To have an experience vs To have experience

Both phrases are correct, but they are used in different contexts. 'To have an experience' is used when referring to a specific event or occurrence, while 'to have experience' is used when talking about possessing knowledge or skill in a particular area.

Last updated: March 23, 2024

To have an experience

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English when referring to a specific event or occurrence that someone has gone through.

This phrase is used when talking about a particular event or situation that someone has encountered or participated in. It emphasizes the individual nature of the experience.

Examples:

I want to have an experience of skydiving.
She had an amazing experience traveling through Europe.
To have an experience like that is truly unforgettable.
Having an experience of volunteering in a foreign country can be life-changing.
He hopes to have an experience that will broaden his horizons.

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In the wake of my breakup, I allowed myself to have an experience that gave me reason to be hopeful about the future again.
It is too late for people to have an experience of the European Union as a real help.
And indeed, do we need anyone to intermediate for us in order to have an experience with a spiritual divine?
I want the audience to have gone through an experience.
...Professor Lightcap is about to have an enlightening experience.
I went even further by seeing if I could use a head-mounted display, the Oculus Rift, as modified by Fighting Walrus, to have an immersive experience controlling the drone.
If I know the habits of our leading Lochester citizens Professor Lightcap is about to have an enlightening experience.
But the main aim is not just to learn about the major faiths, but to have something of an experience of faith.
You know, it's better to have an animal experience an allergic reaction to a certain perfume, so that you don't have to.
Set an example and ensure that we no longer have to experience such an unacceptable situation.
Another consequence of resale rights is that the galleries have started to experience an even tougher time and are finding it difficult to operate, which means that the prices which they are able to offer young artists have gone down.
I think this is an experience I need to have.
So we're shifting to an experience economy, where experiences are becoming the predominant economic offering.
A constituent has contacted me to express his concern about an experience he had whilst returning to the UK at the Channel Tunnel customs.
I was actually drawing on an experience from my own childhood to inspire her.
She's supposed to write about an experience of some significance.
What an experience like that does to the rest of your life.
An experience which I don't hesitate strongly to recommend.
I was trying to recreate an experience that I had.That is all.
No one wants to revisit an experience like that.

Alternatives:

to experience
to go through an experience
to undergo an experience
to live through an experience
to encounter an experience

To have experience

This phrase is also correct and commonly used in English when referring to possessing knowledge or skill in a particular area.

This phrase is used when talking about someone's accumulated knowledge or skill in a specific field or activity. It emphasizes the expertise or familiarity someone has in a particular area.

Examples:

She has experience in marketing.
He has a lot of experience working with children.
To succeed in this job, you need to have experience in project management.
Having experience in customer service is a valuable asset.
They are looking for candidates who have experience in software development.

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And you seem to have experience in getting rid of people and not getting caught.
Firstly, because, according to Amendment No 4, the competent authority will have to have experience in the loading and unloading of bulk carriers.
The liaison magistrate referred to in paragraph 1 is required to have experience of working with Eurojust and adequate knowledge of judicial cooperation and how Eurojust operates.
Crowder has a long history of run-ins with the law and is known to have experience with explosives and has thrown his questionable muscle behind my opponent in this election.
It is very difficult to find the balance between these two requirements, partly because we are in unknown territory: terrorism is too recent a phenomenon for us to be able to rely on precedents, or to have experience from which to learn.
I thought you wanted to have experiences.
I mean, when I was your age, nobody tweeted, yet we managed to have experiences.
Therefore, since you need to write and you need to have experiences to write about, you have to learn to do more with less.
The reason that everything was better back when everything was worse is that when everything was worse, it was actually possible for people to have experiences that were a pleasant surprise.
Economic policy-makers seem to have learned from experience.
Good to have your experience on our side.
I want to have that experience myself.
After a year, he started to have strange experiences.
It's not uncommon for militia members to have military experience.
I didn't want any other person to have to experience what I did.
Our common Parliament and our common Union are the result of our endeavours never again to have to experience the horrors that totalitarian systems bring.
In the wake of my breakup, I allowed myself to have an experience that gave me reason to be hopeful about the future again.
I guess you don't have to have previous experience.
If I'm going to have the experience of a family, it should be as authentic as possible.
- And now it is time for both of us to have the experience of being with other people, finally.

Alternatives:

to be experienced in
to possess experience in
to be knowledgeable in
to be skilled in
to have expertise in

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To have an experience vs To have experience