When should you use “have” or “had”?
When is it correct to use have, has, or had? Phrased differently, what’s the past tense of have? Let’s go ahead and have a look at the answers.
What does “have” mean?
To define the word, when you have something, you “own, hold, or possess it.” For example, in a sentence, we might say, “He had bought a new car and a boat.”
When to use have, has, and had
| present | past | future | |
|---|---|---|---|
| simple | I have/has | I had | I will have |
| continuous | I am having | I was having | I will be having |
| perfect | I have had | I had had | I will have had |
| perfect continuous | I have been having | I had been having | I will have been having |
Compare the role of ‘have’ in the following sentences:
I don’t have that much money on me.
She has a long way to go before she graduates.
We had dinner early.
The first sentence is the simple present tense. The second sentence is also in the present simple, though this is the third-person present singular form. The third sentence, which uses 'had', is in the simple past.
In other words, use ‘has’ for all third-person subjects in the present tense, ‘have’ for the first-person, second-person, and third-person present plural, and ‘had’ as the past tense and past participle form for all subjects.
Have/had as auxiliary verbs
To have is one of English’s three auxiliary verbs (along with to be and to do). This means that apart from playing a main role in sentences, have also often plays a supporting role in forming aspects of tense, such as perfect and progressive verb tenses.
This had been done before.
We have eaten here many times before.
We are having a great time!
When ‘have’ is in sentences with another verb, that's the telltale sign it's functioning as an auxiliary, and not the main verb.
“Have” / “has” / “had”, in sentence examples
| Word Form | Examples |
|---|---|
| Present tenses |
I have something to tell you. She has the car keys. We're having my parents over for dinner. |
| Past tenses |
The patient had severe dizziness. We had lived there before the gentrification. The curtains had been drawn earlier in the evening. |
Origin of have
Old English habban “to own, possess; be subject to, experience,” from Proto-Germanic *habejanan.
Fill-in-the-blank: “Have” conjugations
My sister _____ a new puppy.
We _____ dinner early last night.
They _____ gone to the store.
She _____ finished her homework before dinner.
Which sentence uses ‘have’ or ‘has’ correctly for present possession, based on the examples in the post?
I a new bicycle.
We a wonderful time on our vacation last year.
She written three books so far.
By the time I arrived, they already eaten dinner.
He a lot of homework yesterday.
FAQs
When do you use have vs had?
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When is ‘has’ used instead of ‘have’?
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Is ‘had’ used for all subjects in the past?
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How is ‘had’ used as an auxiliary verb?
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Can I use ‘have went’ or ‘had wrote’?
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Sources
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“Have, V.” Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford UP, June 2025, https://doi.org/10.1093/OED/5209466568.
Yash, D. "How to Use Have or Had? (Explained, with Examples)." Grammarflex, Aug 14, 2025, https://grammarflex.com/have-or-had/.
