Have vs. Having — What's the Difference?
Edited by Tayyaba Rehman — By Urooj Arif — Updated on March 21, 2024
"Have" is a verb often used to denote possession, experiences, or actions, while "having" serves as the gerund or present participle form, indicating ongoing action or state.
Difference Between Have and Having
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
"Have" functions primarily as a main verb in sentences, indicating possession, relationships, experiences, or necessary actions. On the other hand, "having" operates in various roles, including as a gerund (noun form) or present participle (part of continuous verb tenses).
The use of "have" often implies a completed state or a general truth, while "having" suggests a process or experience that is ongoing. For instance, "I have finished my homework" indicates completion, whereas "I am having trouble with my homework" suggests an ongoing challenge.
In conditional or perfect tenses, "having" can also function to set up clauses that describe circumstances or prerequisites, adding depth to the timing or nature of actions. For example, "Having seen the movie already, he decided to read the book" uses "having" to indicate that the action of seeing the movie occurred before the decision to read the book.
Despite these differences, both "have" and "having" are versatile and essential in constructing meaningful sentences. Their correct use is crucial for expressing time, relationships, and experiences accurately.
Comparison Chart
Primary Function
Acts as a main verb to denote possession, relationships, experiences, or actions.
Serves as a gerund or present participle, indicating ongoing action or state.
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Example Usage
"I have a book."
"Having a book on hand is useful." (gerund) / "She is having a great time." (present participle)
Tense and Aspect
Used in simple and perfect tenses.
Used in continuous tenses and as a noun.
Implied Time Frame
Often implies a specific point in time or a general truth.
Suggests an ongoing process or state.
Function in a Sentence
Can be used as the main verb or an auxiliary verb in a sentence.
Can act as a subject, complement, or part of a verb phrase.
Connotation
Can imply completion or possession.
Often implies something that is in process or being experienced.
Compare with Definitions
Have
To possess something.
I have a new bike.
Having
Possessing or holding something.
Having a pet requires responsibility.
Have
To be obligated or need to do something.
You have to see this movie.
Having
Being in a particular state.
They are having fun at the party.
Have
To experience or undergo a particular condition.
We have plans this weekend.
Having
Experiencing or undergoing a process.
He is having a hard time adjusting.
Have
To hold or maintain within oneself.
She has a lot of patience.
Having
The act of possessing or holding.
Having money doesn't ensure happiness.
Have
To perform an action.
They have breakfast at 8 AM.
Having
Engaging in an activity.
She is having dinner with her family.
Have
Possess, own, or hold
Have you got a job yet?
He had a new car and a boat
I don't have that much money on me
Having
To be in possession of
Already had a car.
Have
Experience; undergo
I went to a few parties and had a good time
I was having difficulty in keeping awake
Having
To possess as a characteristic, quality, or function
Has a beard.
Had a great deal of energy.
Have
Be obliged or find it necessary to do the specified thing
Sorry, we've got to dash
You don't have to accept this situation
Having
To possess or contain as a constituent part
A car that has air bags.
Have
Perform the action indicated by the noun specified (used especially in spoken English as an alternative to a more specific verb)
He had a look round
The colour green has a restful effect
Having
To occupy a particular relation to
Had many disciples.
Have
Show (a personal attribute or quality) by one's actions or attitude
He had little patience with technological gadgetry
You never even phoned, and now you've got the cheek to come back
Having
To possess knowledge of or facility in
Has very little Spanish.
Have
Place or keep (something) in a particular position
Mary had her back to me
I soon had the trout in a net
Having
To hold in the mind; entertain
Had doubts about their loyalty.
Have
Be the recipient of (something sent, given, or done)
She had a letter from Mark
Having
To use or exhibit in action
Have compassion.
Have
Used with a past participle to form the perfect, pluperfect, and future perfect tenses, and the conditional mood
He had asked her
I have finished
She will have left by now
‘Have you seen him?’ ‘Yes, I have.’
I could have helped, had I known
Having
To come into possession of; acquire
Not one copy of the book was to be had in the entire town.
Have
People with plenty of money and possessions
An increasing gap between the haves and have-nots
Having
To receive; get
I had a letter from my cousin.
Have
A swindle.
Having
To accept; take
I'll have the peas instead of the spinach.
Have
To be in possession of
Already had a car.
Having
To suffer from
Have defective vision.
Have
To possess as a characteristic, quality, or function
Has a beard.
Had a great deal of energy.
Having
To be subject to the experience of
Had a difficult time last winter.
Have
To possess or contain as a constituent part
A car that has air bags.
Having
To cause to do something, as by persuasion or compulsion
Had my assistant run the errand.
Have
To occupy a particular relation to
Had many disciples.
Having
To cause to be in a specified place or state
Had the guests in the dining room.
Had everyone fascinated.
Have
To possess knowledge of or facility in
Has very little Spanish.
Having
To permit; allow
I won't have that kind of behavior in my house.
Have
To hold in the mind; entertain
Had doubts about their loyalty.
Having
To carry on, perform, or execute
Have an argument.
Have
To use or exhibit in action
Have compassion.
Having
To place at a disadvantage
Your opponent in the debate had you on every issue.
Have
To come into possession of; acquire
Not one copy of the book was to be had in the entire town.
Having
(Informal) To get the better of, especially by trickery or deception
They realized too late that they'd been had by a swindler.
Have
To receive; get
I had a letter from my cousin.
Having
(Informal) To influence by dishonest means; bribe
An incorruptible official who could not be had.
Have
To accept; take
I'll have the peas instead of the spinach.
Having
To procreate (offspring)
Wanted to have a child.
Have
To suffer from
Have defective vision.
Having
To give birth to; bear
She's going to have a baby.
Have
To be subject to the experience of
Had a difficult time last winter.
Having
To partake of
Have lunch.
Have
To cause to do something, as by persuasion or compulsion
Had my assistant run the errand.
Having
To be obliged to; must
We simply have to get there on time.
Have
To cause to be in a specified place or state
Had the guests in the dining room.
Had everyone fascinated.
Having
Used with a past participle to form the present perfect, past perfect, and future perfect tenses indicating completed action
The troublemaker has gone for good. I regretted that I had lost my temper. They will have finished by the time we arrive.
Have
To permit; allow
I won't have that kind of behavior in my house.
Having
One enjoying especially material wealth
"The gulf widens between the feast of the haves and the famine of the have-nots" (Salman Rushdie).
Have
To carry on, perform, or execute
Have an argument.
Having
Present participle of have
Have
To place at a disadvantage
Your opponent in the debate had you on every issue.
Having
The act of possessing; ownership.
Have
(Informal) To get the better of, especially by trickery or deception
They realized too late that they'd been had by a swindler.
Having
Something owned; possession; goods; estate.
Have
(Informal) To influence by dishonest means; bribe
An incorruptible official who could not be had.
Having
(obsolete) A person's behaviour.
Have
To procreate (offspring)
Wanted to have a child.
Having
Good manners.
Have
To give birth to; bear
She's going to have a baby.
Having
(obsolete) Grasping; greedy.
Have
To partake of
Have lunch.
Having
Possession; goods; estate.
I 'll lend you something; my having is not much.
Have
To be obliged to; must
We simply have to get there on time.
Have
Used with a past participle to form the present perfect, past perfect, and future perfect tenses indicating completed action
The troublemaker has gone for good. I regretted that I had lost my temper. They will have finished by the time we arrive.
Have
One enjoying especially material wealth
"The gulf widens between the feast of the haves and the famine of the have-nots" (Salman Rushdie).
Have
(transitive) To possess, own.
I have a house and a car.
Have
(transitive) To hold, as something at someone's disposal.
Look what I have here—a frog I found on the street!
Have
(transitive) To include as a part, ingredient, or feature.
The stove has a handle. The shirt has sleeves.
The words cow and dog have three letters.
A government has three branches: the executive, legislative, and judicial.
The movie has lots of action.
Have
(transitive) Used to state the existence or presence of someone in a specified relationship with the subject.
I have two sisters.
She doesn’t have any friends.
I have a really mean boss.
Have
(transitive) To consume or use up (a particular substance or resource, especially food or drink).
I have breakfast at six o'clock.
You've already had five drinks!
She's had more than enough time already.
Have
(transitive) To undertake or perform (an action or activity).
Can I have a look at that?
He's having a tantrum about it.
I’m going to have a bath now.
Let’s have a game of tiddlywinks.
Have
(transitive) To be scheduled to attend, undertake or participate in.
What class do you have right now? I have English.
Fred won’t be able to come to the party; he has a meeting that day.
I have a lot of work to do.
Have
To experience, go through, undergo.
We had a hard year last year, with the locust swarms and all that.
He had surgery on his hip yesterday.
I’m having the time of my life!
Have
To be afflicted with, suffer from.
He had a cold last week.
Have
(auxiliary verb, taking a past participle) Used in forming the perfect aspect.
I have already eaten today.
I had already eaten.
I will have left by the time you get here.
Have
Used as an interrogative verb before a pronoun to form a tag question, echoing a previous use of 'have' as an auxiliary verb or, in certain cases, main verb. (For further discussion, see the appendix English tag questions.)
They haven’t eaten dinner yet, have they?
Your wife hasn’t been reading that nonsense, has she?
He has some money, hasn’t he?
Have
See have to.
I have to go.
Have
(transitive) To give birth to.
The couple always wanted to have children.
My wife is having the baby right now!
My mother had me when she was 25.
Have
(usually passive) To obtain.
The substance you describe can't be had at any price.
Have
(transitive) To accept as a romantic partner.
Despite my protestations of love, she would not have me.
Have
To cause to, by a command, request or invitation.
They had me feed their dog while they were out of town.
Her very boyfriend is the person the criminal has do most of her dirty deeds.
Have
To cause to be.
He had him arrested for trespassing.
The lecture’s ending had the entire audience in tears.
Jim has his eyes closed.
Have
To be affected by an occurrence. (Used in supplying a topic that is not a verb argument.)
The hospital had several patients contract pneumonia last week.
I’ve had three people today tell me my hair looks nice.
Have
To depict as being.
Their stories differed; he said he’d been at work when the incident occurred, but her statement had him at home that entire evening.
Have
To defeat in a fight; take.
I could have him!
Have
To inflict punishment or retribution on.
You broke the window! Teacher’ll have you for that!
Have
To be able to speak (a language).
I have no German.
Have
To feel or be (especially painfully) aware of.
Dan certainly has arms today, probably from scraping paint off four columns the day before.
Have
To trick, to deceive.
I bought a laptop online but it never arrived. I think I've been had!
You had me alright! I never would have thought that was just a joke.
Have
To allow; to tolerate.
The child screamed incessantly for his mother to buy him a toy, but she wasn't having any of it.
I asked my dad if I could go to the concert this Thursday, but he wouldn't have it since it's a school night.
Have
To believe, buy, be taken in by.
I made up an excuse as to why I was out so late, but my wife wasn't having any of it.
Have
(transitive) To host someone; to take in as a guest.
Thank you for having me!
Have
(transitive) To get a reading, measurement, or result from an instrument or calculation.
What do you have for problem two?
I have two contacts on my scope.
Have
To consider a court proceeding that has been completed; to begin deliberations on a case.
We’ll schedule closing arguments for Thursday, and the jury will have the case by that afternoon.
Have
To make an observation of (a bird species).
Have
A wealthy or privileged person.
Have
(uncommon) One who has some (contextually specified) thing.
Have
A fraud or deception; something misleading.
They advertise it as a great deal, but I think it's a bit of a have.
Have
To hold in possession or control; to own; as, he has a farm.
Have
To possess, as something which appertains to, is connected with, or affects, one.
The earth hath bubbles, as the water has.
He had a fever late.
Have
To accept possession of; to take or accept.
Break thy mind to me in broken English; wilt thou have me?
Have
To get possession of; to obtain; to get.
Have
To cause or procure to be; to effect; to exact; to desire; to require.
I had the church accurately described to me.
Wouldst thou have me turn traitor also?
Have
To bear, as young; as, she has just had a child.
Have
To hold, regard, or esteem.
Of them shall I be had in honor.
Have
To cause or force to go; to take.
Have
To take or hold (one's self); to proceed promptly; - used reflexively, often with ellipsis of the pronoun; as, to have after one; to have at one or at a thing, i. e., to aim at one or at a thing; to attack; to have with a companion.
Have
To be under necessity or obligation; to be compelled; followed by an infinitive.
Science has, and will long have, to be a divider and a separatist.
The laws of philology have to be established by external comparison and induction.
Have
To understand.
You have me, have you not?
Have
To put in an awkward position; to have the advantage of; as, that is where he had him.
Myself for such a face had boldly died.
Have
A person who possesses great material wealth
Have
Have or possess, either in a concrete or an abstract sense;
She has $1,000 in the bank
He has got two beautiful daughters
She holds a Master's degree from Harvard
Have
Have as a feature;
This restaurant features the most famous chefs in France
Have
Of mental or physical states or experiences;
Get an idea
Experience vertigo
Get nauseous
Undergo a strange sensation
The chemical undergoes a sudden change
The fluid undergoes shear
Receive injuries
Have a feeling
Have
Have ownership or possession of;
He owns three houses in Florida
How many cars does she have?
Have
Cause to move; cause to be in a certain position or condition;
He got his squad on the ball
This let me in for a big surprise
He got a girl into trouble
Have
Serve oneself to, or consume regularly;
Have another bowl of chicken soup!
I don't take sugar in my coffee
Have
Have a personal or business relationship with someone;
Have a postdoc
Have an assistant
Have a lover
Have
Organize or be responsible for;
Hold a reception
Have, throw, or make a party
Give a course
Have
Have left;
I have two years left
I don't have any money left
They have two more years before they retire
Have
Be confronted with;
What do we have here?
Now we have a fine mess
Have
Undergo;
The stocks had a fast run-up
Have
Suffer from; be ill with;
She has arthritis
Have
Cause to do; cause to act in a specified manner;
The ads induced me to buy a VCR
My children finally got me to buy a computer
My wife made me buy a new sofa
Have
Receive willingly something given or offered;
The only girl who would have him was the miller's daughter
I won't have this dog in my house!
Please accept my present
Have
Get something; come into possession of;
Receive payment
Receive a gift
Receive letters from the front
Have
Undergo (as of injuries and illnesses);
She suffered a fracture in the accident
He had an insulin shock after eating three candy bars
She got a bruise on her leg
He got his arm broken in the scuffle
Have
Achieve a point or goal;
Nicklaus had a 70
The Brazilian team got 4 goals
She made 29 points that day
Have
Give birth (to a newborn);
My wife had twins yesterday!
Common Curiosities
How does "having" function in perfect gerund phrases?
In perfect gerund phrases, "having" expresses actions that were completed in the past but are relevant to the present, e.g., "Having completed my degree, I feel ready for new challenges."
Can "having" be used without "to be" verbs?
As a gerund, yes, it can act as a noun in sentences. As a present participle, it generally accompanies "to be" verbs to form continuous tenses.
How do "have got" and "having got" differ?
"Have got" is used to express possession, similar to "have." "Having got" is less commonly used but can appear in more complex sentence constructions, often indicating a past action that has relevance to the present or future.
Is "have" always an action verb?
"Have" can function as an action verb or an auxiliary verb in perfect tenses, not always indicating direct action.
Can "have" be omitted in informal speech?
In some cases, yes, especially in informal speech patterns and some dialects, e.g., "You got a pen?" instead of "Have you got a pen?"
How do modifiers affect "have" and "having"?
Modifiers can change or enhance the meaning, indicating frequency, necessity, or quality of the action or state, e.g., "I have often wondered" vs. "Having frequently visited, I know the place well."
Can "have" and "having" be used interchangeably?
No, their usage depends on the structure and meaning of the sentence. They serve different grammatical purposes.
Does "having" always imply an ongoing action?
Mostly, yes, especially when used as a present participle. As a gerund, it turns the action into a subject or object, which may not always suggest ongoing action.
Are there cases where "have" and "having" mean the same?
While their core meanings relate to possession or experiencing, their grammatical roles do not allow for interchangeable use without altering the sentence structure.
How does context change the meaning of "have" and "having"?
The context can significantly affect interpretation, especially concerning temporal aspects (e.g., possession vs. ongoing experience) and nuances of obligation or necessity.
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Written by
Urooj ArifUrooj is a skilled content writer at Ask Difference, known for her exceptional ability to simplify complex topics into engaging and informative content. With a passion for research and a flair for clear, concise writing, she consistently delivers articles that resonate with our diverse audience.
Edited by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
