Word
haven't
Phoneticshavent
Definition
v. the short way to say 'have not'. You use it to say that you do not possess something or that an action has not happened yet.
v. the contracted form of 'have not'. Functions as an auxiliary verb in the present perfect tense or as a main verb indicating possession in certain dialects.
Examples
“I haven't seen that movie yet.”
“We haven't finished the report because the data arrived late this morning.”
“While some critics argue the project is a failure, the developers haven't yet released the final performance metrics that would prove otherwise.”
Examples
simple
“I haven't seen that movie yet.”
contextual
“We haven't finished the report because the data arrived late this morning.”
complex
“While some critics argue the project is a failure, the developers haven't yet released the final performance metrics that would prove otherwise.”
Usage
Used in speech and informal writing; the full form 'have not' is preferred in formal academic or professional contexts.
Pitfall
I haven't no money.
I haven't any money.
Avoid using 'haven't' with other negative words like 'no' or 'nothing', as this creates a double negative.
Etymology
have + -n't
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Collocations
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/havent