"have had a car" vs "had had a car"

Question

"have had a car" vs "had had a car"

Both phrases are correct, but they are used in different contexts. 'Have had a car' is used to indicate the experience of owning a car up to the present moment. 'Had had a car' is used in the past perfect tense to indicate a completed action in the past before another past action.

Last Updated: March 21, 2024

This phrase is used to talk about the experience of owning a car from a point in the past up to now. It indicates a connection between the past and the present.

Examples:

I have had a car for five years.
She has had a car since she got her license.
They have had a car for as long as I can remember.

Alternatives:

have a car
own a car
possess a car
have owned a car
have been driving a car

This phrase is used in the past perfect tense to indicate that the ownership of a car was completed before another past event. It shows the sequence of events in the past.

Examples:

She had had a car before she moved to the city.
By the time he got his license, he had had a car for two years.
They had had a car until they decided to go car-free.

Alternatives:

had a car
owned a car
possessed a car
had been driving a car
had been car owners

Answer 1

have had a car

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to indicate the experience of owning a car up to the present moment.

Answer 2

had had a car

This phrase is correct and used in the past perfect tense to indicate a completed action in the past before another past action.

"have had a car" vs "had had a car"

have had a car

had had a car

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