HSK 1
The 有 (yǒu) Sentence in Chinese
有 means both "have" (possession) and "there is / there are" (existence). A person + 有 + thing says someone owns it; a place + 有 + thing says something exists there. The one rule learners must lock in: 有 is negated with 没有, never 不有.
STRUCTURE
Subject or Place + 有 + Object (have)
When to use 有 — and when not
Use it when
- Possession — someone has something: 我有一个哥哥。
- Existence — something is at a place: 桌子上有一本书。
- Saying an amount exists: 我们班有二十个学生。
Don't use it when
- Negating with 不: 有 is always negated as 没有, never 不有 — 我没有钱。
- Equating or identifying two things — use 是: 那是我的老师, not 那有我的老师。
- Linking a subject to an adjective — that needs 很 + adjective, not 有: 今天很冷, not 今天有冷。
Right vs. wrong
我不有时间。
我没有时间。
Negating 有 with 不 instead of 没
有 is the one common verb that never takes 不. Its negation is fixed as 没(有), so "don't have" is always 没有.
有一本书在桌子上。
桌子上有一本书。
English word order in an existence sentence
In an existence sentence the place comes first, then 有, then the thing: 桌子上有一本书. Starting with 有 and trailing the place copies English "there is a book on the table", which doesn't work in Chinese.
Examples
我有一个哥哥。
Wǒ yǒu yí gè gēge.
I have an older brother.
桌子上有一本书。
Zhuōzi shàng yǒu yì běn shū.
There is a book on the table.
我们班有二十个学生。
Wǒmen bān yǒu èrshí gè xuéshēng.
There are twenty students in our class.
我没有时间。
Wǒ méiyǒu shíjiān.
I don't have time.
你有中文书吗?
Nǐ yǒu Zhōngwén shū ma?
Do you have a Chinese book?
Common mistakes
我不有时间。
Wǒ bù yǒu shíjiān.
有 is negated with 没有, never 不: 我没有时间。
有一本书在桌子上。
Yǒu yì běn shū zài zhuōzi shàng.
Existence puts the place first: 桌子上有一本书。
今天有冷。
Jīntiān yǒu lěng.
有 can't link an adjective; use 很: 今天很冷。
Think you've got it?
Write your own 有 sentence and check that grammar point first.
The 有 (yǒu) Sentence FAQ
How do I make 有 negative?
Always with 没有 — 我没有钱 (I have no money). 有 is the one verb that never combines with 不, so 不有 is always wrong.
What is the difference between 有 and 是 for "there is"?
有 says something exists at a place (桌上有书 — there's a book on the table). 是 identifies or equates (桌上的是我的书 — the thing on the table is mine). Use 有 for existence, 是 for identity.
Where does the place go in an existence sentence?
First: place + 有 + thing — 房间里有一张床 (there's a bed in the room). Don't copy English "there is..." order by starting with 有.