Hebrew does not have a verb "to have" like English does. Instead, it uses the construction יֵשׁ לְ (yesh le — "there is to...") for "have" and אֵין לְ (eyn le — "there isn't to...") for "don't have". This is one of the most important grammar patterns in the language.
The Full Conjugation
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| יֵשׁ לִי | Yesh li | I have |
| אֵין לִי | Eyn li | I don't have |
| יֵשׁ לְךָ | Yesh lecha | You have (m) |
| יֵשׁ לָךְ | Yesh lach | You have (f) |
| אֵין לְךָ | Eyn lecha | You don't have (m) |
| אֵין לָךְ | Eyn lach | You don't have (f) |
| יֵשׁ לוֹ | Yesh lo | He has |
| יֵשׁ לָהּ | Yesh la | She has |
| אֵין לוֹ | Eyn lo | He doesn't have |
| אֵין לָהּ | Eyn la | She doesn't have |
| יֵשׁ לָנוּ | Yesh lanu | We have |
| אֵין לָנוּ | Eyn lanu | We don't have |
| יֵשׁ לָהֶם | Yesh lahem | They have (m) |
| יֵשׁ לָהֶן | Yesh lahen | They have (f) |
Key insight: יֵשׁ and אֵין don't change form — only the preposition (לִי, לְךָ, לוֹ, etc.) changes to indicate who has or doesn't have something.
Examples in Context
| Hebrew | Transliteration | English |
|---|---|---|
| יֵשׁ לִי כֶּלֶב | Yesh li kelev | I have a dog |
| אֵין לִי מְכוֹנִית | Eyn li mechonit | I don't have a car |
| יֵשׁ לִי שָׁלֹשׁ אָחִיּוֹת | Yesh li shalosh achayot | I have three sisters |
| יֵשׁ לוֹ בַּיִת גָּדוֹל | Yesh lo bayit gadol | He has a big house |
| אֵין לָהּ זְמַן | Eyn la zman | She doesn't have time |
| יֵשׁ לָנוּ בְּעָיָה | Yesh lanu be'aya | We have a problem |