Parts of Speech & Usage

I am 20 / I am hungry / I am right (be, not have)

2 min read

In many languages, you "have" an age, hunger or cold. In English, these things describe you, so you are them: English uses be.

1. Age

I am 25. / I am 25 years old. (not "I have 25 years")
My son is three.
How old are you? (not "How many years do you have?")

Say "25" or "25 years old", but not "I am 25 years".

2. Hungry, thirsty, cold, hot

I am hungry. (not "I have hungry")
Are you thirsty?
Close the window, I am cold.

For the weather, the subject is it: It is cold today.

3. Afraid, right, wrong, lucky, ashamed

She is afraid of dogs. (not "She has fear of dogs")
You are right. / I was wrong. (not "You have reason")
We were lucky. (not "We had chance")
He is ashamed of what he said. (not "He has shame")

4. But an illness or a pain → have

Use have with a noun: an illness, a pain, or something you own.

I have a cold. (an illness) / I am cold. (the temperature)
She has a headache.
He has a fever.

5. Common mistakes

❌ I have 30 years.
✅ I am 30. / I am 30 years old.

❌ I have hungry.
✅ I am hungry.

❌ You have reason.
✅ You are right.

💡 Tip

Age → be: I am 30, How old are you?
hungry, thirsty, cold, hot, afraid, right, wrong, lucky → be
An illness or a pain → have: I have a cold, I have a headache

Test your knowledge 📝

Question 1 sur 10Score: 0/10

My daughter ___ six years old.

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Parts of Speech & Usage

I am 20 / I am hungry / I am right (be, not have)

2 min read

In many languages, you "have" an age, hunger or cold. In English, these things describe you, so you are them: English uses be.

1. Age

I am 25. / I am 25 years old. (not "I have 25 years")
My son is three.
How old are you? (not "How many years do you have?")

Say "25" or "25 years old", but not "I am 25 years".

2. Hungry, thirsty, cold, hot

I am hungry. (not "I have hungry")
Are you thirsty?
Close the window, I am cold.

For the weather, the subject is it: It is cold today.

3. Afraid, right, wrong, lucky, ashamed

She is afraid of dogs. (not "She has fear of dogs")
You are right. / I was wrong. (not "You have reason")
We were lucky. (not "We had chance")
He is ashamed of what he said. (not "He has shame")

4. But an illness or a pain → have

Use have with a noun: an illness, a pain, or something you own.

I have a cold. (an illness) / I am cold. (the temperature)
She has a headache.
He has a fever.

5. Common mistakes

❌ I have 30 years.
✅ I am 30. / I am 30 years old.

❌ I have hungry.
✅ I am hungry.

❌ You have reason.
✅ You are right.

💡 Tip

Age → be: I am 30, How old are you?
hungry, thirsty, cold, hot, afraid, right, wrong, lucky → be
An illness or a pain → have: I have a cold, I have a headache

Test your knowledge 📝

Question 1 sur 10Score: 0/10

My daughter ___ six years old.

Discover the app: Shaky English

Join 100,000 people who are improving their English skills on the Shaky English app

Other similar rules

Common confusions

Insure vs. Ensure vs. Assure

Common mistakes

The Subjunctive in English

Agreement rules

Using “wish” + correct tense

Common confusions

Discreet vs. Discrete

Discreet and discrete sound exactly the same, and both are real words, so a spellchecker will not catch a mix-up. 1. Discreet → careful, not attracting attention Please be discreet: nobody knows...

Conjugation

Big houses, a red car (adjectives never take -s and go before the noun)

Agreement rules

So vs. Such

Common confusions

Your vs. You're

Your shows that something belongs to you. Your phone is ringing. (The phone belongs to you.) I love your new haircut. Is this your water bottle? You're is the short form of you are. You'...

Agreement rules