Language/Afrikaans/Grammar/How-to-Use-Have
Hi Afrikaans learners! 😊
In this lesson, we will focus on how to use "have" in Afrikaans. We will cover its meaning, usage, and placement in sentences. As always, feel free to ask any questions in the comments below or use Polyglot Club to find native speakers to practice with.
Meaning of "Have"
"Have" in Afrikaans is known as "hê" and it can be used in different ways, such as to express possession or to form tenses. However, in this particular lesson, we'll focus on the former.
Possession
"Have" is used to express possession in Afrikaans.
For example:
| Afrikaans | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ek het 'n motor. | Ehk het un moh-tor. | I have a car. |
| Hy het 'n kat. | Hay het un kuht. | He has a cat. |
| Sy het 'n huis. | See het un huys. | She has a house. |
As you can see, "hê" is used for all personal pronouns in Afrikaans, regardless of their gender or number.
Usage of "Have"
In addition to expressing possession, "have" is also used to form perfect tenses, such as the present perfect and past perfect. We will cover those tenses in a future lesson, but for now, let's focus on how to use "have" to express possession.
"Have" is most commonly used in simple present tense (teenwoordige tyd) and in simple past (verlede tyd), but it can also be used in present perfect (voltooide teenwoordige tyd) and future tense (toekomende tyd).
Let's take a look at some examples:
| Afrikaans | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ek het 'n hond. | Ehk het un hont. | I have a dog. (present tense) |
| Hy het 'n fiets gehad. | Hay het un feets gah-haht. | He had a bike. (past tense) |
| Ons het 'n groot huis gehuur. | Owns het un gro-ut huys geh-yoor. | We rented a big house. (past tense) |
As you can see in the examples above, "hê" is used in different tenses to express possession. It's important to note that its placement can vary depending on the sentence.
In general, "hê" precedes the object it refers to, but it can also come after it. Let's see some examples:
| Afrikaans | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| Ek het 'n boek. | Ehk het un boe-k. | I have a book. |
| Ek het nie 'n boek nie, maar 'n koerant. | Ehk het nee un boe-k nee, bah-rin coo-runt. | I don't have a book, but a newspaper. |
| Ek het 'n sak oorskiet. | Ehk het un suk oor-skee-et. | I have a bag left over. |
In the first example, "hê" precedes "boek". In the second example,"nie" (not) intervenes between "hê" and "boek" and in the third example, "oorskiet" (left over) comes after "hê."
As you can see, Afrikaans is a flexible language and word order can vary.
Practice Dialogue
To help solidify the concept of using "have" in Afrikaans, let's practice a dialogue.
- Person 1: Het jy 'n huis? (Do you have a house?)
- Person 2: Ja, ek het 'n huis. (Yes, I have a house.)
- Person 1: Hoeveel kamers het jou huis? (How many rooms does your house have?)
- Person 2: My huis het drie kamers. (My house has three rooms.)
- Person 1: Het jy 'n tuin? (Do you have a garden?)
- Person 2: Nee, ek het nie 'n tuin nie. (No, I don't have a garden.)
In this dialogue, you can see how "het" is used to form questions and how "hê" is used to express possession in the answers.
Remember, the best way to truly master any language is through practice and exposure to native speakers.
Conclusion
Congratulations! You have learned how to use "have" (hê) to express possession in Afrikaans. Remember that "hê" can be used in different tenses and its placement can vary depending on the sentence structure. Keep practicing and don't forget to check out the Afrikaans grammar section for more lessons.
➡ If you have any questions, please ask them in the comments section below.
➡ Feel free to edit this wiki page if you think it can be improved. 😎
Having concluded this lesson, consider checking out these related pages: The Rule of “One Knee” & Adverbs and Comparatives.
Other Lessons
- How to Use Be
- Sentence Structure
- Pronouns
- Adjectives
- Formal vs Informal Imperatives
- Give your Opinion
- The Rule of “One Knee”
- Questions
- Common Compound Verbs + Conjugations
- Future Tense
Sources
- Afrikaans grammar - Wikipedia
- Afrikaans and Dutch: Similarities, Differences and Updates
- Afrikaans - Wikipedia