Practice
Has or had: which verb form fits?
Maya has a meeting at three today. Yesterday, she had a meeting at three. The noun after the verb can stay the same, but the time changes the form you need.
Choose has for a present form with he, she, or it, and choose had for a past situation or for an earlier past action.
Read and practice
Read the examples and try the written questions in this guide. Listening recordings are not available for this lesson yet.
Try the written questions
has and had /hæz/ and /hæd/
The short answer
Use has for a present fact about he, she, or it: The store has a new manager. Use had for a past fact about any subject: The store had a new manager last year. Check the time first, then check the subject if the sentence is in the present.
The apartment has two bedrooms now, but it had one bedroom before the renovation.
Why it works: Has describes the apartment now. Had describes its earlier state.
5 more examples
-
My brother has a key to the office.
The sentence is about a present fact, and my brother is he in meaning.
Not this:My brother
had a keyto the office when he worked there. What changes: The time phrase places the fact in the past, so had is correct. -
The museum has free entry on Sundays.
The schedule is presented as a current rule for one place.
Not this:The museum
had free entrylast Sunday. What changes: Last Sunday gives a completed past time. -
Rina has already sent the invoice.
Has plus sent is present perfect. The action is finished and matters now because the invoice is available.
Not this:Rina
had already sentthe invoice before the client called. What changes: Had plus sent places the first action before the past event of the call. -
The phone has a small crack in the screen.
The crack is described as a present condition of one thing.
Not this:The phone
had a small crackbefore I replaced the screen. What changes: The repair gives a later past point, so had describes the earlier condition. -
She has lunch with her aunt every Friday.
Has is a present simple form for a regular event with she.
Not this:She
had lunchwith her aunt last Friday. What changes: The completed time expression changes the verb to had.
Read the full guide
Start with the time. If the sentence is about now, use has with one person or thing in the third person. If the sentence is about an earlier time, use had for I, you, we, they, he, she, or it. Then check whether have is the main verb or an auxiliary before a past participle.
Check whether the sentence is about now or before now
Time is the first decision. Use has when a sentence gives a current fact about he, she, or it. Use had when the fact, event, or condition belongs to the past. Words such as yesterday, last year, and before the move often point to had.
The café has outdoor tables.
This is a current fact about one place, so has fits.
Complete the past sentence: The café ___ outdoor tables before the storm.
Use had: The café had outdoor tables before the storm.
Use has with he, she, and it in the present
In the present simple, the subject changes the form. I have, you have, we have, and they have. He has, she has, and it has. This rule applies when have is the main verb and when it starts a present perfect form.
The delivery driver has the correct address.
The delivery driver is one person, so the present form is has.
Choose the present form: Our neighbors ___ a dog.
Use have: Our neighbors have a dog.
Use had with every subject in the past
Had does not change with the subject. You can write I had, she had, and they had. That makes the past form simpler than the present form. The important question is whether the sentence describes an earlier time.
We had enough time to catch the bus.
We is plural, but the past form is still had.
Complete the sentence: I ___ a headache yesterday.
Use had: I had a headache yesterday.
Recognize present perfect with has
Has can come before a past participle such as finished, lost, or arrived. This is present perfect. Use it when a past action has a result or connection in the present. Do not use has plus a simple past form such as went.
The manager has approved the request.
The approval happened earlier, and the request is approved now.
Choose the verb form: The package ___ arrived.
Use has: The package has arrived.
Use past perfect only for an earlier past action
Had plus a past participle makes past perfect. It helps when two actions are both in the past and the reader needs their order. The earlier action takes had plus the participle. A simple past form can describe the later action.
The guests had left before the music stopped.
Leaving happened first. Stopping happened later, so stopped stays in the simple past.
Complete the sentence: By the time I arrived, the movie ___ started.
Use had: By the time I arrived, the movie had started.
Before you go
Remember this
Use has for a present form with he, she, or it. Use had for a past state or event with any subject. In perfect forms, has plus a past participle connects an action to now, while had plus a past participle shows an action before another past time.
Practice with the written examples
You can practice with the written questions in the Learn tab. Each answer includes an explanation.
Try the written questionsListening test not available yet
This lesson does not have the recordings needed for a listening test. Use the written questions in the guide to check your understanding.
Try the written questionsQuestions about "Has or had: which verb form fits?"
Is had used with I and they?
Yes. Had is the past form for every subject: I had, you had, she had, we had, and they had. The subject changes the present form, but not the past form.
My brother has a key to the office.
Why is it has gone but had gone?
Has gone is present perfect, so it connects a past action to the present. Had gone is past perfect, so it places one action before another point in the past. The past participle gone stays the same; the auxiliary changes the time relationship.
My brother had a key to the office when he worked there.
Can I use has with a past time word?
Usually no when the time is finished, such as yesterday or last week. Write She had a meeting yesterday, not She has a meeting yesterday. Use has for a current fact or a present-perfect connection to now.
The museum has free entry on Sundays.
Do I need had when a sentence has two past actions?
No. Use had plus a past participle when you need to show which past action happened first. If the order is already clear or unimportant, simple past forms may be enough.
The museum had free entry last Sunday.
What is the present form with they?
Use have with they: They have an appointment today. Has is the present form for he, she, and it.
Rina has already sent the invoice.