verb

haben

have

Dieses Verb drückt aus, dass jemand etwas besitzt oder etwas bei sich ist.

Definition & meaning

haben is one of the most common German verbs. Its basic meaning is “to have” or “to possess.”

To possess or own something
- Ich habe ein Auto. — “I have a car.”
- Sie hat ein großes Haus. — “She has a large house.”
To have a relationship or connection
- Er hat zwei Kinder. — “He has two children.”
- Wir haben viele Freunde. — “We have many friends.”
To experience a condition, feeling, or need
- Ich habe Hunger. — “I am hungry.”
- Sie hat Angst. — “She is afraid.”
- Er hat Kopfschmerzen. — “He has a headache.”
To indicate age
- Ich habe dreißig Jahre. is incorrect in standard German. German uses Ich bin dreißig Jahre alt — “I am thirty years old.”
- However, haben is used in expressions such as Wie alt hast du? in some regional or informal varieties, while standard German normally uses Wie alt bist du?
As an auxiliary verb

haben forms the perfect tense of most German verbs:
- Ich habe gearbeitet. — “I have worked” or “I worked.”
- Wir haben das gesehen. — “We have seen that.”
In the construction “haben zu + infinitive”

This construction expresses an obligation or task, similar to “have to”:
- Ich habe viel zu tun. — “I have a lot to do.”
- Du hast die Rechnung zu bezahlen. — “You have to pay the bill.”

Grammar & Word origin

haben is an irregular or strong verb.

Present tense

German	English
ich habe	I have
du hast	you have
er/sie/es hat	he/she/it has
wir haben	we have
ihr habt	you have
sie/Sie haben	they/you have

Important irregular forms are du hast and er/sie/es hat.

Principal forms

Infinitive: haben
Simple past: hatte
Past participle: gehabt

The past participle gehabt is used with the auxiliary verb haben:

Ich habe viel Glück gehabt. — “I have been very lucky.”

As an auxiliary verb, haben is used with most transitive verbs and many intransitive verbs. Verbs expressing movement or a change of state often use sein instead:

Ich habe das Buch gelesen. — “I read the book.”
Ich bin gegangen. — “I went.”

Historically, haben comes from Old High German habēn and is related to English “have,” Latin habēre, and other Indo-European forms meaning “to hold” or “to possess.”

Synonyms & antonyms

Synonyms

besitzen — “to own” or “to possess.” This is more specific and often more formal than haben. It usually emphasizes legal or actual ownership.
verfügen über — “to have at one’s disposal.” This emphasizes access, control, or availability rather than simple possession.
enthalten — “to contain.” It can correspond to haben when referring to something’s contents, but it does not generally mean personal possession.

Antonyms

verlieren — “to lose.” It is the contextual opposite of haben when something possessed is no longer available.
entbehren — “to lack” or “to do without.” This is a more formal opposite in contexts involving the absence of something.
geben — “to give.” It can function as an opposite to haben in situations involving the transfer of possession.