Has vs Have: The Best Way to Use Each

Has is a word used to indicate the third-person singular. Have on the other hand is more versatile and can function both in first person and second person singular present tense. Keep reading to find out how to use
“Has” and “Have” are examples of versatile verbs. Before we proceed, it is important to note that “Have” is an irregular verb. Irregular verbs in the English language can be confusing, particularly in their past tense form. For example, “catch” becomes “caught”. These verbs don’t follow grammar rules, a fact that can make them a little hard to remember.
Have is a special kind of these irregular verbs that seem to go against grammar rules. In some cases, the past tense form of the verb remains have and in others, it can either be “has” or had. If you are confused about which form of the verb to use and when this article should prove very helpful.

What is the Difference Between Have and Has?

In order to understand how these verbs work, it is important to know the difference between the two. And we can only do that, by taking a look at each verb individually with examples to describe its usage.

How to Use Has

The definition of the word “Has” is that it is a third-person singular present conjugation of the verb “to have”. Since it is used in the third-person singular, it is always paired with the pronouns he, she, and it.
Examples:

1. If he has forgotten the key again, do not let him in.
2. The dog has refused to move from the spot since his master died.
3. The city has officially declared the park closed for renovations.

How to use have

Have can be defined as a verb used to mean to possess something. It is also commonly used as an auxiliary verb. Have is also the first and second person singular present tense form of the verb as well as the first and second, as well as third-person plural form.
You will also notice that since have has more functions than have, it can be used with more pronouns. In the first person singular, have can be paired with “I” and “You”. In the first and second and third-person plural, have will be paired with the pronouns you, we, and they.
Examples;

1. I have not yet started my trip
2. You have twenty minutes before the room begins to fill with gas
3. If Jane has ten apples and Jamie has twelve apples, how many apples do they both have?

Has vs have past tense

Has and Have are both used to indicate possession in the present. The only difference between have vs has is in the point of view in which each verb is used in the present tense.  Have is more suitable for a singular first-person point of view, singular/plural second-person point of view, and plural third-person point of view. Has on the other hand is used for the singular third-person point of view.
But it is also equally important to note that has and have are also used as auxiliary verbs.  This means that they can be used to form the present perfect tense and present perfect progressive tenses. To form these two tenses, it is necessary to add other verbs.
Let’s take a look at each type with examples.

Present Perfect

In this case, the sentence would have the subject, has or have and past participle verb.
Examples:

1. John has practiced for three long years just for today.
2. The cats have destroyed my flower garden.
3. The mint has spoiled my cocktail.
4. The wine stain has ruined a perfect dress.

We use have had in the present perfect when the main verb is also “have”.

Present Perfect Progressive

Here, the sentence has a subject, has or have, been and a verb (usually an -ing verb)
Examples:

1. John has been playing basketball for 12 years now.
2. They have been living in that same house for 20 years now.
3. He has been staring at you for the last 10 minutes.
4. The matter has been noted for further deliberation.
5. The book has been published for six months now.
6. Suzy has been reading that book for more than two hours now.

The Past Tense of Has and Have

It is also important to understand the use of have vs has to indicate possession in the past. The transitive paste tense form of Have and Has is Had. In this form of either verb, the point of view is of no consequence. This means that it can be used either in plural or singular subjects in all points of view (first person, second person, and third-person). Had is the past tense of have and also used as the auxiliary verb in the formation of past perfect and the past perfect progressive tenses.
Let’s take a look at some examples of the use of Had as a transitive verb and as an auxiliary verb in both past perfect tense and past perfect progressive tense;

Had as a Transitive Verb

Examples:

1. I had one slice of cake, while he had a cup of coffee.
2. The cats had breakfast, but they didn’t have lunch.
3. He had her complete trust, and she had his total love.

Had as an auxiliary verb in the past perfect tense

In this form, the sentence structure is the subject + HAD + Past participle verb
Examples:

1. By the time he got to the train station, the train had already left.
2. Tom had known about his brother’s plan for a while now.
3. They had a wonderful experience at the park.

Had as an auxiliary verb in the past perfect progressive tense

The past perfect progressive emphasizes the duration of a past action before another action happened. The sentence structure in this form will be: Subject +HAD+ Been + -ing verb
Examples;

1. He had been on the phone when she walked into his office.
2. I had been playing basketball for 5 years when I got the scholarship.
3. He had been riding his bike to school when he saw her cross the street.

Is Has singular or plural?

Since has is a third-person singular present conjugation of the verb “to have”, it is singular and often paired with the singular third-person pronouns he, she, and it.
Example:
She has a beautiful flower garden.
The above sentence in plural form would use “have” in place of “has.”
Example:
They have a beautiful flower garden.

Has vs. Have contractions

In grammar rules, both Have and Had can be used to form contractions with various other words in the English language. The contractions can either be positive or negative for both plural nouns and singular nouns in the present tense as well as past.

Positive Contractions

Examples:
I have – I’ve
It has – it’s
You Have – You’ve
He has- He’s
We Have- We’ve
She has- She’s
They have- They’ve

Negative Contractions

Examples;
Has not – Hasn’t
Have not- Haven’t
Had not- Hadn’t

Has or Have for formal use

The language used in business documents like newsletters, briefs, profit & loss statements, press releases, and other forms of communication within a company can often be very different from normal everyday English. But even here, has and has not or have and have not can only be used in the ways described above.
Both verbs are used to indicate possession. The only rule, which might also depend on the company, is to try as much as possible to avoid using the contracted forms of Has vs. Have in official documents.

Has vs. Have: What you need to remember

Because these two verbs are both ways to conjugate the same verbs, most people get confused about how to use them. Here’s the only thing you need to remember;
In the present tense, have is used to conjugate a verb in the first person singular, second person singular and plural, and third-person plural. Has is only used in the third person singular present.