To Have and Have Got

Recently I have seen correspondence in American journals referring to the use of Have Got as if it were grammatically incorrect. It certainly isn't in the UK, so here are a few thoughts on the verb to Have (Got) for any American readers, and anyone else who's interested…

In the UK it is quite acceptable in informal written English and in spoken English at all levels of society (at least those in which I move) to use Have Got for possession (I've got a car) and states including relationships (I've got two brothers, they've both got girlfriends), illness (I've got a headache), and physical description (She's got blue eyes).

In the negative contracted form, two variations are possible: I haven't got = I've not got. The former is probably much more common. You may also hear the variant I ain't got, but it can hardly be considered 'correct'.

Have Got is very rarely used in tenses other than the present simple. (**"When I was small I'd got a dog" is heard as a dialect form: most of us would say "… I had a dog.")

When the verb is delexical (to have a swim = to swim, to have a look = to look, to have a meal = to eat) Have Got cannot be used.

The existence of two forms allows us to draw distinctions between the repeated or habitual (Have) and the one off (Have Got): I haven't got a driving licence (here with me) because I don't have a driving licence (I've never passed my test). I usually don't have to work on Saturdays, but I've got to work this week as we're so busy.

In situations where both forms are acceptable, we tend to think of To Have as an Americanism. As a British English teacher, I encourage my students to use the American form as it simplifies the verb patterns, although they still need to have a passive knowledge of Have Got.

One last thought: the present perfect of the verb 'to get' can be expressed as 'have got' in British English, whereas US English speakers will tend to use the form 'have gotten'. In practice, many British speakers will opt for an alternative verb, eg 'He hasn't had your e-mail yet' (although 'He didn't get your e-mail' would be quite acceptable).