有
to have; there is
HSK level
- Pinyin
- yǒu
- Part of speech
- verb
- Level
- HSK 1
- Strokes
- 6
- Register
- neutral
Stroke order for 有
有 is written with 6 strokes. The animation replays automatically.
What does 有 mean?
有 (yǒu) is the verb 'to have' and also 'there is / there are.'
Two patterns to learn at HSK 1. Possession: 我有一个哥哥 'I have one older brother.' Existence: 桌子上有一本书 'There is a book on the table' — the location goes first, then 有, then what exists. The unique catch is the negation: 有 is the ONLY Chinese verb that does NOT take 不 (bù). To say 'don't have / there isn't,' you must use 没 (méi): 没有, never 不有. This is a hard rule with no exceptions.
The yes-no question form is either 有…吗? or 有没有…? — 你有没有钱? 'Do you have money?' 有 is also used in the formal opening 'there are…' for statements and as part of dozens of common compounds (有的 'some,' 有时候 'sometimes,' 有意思 'interesting').
Example sentences
我有一个妹妹。
Wǒ yǒu yí ge mèimei.
I have a younger sister.
neutral
桌子上有一本书。
Zhuōzi shàng yǒu yì běn shū.
There's a book on the table.
neutral
你有时间吗？
Nǐ yǒu shíjiān ma?
Do you have time?
spoken
我没有钱。
Wǒ méi yǒu qián.
I don't have any money.
spoken
Common phrases with 有
Don't confuse 有 with
是 links two nouns ('A is B'); 有 expresses possession or existence ('A has B / there is B'). 这是书 'This is a book' vs 我有书 'I have a book.'
FAQ
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