How to Say "I have" in Russian: есть and иметь

In English, possession is built around one verb — to have. Russian works differently. Instead of one verb of possession, it uses a construction with the verb есть (to be), and the verb иметь (to have) — though it exists — is almost never used the way English speakers expect.

Let's look at three patterns: when to use есть, when to drop it, and where иметь actually lives.

у меня есть = "I have" (focus on existence)

Use есть when the focus of your sentence is the fact of existence — whether the thing is there at all. The construction is У + Genitive case + есть + Nominative case.

To learn how to form the Genitive case, read this article: Genitive Case: Basics – Nouns and Personal Pronouns.

Examples:

• У меня есть брат. — I have a brother.
• У тебя есть машина? — Do you have a car?
• У вас есть вопросы? — Do you have any questions?
• — Молоко есть? — Есть. — "Is there any milk?" "Yes, there is."

The test: if the question behind your sentence is "does this thing exist in my life, yes or no?" — keep есть.

у меня + ... = describing quantity, quality, or state (no есть)

Drop есть when the focus shifts from "is it there?" to "what is it like?" or "how much of it?". In these cases, existence is already taken for granted — the new information is the description.

Quantity:

• У меня много друзей. — I have a lot of friends.
• У него два сына. — He has two sons.
• У нас мало времени. — We don't have much time.

Qualities and characteristics:

• У неё голубые глаза. — She has blue eyes.
• У него красивая жена. — He has a beautiful wife.
• У меня большая квартира. — I have a big apartment.

States, illnesses, sensations:

• У меня болит голова. — I have a headache.
• У него температура. — He has a fever.
• У меня грипп. — I have the flu.

Events, plans, schedules:

• У меня завтра экзамен. — I have an exam tomorrow.
• У нас сегодня гости. — We have guests today.

Compare:

• У меня есть собака. — I have a dog. (Reporting existence.)
• У меня большая собака. — I have a big dog. (Describing the dog.)

Rule of thumb: If the English version can be rephrased as "do I have one, yes or no?" — keep есть. If it can be rephrased as "what kind?" or "how many?" — drop есть.

иметь = "to have" (but mostly in set phrases)

Russian does have a verb that means to have — иметь. It conjugates normally:

я имею, ты имеешь, он/она имеет, мы имеем, вы имеете, они имеют.

But Russians almost never use it for everyday possession. Saying Я имею машину for "I have a car" is grammatically correct but sounds wrong — like a textbook translation. Native speakers always say У меня есть машина.

Иметь is alive in three specific contexts:

1. Fixed expressions — here you have no choice

• иметь значение — to matter
  • Это не имеет значения. — It doesn't matter.
• иметь право — to have the right
  • Ты не имеешь права так говорить. — You have no right to say that.
• иметь возможность — to have the opportunity
  • Не все имеют возможность путешествовать. — Not everyone has the opportunity to travel.
• иметь в виду — to mean, to have in mind
  • Что ты имеешь в виду? — What do you mean?
• иметь дело с — to deal with
  • Я не хочу иметь с ним дела. — I don't want to deal with him.
• иметь успех — to have success
  • Его новый фильм имеет большой успех. — His new film is a great success.
• иметь опыт — to have experience
  • Она имеет большой опыт работы с детьми. — She has a lot of experience working with children.
• иметь влияние — to have influence
  • Родители имеют большое влияние на детей. — Parents have a great influence on their children.

2. Formal or written Russian

• Компания имеет право расторгнуть договор. — The company has the right to terminate the contract.
• Данное вещество имеет высокую плотность. — This substance has a high density.

In speech this sounds stiff. In contracts, scientific texts, and official writing, it's the norm.

3. With negation

For reasons of idiom, не иметь sounds far more natural than positive иметь:

• Я не имею к этому никакого отношения. — I have nothing to do with this.
  • отношение — attitude, relation
• Я не имею понятия, где он. — I have no idea where he is.
  • понятие — concept, notion, term
• Не имею ничего против. — I have nothing against it.

A small warning: avoid using иметь directly with a person (иметь тебя / её). In colloquial Russian it carries a vulgar second meaning, so for personal contexts always stick with the у… есть construction.

Quick summary

The only way to turn this into instinct is to drill it until you stop thinking about it. Head to the Exercises tab at the top of the page and try the two practice sets that go with this article — you'll feel the difference!