有 (yǒu) is one of the first verbs you learn and one of the most useful. It means "to have (possess)" and also "there is / there exists" — English splits these across two constructions ("I have a car" vs "there is a book"), but Chinese uses one verb for both. 有 has a second claim to fame: it is the only verb in Mandarin negated with 没 rather than 不. "I don't have money" is 我没有钱 — never *我不有钱. Burn that in early, because 不 and 没 split cleanly everywhere else, but 有 is the lone exception where 没 is forced.
Sense 1: have / possess
The possession sense: subject 有 object. The object is usually counted with a measure word — 一个哥哥, 一辆车 — but bare mass/abstract objects (钱, 时间) need none.
我有一个哥哥和一个妹妹。
wǒ yǒu yí ge gēge hé yí ge mèimei
I have an older brother and a younger sister.
你有没有零钱？我想买瓶水。
nǐ yǒu méiyǒu língqián? wǒ xiǎng mǎi píng shuǐ
Do you have any change? I want to buy a bottle of water. — 有没有 = the yes/no question form.
不好意思，我现在没有时间。
bù hǎoyìsi, wǒ xiànzài méiyǒu shíjiān
Sorry, I don't have time right now. — negation is 没有, never 不有.
Sense 2: there is / exists
Put a place first, then 有, then the thing that exists there: 地方 + 有 + 东西. This is the standard "there is / there are" of Chinese — see the existential 有 construction. The thing introduced is typically new information, so it stays indefinite ("a book," "some milk").
我们学校附近有一家很好的咖啡馆。
wǒmen xuéxiào fùjìn yǒu yì jiā hěn hǎo de kāfēiguǎn
There's a really good café near our school.
冰箱里没有牛奶了，我去买。
bīngxiāng lǐ méiyǒu niúnǎi le, wǒ qù mǎi
There's no more milk in the fridge — I'll go buy some.
Sense 3: there are (amounts and measurements)
有 also states quantities and measurements — how many, how tall, how deep, how far.
我们班有三十个学生。
wǒmen bān yǒu sānshí ge xuésheng
Our class has thirty students.
Sense 4: comparison — as ... as
有 heads a comparison of degree: A 有 B (这么/那么) + adjective = "A is as ... as B." The negative 没有 is extremely common here: 没有你高 "not as tall as you."
我儿子已经有我这么高了。
wǒ érzi yǐjīng yǒu wǒ zhème gāo le
My son is already as tall as me. — 有…这么高 'as tall as'.
今天没有昨天那么热。
jīntiān méiyǒu zuótiān nàme rè
Today isn't as hot as yesterday. — 没有…那么热 'not as hot as'.
The 有-family
有 seeds a cluster of high-frequency words: 有的 (yǒude) "some," 有点儿 (yǒudiǎnr) "a bit (slightly negative)," 有时候 (yǒu shíhou) "sometimes," 有意思 (yǒu yìsi) "interesting."
我今天有点儿累，想早点睡。
wǒ jīntiān yǒudiǎnr lèi, xiǎng zǎodiǎn shuì
I'm a bit tired today — I want to sleep early.
有的人喜欢喝茶，有的人喜欢喝咖啡。
yǒude rén xǐhuan hē chá, yǒude rén xǐhuan hē kāfēi
Some people like tea, some like coffee.
Key collocations
| Phrase | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 有没有 | yǒu méiyǒu | do (you) have…? (yes/no question) |
| 没有 | méiyǒu | not have / there isn't |
| 有的 | yǒude | some (of them) |
| 有点儿 | yǒudiǎnr | a bit, slightly |
| 有时候 | yǒu shíhou | sometimes |
| 有意思 | yǒu yìsi | interesting |
| 有名 | yǒumíng | famous |
| 有用 | yǒuyòng | useful |
Grammar notes
有 shares the "existence" job with 是 (shì) and 在 (zài), but they carve up the space: 有 introduces something new at a place (桌上有书 "there's a book on the table"), 是 identifies what fills a place (桌上的是书 "the thing on the table is a book"), and 在 locates a known thing (书在桌上 "the book is on the table"). One more quirk: 有 is atelic, so it never takes 了 for completion the way action verbs do — "I got a car" is 我有车了 (change of state), not a perfective 了 on 有 itself.
Common Mistakes
1. Negating with 不. The single most common 有 error. Its negative is always 没有.
❌ 我不有兄弟姐妹。
Wrong — 有 negates with 没, never 不.
✅ 我没有兄弟姐妹。
wǒ méiyǒu xiōngdì jiěmèi
I don't have any siblings.
2. Translating 'have to' as 有. English "have to" is obligation, not possession — use 得 / 要 / 必须, not 有.
❌ 我今天有加班。
Wrong for 'I have to work overtime' — 有 is possession, not obligation.
✅ 我今天得加班。
wǒ jīntiān děi jiābān
I have to work overtime today. — obligation = 得.
3. Dropping 有 in the 'there is' pattern. Chinese cannot juxtapose a place and a thing with nothing between them; the existence verb 有 is obligatory.
❌ 桌子上一本书。
Wrong — 'there is' needs the verb 有.
✅ 桌子上有一本书。
zhuōzi shàng yǒu yì běn shū
There's a book on the table.
4. Answering a 有 question with 是/不是. Yes/no answers echo the verb: reply 有 or 没有, not 是/不是 (on which negative to pick, see 没有 vs 不是).
❌ ——你有护照吗？——不是。
Wrong — a 有-question is answered with 有 / 没有.
✅ ——你有护照吗？——没有。
—— nǐ yǒu hùzhào ma? —— méiyǒu
'Do you have a passport?' 'No (I don't).' — echo the verb 有.
Key Takeaways
- 有 = both "have/possess" (我有车) and "there is/exists" (桌上有书) — one verb for both.
- It is the only verb negated with 没: 没有, never *不有.
- Existential order is place + 有 + thing; the thing stays indefinite (new info).
- 有 also states amounts (有三十个学生) and heads comparisons (没有你高 "not as tall as you").
- "Have to" (obligation) is 得/要/必须, not 有; answer a 有-question with 有 / 没有.
Related Topics
- 是 (shì) — to be (copula)HSK 1 — 是 (shì) is the copula that links two nouns — 我是学生 (I am a student). Its one job is X = Y. It does NOT go before adjectives (她很高, not *她是高) and it does NOT mark location (书在桌子上, not *书是桌子上) — those are 很 + adjective and 在.
- 在 (zài) — be at / progressive / -ingHSK 1 — 在 (zài) is the verb 'be located at' (我在家), the location coverb that sits BEFORE the verb (在家吃饭), and the progressive marker 'be V-ing' (他在打电话) — three linked uses of one word.
- Two Negators: 不 (bù) vs 没 (méi)HSK 1 — Mandarin has exactly two everyday negators. 不 (bù) negates the habitual, willed, future, and all adjectives and modal verbs; 没(有) (méi yǒu) negates the verb 有 and any completed or experienced action. The split is NOT about tense — it's habit/intention/quality (不) vs completion/existence (没).