More on haber

I have already written a couple of posts about 'tener', whish is the verb for 'to have' in the sense of possessing something. There is another word for 'to have' though - 'haber'.

Haber is used in forming compound tenses in the same way that 'have' is in English.

he hecho = I have done
ha comido = he/she has eaten
han llamado = they have called

Using different tenses of 'haber' allows more complicated expressions

había llegado = I/he/she had arrived
habiamos puesto = we had put
habría dicho = I/he/she would have said
habrán ido = they will have gone

Note that all the phrases above use the past participle of the second verb, both in Spanish and English.

Haber used alone means 'there is' or 'there are'.

hay mucho viento hoy = there is a lot of wind today
hay una buena tienda allí = there is a good shop there
¿hay pan? = is there (any) bread?
hay tres arboles = there are three trees
había una casa = there was a house
había cuatro gatos = there were four cats
habrá dos sillas = there will be two chairs

Finally for today, like 'tener', 'haber' can be used to say 'have to' or 'must'. In this case it is used with 'de' for a specific person and 'que' in an impersonal sense.

haber de = to have to
ha de = he/she has to, he/she must
hay que = one has to, one must (this is much more common than in English)

Conjugation of the Week - 8. Haber - To Have

This week we have the other word for 'to have' in Spanish. The first one was 'tener'. Tomorrow I will talk about when to use which. See previous posts in this series for more about conjugations.

Tener - To have

he = I have
has = you have (sing. fam.)
ha = he/she/it has, you have (sing. pol.)
hemos = we have
habéis = you have (pl. fam.)
han = they have, you have (pl. pol.)

Most useful verbs

In learning any language there are certain verbs (almost always irregular and difficult ones) that are essential to learn early on. The most important are the words for 'to be', 'to go' and 'to have'. This is because those verbs are used so often both individually, but also because they can be combined with other verbs to make different tenses - past, present or future.

For example, using the verb 'comer' ('to eat') -

I am eating (present, using 'to be') - estoy comiendo
I was eating (past, using 'to be') - estaba comiendo
I am going to eat (future, using ' to go') - voy a comer
I have eaten (past, using 'to have') - he comido

These compound forms are not the only ways to express the past present or future, but they are extremely useful. It is also useful to learn the past participle (e.g eaten/comido) and present participle (e.g. eating/comiendo), but that is something I will cover in another post.

In Spanish there are five verbs to learn, as there are two words for 'to be' and two words for 'to have'.

ir = to go
ser = to be
estar = to be
tener = to have
haber = to have

I have recently covered some of the differences between ser and estar. Over the next few days I will cover some of the differences between haber and tener.

Champions League Final

I have said before that watching the news is a great way to learn Spanish, especially if you have an idea of what is going on in the Spanish speaking world. Well today, the biggest news in Spain is likely to be the UEFA Champions League Final between FC Barcelona and Manchester United. You can find extensive coverage and videos of the build up at http://www.rtve.es/deportes/champions-league/ in Spanish. I won't tell you where to find it in English because you can all use Google. For those with their heads in the sand regarding European football, here is some basic background to make the Spanish easier to follow.

Both teams are on top form form having won their domestic leagues. The match will be played at Wembley, giving United a home advantage although London is a long way from Manchester. Barcelona are being tipped as the favourites, with their star player, Lionel Messi widely regarded as the best player in the world.

The biggest news in Spain outside of sport is the continuing protests in Madrid against the government, the elections and the political system in general. The protesters, under the label 15-M, are mainly young and angry. The economic crisis in Spain is hitting hard, and unemployment is highest amongst the younger generation. Yesterday police charged protesters leading to over 100 injuries.

Useful website - Typically Spanish

Whilst not a Spanish speaking resource as such, the website Typically Spanish is really useful if you plan to learn Spanish from reading the newspaper or watching the television news. Following the news in Spanish, either written or spoken, is much easier if you have an idea of current events in the Spanish speaking world, and of the general political background in the country. This is where it is really useful to have an English language site covering Spanish news.

Typically Spanish seems to be aimed at English speaking ex-pats living in Spain. It has an extensive and up to date news section in English, which is why I am recommending it here. There is a lot more to the site as well - features on Spain, events, a directory and so on. It claims to be the largest English site about Spain on the web, and it may well be true.

Cup and glass words

Using the correct word for drinking vessels can sometimes be a little tricky, because the English words 'cup' and 'glass' translate to three Spanish words: 'taza', 'vaso' and 'copa'.

una taza = a cup (as in a china or ceramic cup or mug with a handle)
un vaso = a glass (but also a paper cup
una copa = a glass (more like a wine glass)

The difference is down to the shape, not the material. A 'taza' always has a handle but a 'vaso' never does. A 'copa' generally refers to a wine glass type shape with a stem - something more elegant than a 'vaso' which is more straight sided like a tumbler. 'Copa' is also used for 'cup' in the sense of a trophy for sports etc. 'World Cup' = 'Copa del Mundo'.

Image: Meawpong3405 / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Book Review - El Arbol de la Ciencia, Pío Baroja

A year or so ago I walked into a Spanish bookshop with no idea what to buy or even who was a well known author in Spain, aside from Cervantes of course. I asked for some advice and told the lady behind the counter I was looking to read something by well known Spanish authors. I ended up walking out with a science fiction book by an author who claims not to like science fiction, a period novel written in 2005 using the Spanish of the 1600s, and this - 'The Tree of Knowledge'.


The book tells the story of the life of a young doctor - Andres Hurtado - from the start of his university studies through a few years of his medical career. It was published in 1911, but set about fifteen years before that. The story takes place partly in Madrid and partly in a small village in the Spanish countryside. I have to say that unlike the last book I reviewed (El Principe de la Niebla) this one is definitely not for beginners to the Spanish language. It is definitely literature, in that is is hard to read and a bit pretentious. Large chunks of the book are devoted to philosophical discussions between the protagonist and his uncle.

I found the book interesting in a historical sense, in that the political divisions that led to the Spanish Civil War are visible (in retrospect) in a book written several decades before it. I also learnt about aspects of Spanish history I was quite ignorant about, like the Spanish American War of 1898.

The story itself though is really hard work due to an almost complete absence of plot (apparently one of Baroja's trademarks). Page after page passes without anything happening in story terms. There are endless detailed descriptions of minor characters who contribute nothing to the story and never reappear later in the book. The aim I think is to give the reader a feeling for what life is like in a relatively poor neighbourhood in nineteenth century Madrid. The author succeeds in this, and produces a work that is unrelentingly bleak and pessimistic in tone.

There are some very favourable reviews of this book on Amazon but for me the lack of plot, and the string of irrelevant characters and the philosophical breaks make for a tedious read. If you want literary writing in Spanish with a heavy dash of philosophy, then Borges, for example,  does it much better to my mind.

Although not for beginners, and not particularly to my taste, this is a well regarded novel and gives a good picture of late 19th century Spain. If you want to read it you can find it on Amazon UK or Amazon US.