Have: Auxiliary or main verb — Explanation

Practice B2 English with exercises on “have” as an auxiliary or main verb. Improve grammar skills with clear examples and explanations.

Auxiliary or Main Verb Exercises

The B2 level requires understanding how “have” works in English. This verb can be used in two different ways:

• As a main verb (indicating possession, relationships, or actions)
• As a helping verb (used with the base or infinitive of a verb to form tenses, especially perfect tenses)

This guide will enable you to distinguish clearly between these two uses and to use them appropriately in real communication.

“Have” as a Main Verb

When ‘have’ is used as a main verb it has its own sense: Often referred to as:

Possession

It shows that something belongs to someone.

Examples:

• I have a new laptop.
• She has two brothers.
• They have a big house.

Relationships or Characteristics

It can be about relationships or personal qualities.

Examples:

• He has blue eyes.
• We have a close friendship.

Everyday Activities (especially informal English)

Some nouns are commonly used with have to indicate actions.

Examples:

• I have breakfast at 8 a.m.
• She had a shower.
• We are having a meeting.

“Have” as an Auxiliary Verb

The auxiliary verb “have” has no meaning of its own. But instead it goes into making grammatical structures, especially perfect tenses.

Present Perfect

Structure: have/has + past participle

Examples:

• I have finished my homework.
• She has visited Paris.
• They have seen that movie.

Use this tense to:

• Experiences
• Recent activity
• Actions of current relevance

Past Perfect

Structure: had + past participle

Examples:

• I had left before he arrived.
• She had already eaten when I called.

Use this tense to show:

• An action that occurred before another action in the past

Future Perfect

Structure: will have + past participle

Examples:

• I will have finished by tomorrow.
• They will have completed the project by next week.

Use this tense for:

• Actions that will be finished by a certain time in the future

Key Differences Between Main and Auxiliary “Have”

Feature	Main Verb “Have”	Auxiliary “Have”
Meaning	Yes (possession, actions)	No (grammatical function)
Structure	Subject + have/has + object	Subject + have/has/had + past participle
Example	I have a car.	I have bought a car.

Questions and Negative Sentences

The main verb “have.

In modern English we normally use “do/does/did”:

Questions:

• Do you have a car?
• Does she have any experience?

Negatives:

• I don’t have any money.
• He doesn’t have a job.

In British English you might also hear:

• Have you got a car?

With the auxiliary verb “have”

We do not use do. Instead we reverse “have” :

Questions:

• Have you finished?
• Has she called you?

Negatives:

• I haven’t seen him.
• She hasn’t completed the task.