`Haber y Tener´
Knowing how to use verbs ‘tener’ and ‘haber’ can be difficult. Not all languages have different meaning between this two verbs and usually the translation is ‘to have’. However, in Spanish the verbs tener and haber can have a completely different meaning in some scenarios.
Haber: we use it in sentences with impersonal subject or as an auxiliary verb (i.e. past perfect).
Tener: we use it to describe that we have a possession (I have a house). Another use is as a necessary thing to do (I have to buy some food).
Haber and Tener Conjugation
Below chart shows present, past and future use of verbs HABER and TENER. In the case of impersonal sentence (there is/are), the verb HABER will be done in 3rd person singular.
| HABER | Presente | Imperfecto | Pretérito | Futuro |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | he | había | hube | habré |
| tú | has | habías | hubiste | habrás |
| él/ ella | ha | había | hubo | habrá |
| *impersonal | hay | había | hubo | habrá |
| nosotros | hemos | habíamos | hubimos | habremos |
| vosotros | habéis | habíais | hubisteis | habréis |
| ellos | han | habían | hubieron | habrán |
| TENER | Presente | Imperfecto | Pretérito | Futuro |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | tengo | tenía | tuve | tendré |
| tú | tienes | tenías | tuviste | tendrás |
| él/ ella | tiene | tenía | tuvo | tendrá |
| nosotros | tenemos | teníamos | tuvimos | tendremos |
| vosotros | tenéis | teníais | tuvisteis | tendréis |
| ellos | tienen | tenían | tuvieron | tendrán |
You can find more differences between similar verbs in these the following pages: ser vs. estar, hay and estar.