Grammar · Lesson 19

Possession with have got

Recognize and use the conversational possession pattern in I’ve got a car, She’s got two sisters, and Have you got your phone? Then connect it to the ordinary U.S. forms I have and Do you have...?

45–55 min corehave / has gotpresent possession and connections15–20 min optional listening and retrieval

NoticeMeet two people and their things.

DiscoverChoose have or has.

BuildMake questions, negatives, and short answers.

UseComplete a fictional resource check.

Have got is one conversational way to present what someone owns, what relationships or features they have, and what condition is true now. Ordinary have gives the same possession meaning and is the neutral default in U.S. English.

Two-minute retrieval

Three quick checks from earlier lessons

Answer from memory, then check. Say each complete sentence aloud.

1Maria’s regular work profile says she in a bank. (present simple)

2The room inventory introduces one sofa: a sofa in the living room. (there is / there are)

3The office inventory introduces two windows: two windows in the office. (there is / there are)

Notice before the rule

Two profiles

"I’ve got a small apartment and a bicycle. My friend Rosa has got a house. She’s got two children, but she hasn’t got a car."

Which subject uses has got?
Find the negative form.
What does ’ve mean?

Discovery check: choose the pattern

Use the subject to choose have or has.

1Our confirmed calendar shows a meeting at 10. We got a meeting at 10.

2The fictional equipment profile says he owns a laptop. He got a laptop.

3The cash check shows my wallet is empty. I got any cash.

4Maya’s schedule is full, so she cannot add another call. She got time for another call.

5I sent the contact card yesterday. You got my number already.

6The pronoun it refers to one fictional apartment. It got a small garden.

The system: have got and has got

Use have got with I / you / we / they. Use has got with he / she / it.

	I / you / we / they	he / she / it
positive	We have got a car.	She has got a car.
negative	We haven’t got one.	She hasn’t got one.
question	Have you got one?	Has she got one?

Short answers: Yes, I have. / No, she hasn’t. Do not repeat got in a short answer.

Get to the root: a present connection

Have got describes a connection that is true now: something belongs to you, is part of your life, or is one of your characteristics. In I’ve got a bicycle, got does not mean “received” and does not make the sentence past. The whole chunk means “I have a bicycle now.”

kind of connection	example	meaning
possession	I’ve got a laptop.	The laptop belongs to me.
relationship	She’s got two brothers.	They are part of her family.
feature	The apartment has got a balcony.	The balcony is part of it.
condition / need	I’ve got a headache. We’ve got a problem.	This is our present situation.

Why have and has do the grammar work

In this structure, have / has behaves like an auxiliary. It agrees with the subject, moves to the front for questions, and combines directly with not. Got stays unchanged.

Follow the moving part

She has got a car. → Has she got a car? → She hasn’t got a car.

Only has moves or becomes negative. This is why Does she has got…? mixes two different systems and is not the target form.

Drill 1: choose the natural chunk

Read the subject first. Then choose the contracted chunk people really say.

1The fictional profile says, “I two sisters.”

2The calendar shows three meetings for one manager. My boss three meetings today.

3The fictional home-office inventory lists no printer. We a printer in the home office.

4The service list says Wi-Fi is unavailable. The cafe Wi-Fi, so I work at the library.

5The apartment profile gives a couple one large kitchen. They a big kitchen.

6The device specification lists one high-quality camera. The phone a good camera.

7I already sent the contact card. You my email address already.

8The fictional schedule has no open time this week. He time for another meeting this week.

Have got and have

For a present possession or connection, both systems below are correct. Have got is especially common in British English, but learners also hear I've got and similar forms in American conversation. In neutral U.S. English, ordinary have is usually the clearest default, especially in questions and negatives.

have got system	ordinary have system
I’ve got a car.	I have a car.
Have you got a car?	Do you have a car?
I haven’t got a car.	I don’t have a car.

Choose one system inside a clause. Use Have you got a car? or Do you have a car?, never Do you have got a car? Both correct systems communicate the same present possession meaning.

Sound natural: contractions, linking, and focus

In speech, positive have got forms are usually contracted: I’ve got, you’ve got, he’s got, we’ve got. Here he’s means he has, not he is, because it is followed by got. Negative forms commonly contract too: haven’t got, hasn’t got.

Sound natural in U.S. English

Link the contracted subject to got: I've-got a charger and she's-got two sisters. In a neutral statement, the new or contrasting noun often carries the strongest beat: I've got a CHARger. In the question Have-you-got a charger?, the small words link while charger stays clear.

In ordinary U.S. Do you have...?, speakers often reduce and link the first words: D'you-have a charger? Keep the full words in writing, and use the careful form whenever the listener needs more clarity.

Possession is not an activity

Use have got for possession and present connections, not for the action meaning of have. Say I have lunch at one every day when have means “eat.” I've got lunch at one can instead suggest that a lunch appointment is on your schedule, so the context changes the meaning.

present connection	activity
I've got a car. The car belongs to me now.	I have lunch at one. Have means “eat.”
She's got a meeting at one. The meeting is on her schedule.	She's having lunch now. Lunch is the open activity.

Present possession, past possession, and U.S. gotten

I've got a car describes possession now. For an ordinary past possession, use I had a car last year. Do not use present have got with a finished past time such as last year.

In U.S. English, have gotten is a different, later pattern. It can describe receiving or becoming: I've gotten three messages today and It's gotten colder. Do not add -en to the possession pattern in this lesson.

Listen: possession, U.S. alternative, or activity?

Your teacher reads each complete fictional context once at a natural speed and once more slowly. Listen for the subject, the chosen possession system, and whether have names an activity. Check your answer before discussing the line with your tutor.

Tutor-read listening check

1The speaker reports a charger in their fictional kit: a charger in my kit.

2The profile gives Maya a current family relationship: two sisters.

3The group reports that its resource kit contains no cash: any cash.

4The host uses the have-got question system to check one reservation: a reservation?

5The U.S. service worker uses the ordinary-have system to ask about identification: an ID?

6The routine describes eating at noon, not possessing a meal: I lunch at noon every weekday.

Drill 2: type the question word or short answer

Use have with I, you, we, they. Use has with he, she, it. Short answers never repeat got.

1A travel checklist asks about one passport: you got a passport?

2The fictional transport profile uses he for Leo: Leo got a car?

3The same profile says Leo has no car. “Has Leo got a car?” “No, he .”

4A receptionist asks your fictional group, “Have you got the keys?” The group answers, “Yes, we .”

5A fictional family profile uses the plural subject the parents: the parents got a house?

6The profile says the parents have no house. “Have they got a house?” “No, they .”

Read and choose

A message from a friend

"Hi! We’ve got the keys to the new apartment. It’s got two bedrooms and a small balcony. We haven’t got a table yet, so we eat in the kitchen. Marco’s got a car, so moving day is easy. Have you got time on Saturday to help us?"

Drill 3: read, then choose

1. How many bedrooms does the new apartment have?

2. Which piece of furniture are they still missing?

3. Who has a car for moving day?

Drill 4: build the question

The hotel description does not mention windows. Build the have-got question about the room.

Drill 5: build the negative

The equipment inventory lists no printer. Build the have-got negative.

Notice and repair errors

Drill 6: one person, one form

A fictional profile says “My brother have got a new job.” Tap the word that is wrong.

Drill 7: one system at a time

The host must use the ordinary U.S. have system: “Do you have got a reservation?” Tap the extra word.

Drill 8: say it, then reveal

Read the cue, say the full sentence aloud, then reveal only after you answer.

1 I’ve got a ticket. Change to she.

She’s got a ticket.

2 They’ve got time. Make it negative.

They haven’t got time.

3 She’s got a car. Ask the question.

Has she got a car?

4 Has he got a pen? Answer yes.

Yes, he has.

5 We’ve got a meeting. Change to he.

He’s got a meeting.

6 I’ve got my keys. Make it negative.

I haven’t got my keys.

Play and practice

Games and a short reading that recycle this lesson. Use them as a warm-up, a fast finisher, or homework. Each one checks itself.

Read

A new apartment

Read once for meaning. Then read again and do the tasks below.

Message to a friend85 wordsAbout 1 min

Hi Jo! Our new apartment is great. It has got two bedrooms and a big kitchen, but it hasn’t got a balcony. The building is quiet, and the neighbors are friendly. We are very happy here.

We haven’t got a sofa yet, so we sit on the floor! My brother Sam has got a van, and he can help on Saturday. We have got a lot of boxes.

Have you got time on Saturday morning? Please bring some tape. We haven’t got any. Thanks! Nina

Find it

Tap the 7 forms of have or has that go with got. Include haven’t and hasn’t.

Check your understanding

1. What hasn’t the apartment got?

2. Who has got a van?

3. What does Nina ask Jo to bring?

Sort it

Have got or has got?

Tap a subject, then tap the form that goes with it.

Match up

Question and short answer

Tap an item on the left, then its partner on the right.

Question

Short answer

Unscramble

Build have-got sentences

Tap the words in order to build the sentence. Tap a placed word to send it back.

1. Ask about Rosa’s car.
2. Negative: no printer in our office.
3. A feature of the apartment.
4. Ask a friend about Saturday.

Use it in real life

You never need to disclose your possessions, money, health, family, home, workplace, schedule, documents, or travel plans. Use a fictional resource kit, profile, apartment listing, or service-desk card. If a visual is not accessible, the teacher reads every relevant detail aloud.

Resource-kit check: Use an invented kit list. Report three included items and two missing items: We've got two chargers. We haven't got any cash.

Service desk: Ask five questions from a fictional checklist. Use both Have you got...? and ordinary U.S. Do you have...?, then answer with the matching system.

Fictional profiles: Describe one person's family relationship, apartment feature, useful possession, and present condition with she's got or he's got.

Possession or activity: Explain the difference between She's got a lunch meeting at one, She has lunch at one every day, and She's having lunch now.

Same meaning, two systems: Restate They've got a printer as They have a printer, then change both systems into a question and a negative.

Final production: prepare a first-day resource kit

Use a fictional new employee card and two possible resource kits. Give a 45- to 60-second recommendation, then complete a short service-desk exchange.

Use one accurate have got statement with I, you, we, or they.
Use one accurate has got statement with a singular person or thing.
Include one negative and one correctly ordered have-got question with a matching short answer.
Restate one possession with the ordinary U.S. have system.
Use ordinary have, not have got, for one routine activity.

The teacher asks one follow-up question. Repair one sentence if the subject agreement, possession system, or activity meaning is unclear.

Reflect

Say the system back

Complete this aloud: “With I, you, we, and they, I use ______ got. With he, she, and it, I use ______ got. For a question, ______ moves in front of the subject. In a short answer, I never repeat ______.”

Then use a fictional profile to give one positive, one negative, and one question. Restate one possession with ordinary U.S. have.

Final quiz: have got forms and meaning

1. A fictional ownership record lists one new phone for Nina. Nina ___ a new phone.

2. The host must use the have-got system to ask one guest about a reservation: ___ a reservation?

3. The train leaves in five minutes, so the group has very little time. We ___ got much time.

4. Complete the negative short answer with one word: “Has Leo got a car?” “No, he ___.”

5. In the fictional profile “She’s got two brothers,” what does ’s mean?

6. Which question correctly uses the ordinary U.S. have system?

7. A listing uses the have-got system to describe one apartment feature. The apartment ___ a balcony.

8. A fictional speaker reports a present condition: “I ___ a headache today.”

Return tomorrow before rereading the lesson. Complete the five-minute next-day retrieval, then revisit only the subject agreement, possession-system, activity, or present-time boundary that still feels slow.

Next-day retrieval

Choose the system from meaning

1The fictional equipment profile gives Maya one laptop: a laptop.

2The group inventory lists no charger: We a charger.

3A U.S. service worker must use ordinary have to ask about identification: an ID?

4The routine means “eat,” not “possess”: I lunch at noon every day.

Repair the mixed systems

The service worker must use ordinary U.S. have: “Do you have got a charger?” Tap the extra word.

Thirty-second retrieval

Without looking back, say one fictional possession with have got. Restate it with ordinary have. Then give one past possession and one routine activity.

We've got a printer. We have a printer. We had a printer last year. We have lunch at noon.