her braided black hair.
From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly
Díaz was hurt for most of it, and Tucker has had an underwhelming offensive season.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
Although he was born and grew up in England, Kilbane posted on X about the "deep love for Mayo GAA" which had been "passed down through generations".
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
For Mayo fans, the wait had been even longer.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
He said many had lived their whole lives without ever seeing an All-Ireland win for their county, including his own father Patrick who was born just days after the 1951 victory.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
I had to make her promise to stick to a budget, and after way too much back and forth, she agreed.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
She spent nearly a quarter-century as a recluse, having suffered in 1997 a shocking and disfiguring accident while striking a match to light her Tiparillo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 27, 2026
The 19-year-old spent 20 hours in a neck brace before being discharged from hospital, having fallen from three metres directly on to his head in Friday's competition.
From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026
To fund the 5½-year gap until Social Security, the adviser proposes not having a fixed withdrawal strategy.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
“Talking with friends is one thing, but having that visual representation of what I want versus what I’m allowing is another,” said Travis, a child-welfare advocate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 27, 2026
It was a new feeling, having someone on his side.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
