Word
hast
US/ˈhæst/
UK/hˈeɪst/
Definition
v. an old form of the word 'have' used with 'thou' (you).
v. the second-person singular present indicative of 'have', used exclusively with the pronoun 'thou'.
Examples
“Thou hast a kind heart.”
“In the old play, the king tells his son that he hast the strength of ten men.”
“While modern readers often find the conjugation difficult, recognizing that 'hast' corresponds to 'have' is essential for understanding the poetry and drama of the Elizabethan era.”
Examples
simple
“Thou hast a kind heart.”
contextual
“In the old play, the king tells his son that he hast the strength of ten men.”
complex
“While modern readers often find the conjugation difficult, recognizing that 'hast' corresponds to 'have' is essential for understanding the poetry and drama of the Elizabethan era.”
Usage
Used only with the archaic pronoun 'thou'; it functions as the singular equivalent of 'have' in Early Modern English.
Teaching tip
This form is encountered in Shakespeare, the King James Bible, and historical poetry; students should recognize it but never use it in modern speech.
Etymology
From Middle English hast, havest, second-person present singular form of haven, from Old English hæfst, hafast, second-person present singular form of habban, from Proto-Germanic habaisi, second-person present singular form of habjaną; equivalent to have + -est. Compare German and West Frisian hast.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Synonyms
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/hast