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i have a book - making questions! 1. I have a book. //this is correct. 2. Have I a book? // question form.. is it correct? 3. I have not a book. // this is also correct 4. Have I not a book? // is this correct? I know that we use "DO" to make questions.. like.. I do have a book. // with emphasis do I have a book? // question with emphasis I do not have a book. // negative declaration. do I not have a book? // question.. I just wonder, can we not have negatives and questions with "do" as.. Have I a book? // we use "Do I have a book." Have I not a book? // we use "Do I not have a book?" are the above sentences incorrect? if so, how.. please enlighten. Thanks. |
Re: i have a book - making questions! The "regular" use of have is the same as any other main verb - as a main verb it can't form contractions questions and negatives, be used in short form answers or carry contrastive emphasis. As such it is now different from any other verb - live for instance - and uses the "dummy" auxiliary do for all grammatical operations which require the auxiliary form : I have a question Do you have any questions? / Do you live in France? I don't have any questions. / I don't live in France. I do have a question! / I do live in France! But it can also act like the verb BE -that is, it has the grammar of an auxiliary even when it's a main verb : I've a question / I'm British Have you any questions? / Are you British I haven't any questions / I'm not British I have a question! / I am British! This form is used - especially by the older generation (see the novels of PD James for someone who uses it consistently), but can often sound a bit archaic and over-formal. Its most common occurrence is in negative expressions like "I've no idea". These are very common whereas the interrogative form, for instance is much rarer. To answer your questions directly : 1-OK, 2-rare but possible, 3 - much more likely in the contracted form unless there was contrastive stress on not - but this would again be rare, 4. terribly dramatic! If used at all, it would be much more likely to be in the contracted form Haven't we a book on butterflies somewhere? - but again, fairly rare. As far as the regular version is concerned, they would all be the normal version, except that again the contracted versions would normally be used : We don't have any books on butterflies / Don't we have a book on butterflies somewhere? Personally I always teach have as a regular verb, and introduce expressions like I've no idea as idiomatic "fixed" phrases. |
Re: i have a book - making questions! Thank you Susan for enlightening me.. I've never heard "have i a book" or "have i not a book" at all ever.. it seems really archiac and old english.. thank you very much.. I really appreciate it.. :) |
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