The verb 'have' in seven stages

The verb 'to have' is probably one of the first verbs you come across when you start learning English. Simple though it may seem, it may, in fact, indicate your English level ! The verb 'to have' will accompany you during your learning process in all the stages: from the lower level, the intermediate level and, even, the advanced level. Let's have a look at them !

Stage 1: have = possess

At this stage, you are in a basic level. The verb 'have' is used to express possession. 'Have' is more used in American English, whereas 'have got' is generally used in British English. At this stage, we need to take into account the differences between both verbs and avoid mistakes as the ones in red down below. Take into account that 'have got' is only used to express possession and that it can only be used in THE PRESENT TENSE (not in the past): 

Have (Am. English)                   Have got (British English)

I have                                         I have got

I don't have  I haven't                 I haven't got

Do you have ? Have you ?         Have you got ?

I had                                           I had got

I didn't have  I hadn't                 I hadn't got

Stage 2: have = eat + drink

At this stage, you are still in a basic level. The verb 'have' here is followed by either food or drink and it means 'tomar' in Spanish. Have you ever heard a foreigner saying: "¿puedo tener un vaso de agua, por favor?". Well, he or she is certainly mistranslating the verb 'have' as 'tener' and not as 'tomar'. This use is quite useful in restaurants when you order for food, for example, in the sentence; "I'll have fish and chips."

Stage 3: expressions with have

Here you are in an upper low level. There are several expressions with the verb 'have' with different meanings. These expressions are widely used by English speakers, so you need to know most of them. Here you have them:

• Have breakfast = desayunar
• Have lunch = comer
• Have dinner = cenar
• Have a shower  (in American English 'take a shower) = ducharse
• Have a bath = darse un baño
• Have a swim = nadar un rato
• Have a walk/have a stroll = dar un paseo
• Have fun / have a good time = divertirse
• Have a bad time/have a rough time = pasarlo mal    
• Have a siesta = echarse la siesta
• Have a party = ir a una fiesta
• Have an X-ray= hacerse una radiografía
• Have a chat/have a talk (with someone) = hablar con alguien
• Have an argument with someone = discutir con alguien
• Have feelings for someone = sentir algo por alguien

Stage 4: have to/have got to/don't have to

Here you start to move towards an intermediate level. The verb 'have to' (or have got to) followed by an infinitive indicates obligation, as in "I have to work tomorrow". Here you have other possibilities such as 'I have got to work tomorrow,' or 'I gotta work tomorrow' in informal English. The negative of 'have to' is 'don't have to' and it indicates the absence of obligation, something which is not necessary, as seen in the sentence; "I don't have to get up early tomorrow because it's Saturday".

Stage 5: Perfect tenses

You are still in an intermediate level. Hadn't you noticed that the verb have is similar to the verb 'haber' in Spanish?  have = haber . Here 'have' is an auxiliary verb that must be followed by a past participle to express duration, among other notions as in "I have studied a lot today" or "Paul hasn't finished his homework yet". 

Stage 6: Causative have I: to pay someone to do something for you

It is here where you journey towards the advanced level begins. You use this structure to indicate that you have paid someone else to do a job for you. The structure is: personal passive subject + verb have conjugated + object + past participle. You have examples of this structure below:

I'm going to have my hair cut tomorrow = I'm going to pay the hairdresser to cut your hair.

I will have my car repaired by the mechanic = I will pay the mechanic to repair your car.

I had my house painted last year = I paid a painter to paint your house.

You can use this structure at the hairdresser's, at the dentist, at the mechanic,...

Stage 7: Causative have II: to make other people  do something (imperative)

This is probably one of the most complicated structures with the verb have. It's similar to the previous structure but instead of using a past participle, a bare infinitive is used:

subject + verb 'have' conjugated + direct object (person) + infinitive (without 'to'). Here you have some examples:

- If you are not a good boy, I will have you clean up your bedroom all day = I will make you clean your bedroom all day if you are not a good boy.

- I will have my friends pick up my stuff = I will make my friends pick up my stuff.

Conclusions
1. In most cases, the verb 'have' need an auxiliary verb like 'do' to make the negative and interrogative (except in 'have got' and in perfect tenses)
2. 'Have got' only means 'possess' and it can only be used in the simple tense. You can't say I have got a shower, for instance. 

3. The verb 'have' is an extremely important verb that will be with you all along your English-learning process. 
4. Sometimes, the verb 'to be' is preferred rather than the verb have (revisit my entry Lost in Translation for more details)
In which stage are you? Feel free to comment.