This is the conjugation reference for hafa, "to have" — and far more importantly, the verb that builds the perfect tense for almost every other verb in Icelandic. Ég hef gert ("I have done"), hún hefur séð ("she has seen"): the hef/hefur part is hafa, doing its auxiliary job. Hafa is a weak verb but with enough irregularity in its endings that you should treat it as a special case and memorise it whole. Watch especially for the u-umlaut, which turns the stem a into ö in höfum and höfðum.
Conjugation
The four principal parts are hafa / hefur / hafði / haft. The present stem vowel shifts from a to e (hef, hefur), and the við-forms umlaut to ö.
| Principal part | Form |
|---|---|
| Infinitive | að hafa |
| Present (3sg) | hefur |
| Past (3sg) | hafði |
| Supine | haft |
Indicative — present and past:
| Person | Present | Past |
|---|---|---|
| ég (I) | hef | hafði |
| þú (you sg.) | hefur | hafðir |
| hann / hún / það (he/she/it) | hefur | hafði |
| við (we) | höfum | höfðum |
| þið (you pl.) | hafið | höfðuð |
| þeir / þær / þau (they) | hafa | höfðu |
Subjunctive, imperative, non-finite:
| Form | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Present subjunctive | hafi, hafir, hafi, höfum, hafið, hafi |
| Past subjunctive | hefði, hefðir, hefði, hefðum, hefðuð, hefðu |
| Imperative (sg / pl) | hafðu / hafið |
| Supine / past participle | haft / hafður, höfð, haft |
| Middle voice (-st) | hafast (e.g. hafast við — "to dwell, stay") |
hafa as the perfect auxiliary
This is the job you will use most. To say "have done / had done," combine the right form of hafa with the supine — the fixed, non-agreeing -ð/-t form (gert, séð, talað). Unlike the vera-perfect (see vera), the supine after hafa never changes.
Ég hef gert þetta áður.
I've done this before.
Hefur þú séð myndina?
Have you seen the film?
Við höfum búið hér í tíu ár.
We've lived here for ten years. (höfum — note the umlaut)
Hún hafði þegar farið þegar ég kom.
She had already left when I arrived. (past perfect)
The contrast English speakers must hold onto: hafa + invariant supine for most verbs, but vera + agreeing participle for motion and change-of-state verbs. "I have eaten" is ég hef borðað; "I have arrived" is ég er kominn, not "ég hef komið."
hafa as a possession verb — and how it differs from eiga
Hafa can mean "have" in the sense of holding or carrying something at the moment, but Icelandic prefers eiga for genuine ownership. Roughly: hafa = have on you / have available; eiga = own.
Ég hef ekki tíma núna.
I don't have time right now. (hafa — availability)
Ég á tvo bíla.
I own two cars. (eiga — ownership, not hafa)
Hefurðu eld?
Have you got a light? (hafa — what you've got on you)
So if you mean "I own a house," reach for eiga (ég á hús), not hafa. Using hafa for ownership is grammatical but sounds off — like saying in English "I'm having a house." (See verb-ref/eiga for the full picture.)
hafa + adjective: states and feelings
A small set of fixed expressions use hafa with an adjective or adverb to describe a state — the most important being hafa það gott ("to be doing well"), the standard answer to "how are you" and a parting wish.
Hafðu það gott!
Take care! / Have a good one! (imperative)
Hvernig hefurðu það? — Ég hef það fínt.
How are you doing? — I'm doing fine.
The subjunctive: hefði
The past subjunctive hefði builds counterfactual perfects — "would have / had (but didn't)."
Ég hefði átt að hringja.
I should have called. (literally 'I would-have ought to call')
Common Mistakes
❌ Við hafum borðað.
Incorrect — the u-ending triggers u-umlaut; 'we have' is höfum.
✅ Við höfum borðað.
We've eaten.
❌ Ég hef komið.
Incorrect for 'I've arrived' — koma is a motion verb and takes the vera-perfect.
✅ Ég er kominn.
I've arrived.
❌ Ég hef hús.
Incorrect for ownership — for 'I own a house' use eiga.
✅ Ég á hús.
I have / own a house.
❌ Hún hefur farið þegar ég kom.
Awkward sequence — for 'had already left' use the past perfect hafði + the right verb's auxiliary.
✅ Hún var farin þegar ég kom.
She had left when I arrived. (motion verb → vera-perfect, agreeing participle)
Key Takeaways
- Principal parts: hafa / hefur / hafði / haft. The present stem vowel is e (hef, hefur), the supine is haft.
- U-umlaut in the við-forms: höfum (have), höfðum (had) — the a becomes ö before a -u ending.
- Hafa is the main perfect auxiliary: hafa
- the invariant supine (ég hef gert). The supine never agrees.
- Motion and change-of-state verbs build the perfect with vera and an agreeing participle instead (ég er kominn, not hef komið).
- For genuine ownership, prefer eiga over hafa (ég á hús, not ég hef hús).
Now practice Icelandic
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Icelandic→Related Topics
- eiga (to own / ought to)A1 — Full conjugation of the preterite-present verb eiga (á / átti / áttu / átt), its possession sense ('have/own', distinct from hafa), the obligation modal eiga að ('be supposed to'), and the past subjunctive ætti.